Glia Girls

Progressive neurological diseases include symptoms that affect people’s movement, balance, and communication ability and can cause difficulties with breathing and swallowing. Autosomal dominant Hereditary spastic paraplegia (AD-HSP) affects 3.6 out of every 100,000 individuals globally each year. Current treatments only target its symptoms and do not provide a long-term solution. Mutations in SPASTIN are the most common cause of AD-HSP. Our project aims to utilize live-cell imaging and a 3D electron microscopy technique called Serial Block Face – Scanning Electron Microscopy (SBF-SEM) to understand the cellular mechanism behind this disease. The findings will contribute to the fundamental understanding of cellular interactions that may mediate AD-HSP, which could unlock the possibility of designing specific drugs targeting the sub-perineural glia at the onset of the disease.