The Department of Neuroscience at the Cyprus Institute of Neurology & Genetics (CING) has secured funding of €737,000 from the Research and Innovation Foundation (RIF), in collaboration with the University of Nicosia and the Cyprus University of Technology (CUT), to establish a state-of-the-art Experimental Electrophysiology Unit.

According to CING's announcement, the 30-month program is part of the funding under the RIF's “Research Infrastructures” and specifically the “Small Infrastructures” initiative.

It is noted that the Experimental Electrophysiology Unit is expected to be operational by December 2024 and will include equipment for recordings from cells, voltage-gated channels, peripheral nerve recordings, brain slice recordings, and recordings from different brain cell types in in vivo conditions.

The systems to be installed in the unit will be used in experiments related to models of neuropathies and brain disorders, as well as in elucidating basic mechanisms of brain function. The Experimental Electrophysiology Unit is expected to provide insights into the effects of various treatments on the functioning of the peripheral and central nervous systems.

As stated, the Department of Neuroscience at CING is internationally pioneering in the development of gene therapy for genetic disorders of the central and peripheral nervous systems using viral vectors. Studies by the department have already shown that the expression of the connexin 32 gene in experimental models of Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease, specifically the X-linked form CMT1X, can rescue the model from the characteristic demyelination observed in this neuropathy. In this context, the current program will study the use of focused ultrasound to optimise the ability of viral vectors to enter the peripheral nervous system, followed by an evaluation of the therapeutic efficacy of the virus with and without the use of focused ultrasound on sciatic nerve function by recording conduction velocity.

Additionally, in an experimental brain leukodystrophy model where connexin 47 expression will occur in oligodendrocytes, the functionality of gap junctions composed of connexins and the electrophysiological properties of oligodendrocytes will be evaluated using patch clamp techniques.

Furthermore, the therapeutic effects of drugs used to combat diabetes and hypercholesterolemia will be studied in an experimental model of Alzheimer's disease. The therapeutic efficacy of these drugs will be investigated using in vitro and in vivo recordings of neuronal activity following their administration to the model.

The research will be conducted under the supervision of Prof. Kleopas Kleopa, Director of the Department of Neuroscience, and Dr. Alexia Kayava, Associate Scientist and researcher of the department with expertise in experimental neurophysiology, in collaboration with Dr. Elena Panayiotou, Associate Scientist of the Department of Neuropathology at CING, with partners from the University of Nicosia and CUT.

Prof. Kleopa emphasises, according to the announcement, that “the new Unit will be accessible to other research teams and scientists from academic and research centres across the country, as it will be a unique research infrastructure at the national level with multiple utilisation capabilities, whose results will provide a new dimension to research in the field of neurophysiology.”