Modulation of MAP kinase signaling cascades in neurological disorders.

Jokubas Ziburkus, University of Houston, USA

Jokūbas Žiburkus and Anupam Hazra

Mammalian mitogen-activated protein kinases (MAPKs) signaling cascades are key players in activity of multiple biological systems. Regulation of MAPK levels is a complex and dynamic process and dysregulated MAPK is associated with the development of several diseases. In the central nervous system, modifications in normal MAPK signaling could be critical to unlocking many neurological disorders. Several recent studies indicate that changes in MAPK activity and downstream phosphorylation of Erk are intricately correlated with the states of neural hyper-excitability in the brain, such as experienced during epileptic seizures. Inhibition of MAPK or modulation of MAPK through Raf kinases and subsequent modulation of Erk activity can reduce epileptic-like activity in several models of epilepsy. This talk will summarize our own and others’ recent findings on modulation of MAPK activity in models of epilepsy. Current studies and future investigations on the mechanisms of MAPK pathway modulation and the associated neuropathologies, like epilepsy, may provide novel targets for dynamic molecular treatment of neurodegenerative disorders.