When the UCLA-CDU Dana Center for Neuroscience and Society was established last spring, it paved the way for a new kind of scientific partnership, one where new visions for relevant neuroscience research could be led by the public.
Through the center’s annual seed grants, interdisciplinary collaborative teams are able to engage in projects that involve the public, as partners, in developing neuroscience projects that could be directed at addressing real-world challenges.
Here are snapshots of three collaborations that launched this year, highlighting the expertise and perspectives of UCLA Life Sciences’ researchers.
Kacie Deters, a neuroscientist and assistant professor of integrative biology and physiology, studies the progression of dementia and cognitive aging. Her research is focused on identifying factors that may increase risk and accelerate cognitive decline in communities at highest risk.
Deters is collaborating on a Dana Center seed grant with UCLA colleagues–Courtney Thomas Tobin, associate professor of community health sciences, and Jennifer Adrissi, assistant professor of neurology–to build lasting connections with residents of South Los Angeles, a community generally at higher risk for developing health complications.
Through a series of outreach events, which started last month, they will share information about brain health and learn about the community’s interests and concerns.
“The event was amazing, and went really well,” says Deters. “The work is a joy, because we really like working together.”
In June, the researchers will be piloting their first Brain Health Fair. Building on lessons learned this year, they plan to host a much larger event next year.
“Generally, there isn’t funding for this kind of work,” says Deters. “So having a seed grant like this is really helpful.”
“The goal of this grant is for us to start working together, to figure out the best way to engage with the community,” says Deters. “We’re starting small, with plans to expand, hopefully bringing in other researchers who aren’t already doing this work.”
As extreme heat days and noise pollution are increasing in urban areas, like South L.A., Valerie Tornini–an assistant professor who has joint appointments in the Department of Integrative Biology and Physiology and in the Institute for Society and Genetics–has a Dana Center seed grant that will initially focus on how these environmental stressors can affect brain development and behavior.
In her lab, Tornini’s studies the earliest stages of embryonic development in zebrafish (a species commonly used in research) to see how environmental factors and genes work together to form the brain and the rest of the nervous system.
The lab experiments will address fundamental biological questions: Can exposure to extreme heat and noise affect the circuits that control the ability to move? Can it disrupt normal sleep patterns? Can it lead to hyperactivity? And how do these environmental stressors affect molecules, cells, and circuits in the brain?
Zebrafish and humans share common genes, cells, and circuits that function similarly during embryonic development. This is one of many reasons that make them good laboratory models for understanding human development and disease.
As lab results emerge, Tornini will collaborate with Joanne Suarez–a community health scholar and founder of Prospera Institute–to start introducing themselves to South L.A. residents and community organizations to build trust and partnerships with them.
Tornini and Suarez aim to share lab findings in ways that are clear and relevant to South L.A. residents, then from their feedback, align future research with the community’s interests and needs.
Stephanie White, a neuroscientist and professor of integrative biology and physiology, is co-leading a seed grant project with Sung-Jae Lee, a professor-in-residence in the Department of Psychiatry and Biobehavioral Sciences.
The first phase of their project will establish a hummingbird garden on UCLA’s campus, creating a peaceful space for caregivers and patients coping with various neurological and psychiatric conditions. This garden will also serve as a site to study how interactions with nature might affect the well-being of individuals or help to build connections across generations.
Drawing on White’s research expertise on the biological basis of bird vocalization, they will also examine the potential for studying hummingbird vocal communication in the presence of humans.
As White and Lee advance their project and findings at UCLA, they plan to partner with key leaders, with expertise in working with South L.A. residents (and expert community gardeners) to extend their study and findings to South L.A. communities.
“The first lesson that I learned is that I could really learn a lot from communities in South Los Angeles,” says White. “Of course I engage with our community here at UCLA, but to go beyond that, the Dana Center is already having an effect on how I spend my time, and how I think about the impact of what I’m doing.”
UCLA-CDU Dana Center seed grants are providing neuroscientists with the incentive and resources to take their research to the next level, encouraging a new vision for collaboration that works–with and for–local communities.