Claus Juul L酶land
Molecular Lego: Building the protein complex responsible for dopamine regulation
Has received a Professorship grant of DKK 20,000,000 from the Lundbeck Foundation.
The stimulating and rewarding effects of cocaine are caused by cocaine鈥檚 impact on the dopamine transporter. This is also the process that leads to cocaine addiction. In his earlier research, Claus Juul L酶land mapped the structure of the dopamine transporter and showed how cocaine binds precisely to it: when cocaine is consumed, the dopamine transporter is blocked, preventing dopamine from being reabsorbed into the presynaptic neurons. But blocking the dopamine transporter is also believed to increase the release of dopamine.
A Lundbeck Foundation researcher will work with American colleagues on refining a substance to inhibit the narcotic effect of cocaine. The aim is to develop a drug to treat people trapped in addiction to cocaine.
However, the molecular mechanisms behind this process have not yet been mapped. Claus Juul L酶land and his research team now aim to do so using a cryo-electron microscope 鈥 the world鈥檚 most powerful microscope. This instrument can map in great detail how the dopamine transporter interacts with other proteins inside the cell. In the lab, this is done by creating a kind of molecular Lego, in which tiny building blocks of protein molecules are assembled to provide insight into the signalling pathways.
At present, no treatment exists for cocaine addiction, but the results of the new research project could potentially open up possibilities for developing targeted therapies.
鈥淚f in this project we succeed in mapping the role of the dopamine transporter in dopamine release, we will have therapeutic targets that can be used to regulate the release of dopamine and thereby perhaps reduce the effect of cocaine,鈥 says Claus Juul L酶land, professor at the Department of Neuroscience at the University of Copenhagen.
鈥淚n principle, this could also allow regulation of addiction to other substances and stimuli that release dopamine and thus trigger reward in the brain 鈥 for example gambling addiction, internet addiction, alcohol, and food.鈥
Read more about the granting of this year鈥檚 professorships below:
The Lundbeck Foundation is now awarding the LF Professorships 2025 to five research projects, all of which have the potential to push...
