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Congratulations to Dr. Julie Secombe on being a recipient of the Einstein “2030 Seed Fund” award.

The title of her proposal is “Defining the molecular and cellular basis of seizures caused by loss of the chromatin modifier KDM5”.

The KDM5 family of transcriptional regulators are important regulators of brain development and function. as pathogenic genetic variants in three of the four human KDM5 paralogs are associated with disorders characterized by intellectual disability (ID), seizures, and other behavioral features. This proposal uses the animal model Drosophila melanogaster to investigate the link between KDM5 and seizures by combining genetic and genomic tools, cell biological analyses, and behavioral assays. This will provide fundamental etiological insights into KDM5-induced seizures and is a critical first step in guiding the design of better treatments for those affected by pathogenic variants in KDM5 family genes.