03 March 2025
N-methyl-D-aspartate receptors (NMDARs) are tetrameric ion channels that play critical roles in the development and function of the central nervous system and have been extensively studied. Conventional NMDARs, composed of two GluN1 and two GluN2 subunits, require glutamate and glycine for their activation, which is essential for neuronal plasticity and regulation of synaptic strength. In addition to GluN1 and GluN2, NMDRs can also incorporate the recently discovered glycine binding GluN3A subunit. However, due to the lack of selective pharmacological modulators, the exact role of GluN3A-containing receptors in brain circuits and systems remains largely unclear. Nevertheless, the presence of GluN3A in different areas of the brain, including the ventral hippocampus, medial habenula, amygdala, thalamus, and cortical somatostatin-expressing interneurons, along with evidence from knockout experiments, implies a possible link to psychiatric processes associated with cognition and emotion.
To increase our understanding of GluN3A's impact on physiology and behaviors related to symptoms of mental illness, we invite scientific experts to submit research proposals addressing the following question:
Using suitable model systems, how would you propose to elucidate and validate the putative role of GluN3A in symptoms related to mental illness?
The Neuroscience & Mental Health Discovery Research team at Boehringer Ingelheim will review the submitted proposals. If selected as a winner, your ideas will be pursued collaboratively, and you will receive funding of up to 250,000 euros.
Submit your ideas now, as your proposals can only be accepted if they arrive by April 29, 2025, 11:59 pm PST.
No registration required
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About our opn2EXPERTS question:
Using suitable model systems, how would you propose to elucidate and validate the putative role of GluN3A in symptoms related to mental illness?
With ambitious questions such as this, we share precisely formulated scientific questions with the research community as part of our opn2EXPERTS program. Together with winning teams, we intend to explore novel solutions for discovery research that will ultimately benefit the needs of patients.
About opnMe:
opnMe.com, the open innovation portal of Boehringer Ingelheim, fosters science and collaboration initiatives in areas of high unmet medical need. As part of our first pillar, the “Molecules to Order”, we share well-characterized tool compounds free of charge with no IP strings attached. These are complemented by “Molecules for Collaboration” where we offer access to unprecedented, often unpublished molecules, together with an attractive funding package. Interested scientists are invited to submit testable research hypotheses with these assets in novel diseases or combinations. With our “opn2EXPERTS” program, we enlist scientific advice on key biologic issues to fuel further drug discovery and deliver novel solutions that benefit unmet patient needs. Learn more about our recent call for targeting the gut-liver axis in cirrhosis. Our opn2TALENTS PostDoc grants provide an opportunity for high-caliber talents to pitch their scientific approaches for well-defined research questions to conduct their research at one of our discovery research sites.