Thomas Südhof is interested in how synapses form in the brain, how their properties are specified, and how they accomplish the rapid and precise signaling essential to information processing. To study the molecular basis of neural circuits and synaptic information transfer, Südhof and his team use an interdisciplinary approach ranging from structural biology and mouse genetics to electrophysiology and mouse behavior. Their overall aim is to contribute to the understanding of disorders in which synaptic transmission is impaired, including Alzheimer’s disease, schizophrenia, and autism.
New HHMI research reveals how three proteins help brain cells synchronize the release of chemical signals. A similar interaction may play a role in how cells secrete insulin and airway mucus, too. The Nobel Assembly at the Karolinska Institute announced that HHMI investigators Randy W. Schekman and Thomas C. Südhof, and Yale’s James E. Rothman are the recipients of the 2013 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for their discoveries of machinery regulating vesicle traffic, a major transport system in our cells. HHMI investigator Thomas C. Südhof of Stanford University and Richard H. Scheller of Genentech will share the Lasker Basic Medical Research Award for discoveries concerning the molecular machinery and regulatory mechanism that underlie the rapid release of neurotransmitters.