Diane Lipscombe

Lipscombe is an international leader in brain research, focusing on calcium channels and synaptic transmission. She discovered that regulation of presynaptic calcium channels by G proteins is responsible for auto inhibition of synaptic transmission. Her insightful analysis of Cav2.2 calcium channels revealed unexpectedly that molecular isoforms produced by alternative splicing of mRNA control regulation of pain signals by endogenous opioid peptide neurotransmitters as well as by morphine and other opiate drugs given for pain control. Her work shows elegantly that alternative splicing of mRNA is a major regulator of calcium channel properties and of synaptic function and pharmacology.