Dr. Yuriy M. Usachev, Professor of Pharmacology and Anesthesia, has been awarded a 5-year $1.84 million National Institute of Health (NIH) R01 Research Grant entitled “Molecular mechanisms and functions of mitochondrial Ca²⁺ transport in neurons”. Dr. Anil Chauhan, an Associate Professor of Internal Medicine at the University of Iowa, is a Co-Investigator on this grant. This project will examine the roles of the mitochondrial transporters MCU and MCUb in mitochondrial Ca²⁺ transport, Ca²⁺ signaling, synaptic plasticity and excitotoxicity in neurons, and test the idea that deletion of MCU, but not of MCUb, provides neuroprotection in experimental stroke. These studies may lead to the development of new therapeutic strategies for neuroprotection in stroke and neurodegenerative disorders.  The grant includes a subcontract to collaborate with Dr. Yuriy Kirichok at University of California-San Francisco.