The Magnusson lab's main goal is to find interventions for aging that will help to maintain the quality of life into old age. Ultimately we want to discover the mechanisms underlying the age-related changes in the N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) receptor, which is very important for the formation of memories. This receptor uses glutamate as a transmitter, and shows greater declines in binding of glutamate with increased age than any of the other glutamate receptors. They are also interested in helping to better understand the function of the NMDA receptor in different brain regions and hope to determine exactly what role NMDA receptors in the prefrontal cortex play in different forms of memory.