Innovative research reshaping our understanding of movement
UC Davis assistant professor Theanne Griffith is reshaping how scientists understand proprioceptors, a specialized class of sensory neurons traditionally viewed as simple motion detectors. Her lab’s work reveals that these neurons play a far more dynamic role, acting as key regulators of motor network development, maintenance, and repair.
Our ability to know where our body and limbs are—without looking—is called proprioception. It’s what helps us move smoothly and with purpose. This sense can be weakened by conditions like ALS, nerve damage and aging. Interestingly, activating the nerves responsible for proprioception can actually help the body recover after spinal cord injuries.
Proprioceptors, which detect muscle movement, are nerve cells that rely on a protein called Piezo2 to start the signal, but what happens next in the process is still unclear.
Griffith’s research focuses on three proteins—NaV1.1, NaV1.6, and NaV1.7—that help carry electrical signals in proprioceptors. The team has already shown that NaV1.1 helps keep signals steady, and new data suggests NaV1.6 helps start the signal. The role of NaV1.7 is still unknown. People (and mice) who lack Nav1.7 don't feel pain, but move normally. Notably, there are thousands of disease causing mutations associated with the genes that encode Nav1.1 and Nav1.6, and those mutations result in a variety of symptoms, including motor delays and dysfunction. Those symptoms have been attributed to channel dysfunction in the brain, but Griffith’s work shows a potential involvement of proprioceptive impairments.
To figure out how each of these proteins works, the researchers will use a mix of behavioral tests, lab experiments, and advanced imaging. Their goal is to understand how these proteins affect movement and how they might be involved in diseases where proprioception is impaired. Ultimately, this work could lead to better treatments for people with movement disorders or nerve damage.
In 2024, Griffith was selected from among 126 early-career researchers from 53 institutions to receive the 2024 Sloan Research Fellowship in Neuroscience, which honors creativity, innovation and research excellence. In 2025, she received the McKnight Scholar Award and was also named a Freeman Hrabowski Scholar by the Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI), recognizing her potential to lead transformative research and foster inclusive lab environments.
Major Awards FY 2024-2025:
- A Novel role for NaV1.1 in Mammalian Thermosensation
- Characterization of Non-Epileptic Phenotypes of SCN2A PTCs
- The Electrical Basis of Proprioceptive Signaling