Neurobiology

Research

Researchers at the Neurobiology Laboratory For Brain Aging and Mental Health are fascinated by what impairs neuronal functions in the stressed, aged and Alzheimer’s disease brain and how this impairment can be prevented with specific regard to the involvement of mitochondria.
A primary area of research is broadly focused on aging and Alzheimer's disease (AD), with the general goals of elucidating factors that regulate the aging process and AD pathogenesis and pursuing translational approaches that will be useful in the prevention and/or treatment of the disease. Our approach to investigating research questions involves the use of complementary cellular, biochemical and molecular techniques to analyze relationships in human tissues, wild-type and transgenic rodent models, cell lines and advanced human neuronal models (iPSC-derived neurons and induced neurons by direct conversion of human fibroblasts).

Head of the Neurobiology Laboratory For Brain Aging and Mental Health:
Prof. Dr. Anne Eckert, ORCID :0000-0002-9341-3669
See also Google Scholar: Anne Eckert
https://scholar.google.ch/citations?hl=en&user=I-EiX2kAAAAJ

Current research interests include:

  • Bio-energetics - Role of mitochondria in neurodegeneration and cognition: Alzheimer's disease, aging, stress and stress-related psychiatric disorders
  • Energy metabolism, redox signalling
  • Translational approaches: Biomarker research in psychiatric disorders (Alzheimer, stress-associated mood disorders)
  • Neuropharmacology – Mode of action of antidementive drugs targeting mitochondria
     

Independant project leader:
Dr. Amandine Grimm, ORCID: 0000-0003-3323-1756
See also Google Scholar: Amandine Grimm
https://scholar.google.ch/citations?hl=en&pli=1&user=3clBMVsAAAAJ

Current research focus :

  • Role of the endoplasmic reticulum-mitochondria interaction in neurodegenerative disorders, namely in Tau protein-related frontotemporal dementia
  • Intracellular cholesterol homeostasis and neurosteroidogenesis in tauopathies.
  • Modulation of mitophagy in cellular models of Alzheimer’s disease

Visit us at Neurobiologie psychiatrischer Erkrankungen