Search | Research Portal

1 - 10 of 93 results

Using MG reprogramming to investigate the decrement of neuroregeneration with advancing age in the fast-aging killifish. KU Leuven

Neurodegenerative diseases associated with aging have an increasing prevalence in our greying society. As adult mammals lack the robust capacity to regenerate lost or damaged neurons, agerelated deterioration of the central nervous system (CNS) seriously constrains life quality. In contrast to mammals, short-lived killifish, which show aging characteristics similar to humans, have the remarkable ability to repair damage in the adult CNS. Upon ...

Human and murine macrophages with a stable alternative activation as a therapeutic tool to promote neuroregeneration. Hasselt University

Niels HELLINGS, Sven HENDRIX

Immunology & Infection, Morphology

Worldwide, spinal cord injuries (SCI) are a major cause of morbidity, mortality and reduced quality of life. Until now no regenerative therapy for SCI is available and standard care of SCI patients includes primarily the administration of immunosuppressant drugs and rehabilitation. Thus, new therapeutic strategies are desperately needed. After SCI, pro-inflammatory macrophages dominate the spinal cord and exert detrimental effects by ...

Human and murine macrophages with a stable alternative activation as a therapeutic tool to promote neuroregeneration. University of Antwerp

Peter Ponsaerts

Laboratory for Experimental Hematology (LEH), Vaccine & Infectious Disease Institute (VAXINFECTIO)

Mast cell proteases as modulators of the glial scar to promote neuroregeneration after trauma. Hasselt University

Sven HENDRIX

Morphology

Axon regeneration after trauma in the mammalian adult central nervous system (CNS) is restricted due to numerous factors, such as the lack of growth-promoting factors, the low intrinsic capacity of neurons to survive from damage and, most importantly, the presence of growth-inhibitory factors. The most potent inhibitory components in the damaged CNS are molecules of the extracellular matrix (ECM), such as chondroitin sulphate proteoglycans ...

Functional characterization of Drosophila models of SEPTIN11-associated neurodegeneration. University of Antwerp

Ayşe Candayan Niron

VIB CMN - Molecular Neurogenomics

Hereditary ataxias are severe neurodegenerative disorders characterized by progressive loss of coordination in voluntary muscle movement. Due to clinical and genetic heterogeneity, the overall genetic diagnosis rate is between 55-65% suggesting there might be disease-causing genes yet to be identified. Previously, while screening a cohort with early-onset severe neurodegeneration, I identified the SEPTIN11 gene as a novel disease-causing ...

Neuron-glia biology in neurodegeneration. KU Leuven

Lies De Groef

Animal Physiology and Neurobiology

"The eye as a window to the brain” is the central theme of my research. I envision to focus on the interrelatedness of neurobiology and ophthalmology and to exploit this cross-over of disciplines to enrich fundamental research into central nervous system (CNS) function. By concentrating on the retina-brain axis, I will unravel mechanisms of intercellular communication in the CNS, with emphasis on neuronglia interactions. I will study these ...

Exploring the role of structural variants in peripheral neurodegeneration. University of Antwerp

Albena Jordanova

VIB CMN - Molecular Neurogenomics

Many Mendelian diseases have benefited from next-generation sequencing (NGS) technologies for molecular diagnosis and gene discovery. However, technical limitations of NGS pose a challenge for identification of mutational mechanisms in genomic regions impenetrable by these technologies. I hypothesize that complex genomic rearrangements called structural variants (SVs) in these loci can explain a significant proportion of missing heritability in ...

Neurophysiological Markers of Cognition in Healthy Ageing & Neurodegeneration. University of Antwerp

Rose Bruffaerts

Experimental Neurobiology Unit (ENU)

Early and reliable diagnosis of neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer's Disease (AD) and Frontotemporal Degeneration (FTD) is paramount from a clinical point of view, to provide accurate information about the cause of a patient's symptoms and their prognosis. Fluid- and PET-based biomarkers are reliable tools for early diagnosis of AD, but they entail invasive, costly procedures and are not easily accessible to all clinicians. Here, we ...

The MIF/CD74 system as driver of pro-inflammatory B cell functions and secondary neurodegeneration following traumatic spinal cord injury Hasselt University

Judith FRAUSSEN

Immunology & Infection

Following traumatic spinal cord injury (SCI), an inflammatory and autoreactive immune reaction is triggered, leading to further damage in a secondary injury phase. Recent studies have implicated B cells as important players in this post-SCI inflammatory response. However, the mechanisms driving pro-inflammatory B cell responses in SCI remain unknown. Our preliminary results indicate a potential role for macrophage migration inhibitory factor ...

blood-based makers for neurodegeneration in early stages of Alzheimer’s disease KU Leuven

Koen Poesen

Laboratory for Molecular Neurobiomarker Research, Laboratory for Cognitive Neurology

This project proposal is an important study that evaluates biomarker changes in a way that is complementary ‐ but not equal ‐ to the biomarker project in another studyy(FWO aspirant study by Steffie De Meyer). In particular, this project aims at evaluating how biomarkers of neurodegeneration including NfL and synaptic markers change in the period (ten years) before AD patients start to have cognitive complaints. For this purpose, we have a ...

Projects