Projects
Deciphering the mechanisms for organellar crosstalk and repercussions on proteotoxicity in yeast models for neurodegeneration. KU Leuven
There is an urgent need for effective therapeutic strategies and tools for early diagnosis of proteinopathies like Alzheimer’s or Parkinson’s Disease. These diseases are characterized by a multi-factorial etiology, involving different cellular organelles. In this project, we will elucidate the mechanisms underlying organellar crosstalk with focus on interactions allowing for metabolic exchange between the vacuole/lysosome, mitochondria and ...
The lysosomal exonuclease PLD3 as an endolysosomal flux regulator: impact on neuronal homeostasis and relevance in neurodegeneration. KU Leuven
Late-onset Alzheimer’s disease (LOAD) is characterized by an unbalanced proteostasis. Dysfunctions in endolysomal transport and degradation kinetics arise at early preclinical stages and progressively worsen. Among the known LOAD risk factors, I focus on phospholipase D (PLD)-3. PLD3 is selectively expressed in neurons where it resides in late endosomes and lysosomes. It is an aspecific member of the PLD family, being an exonuclease that ...
Comprehensive characterization of structural variation andnucleotide modifications in neurodegeneration through longread sequencing and data integration. University of Antwerp
ADME study of lead ferroptosis inhibitor which blocks organ injury and neurodegeneration in mice. University of Antwerp
Chaperone regulated protein turnover in Tau mediated neurodegeneration Flanders Institute for Biotechnology
Resident macrophages as therapeutic target for intestinal neurodegeneration KU Leuven
The gastrointestinal tract has the vital task to digest and absorb ingested food, a complex process requiring coordinated integration of motility, secretion, vascularization and absorption. Thereto the gastrointestinal tract is equipped with its own nervous system, the enteric nervous system (ENS), capable of controlling gut function independently of input from brain or spinal cord. Reduction in number or dysfunction of the neurons within the ...
Targeting the immunodeficiency and neurodegeneration in a hereditary sensory neuropathy (HSAN type I) associated with dysfunction of the serine palmitoyltransferase. University of Antwerp
Chemical biology approaches to confirm the druggability of neurodegeneration linked rhomboid proteases. KU Leuven
Alzheimer’s disease and Parkinson´s disease belong to a group of illnesses that cause the progressive loss of function of neurons, which leads to dementia as most common symptom. These diseases are a puzzle from which we still lack many pieces. As a result, no drug targets for these diseases are known and no cure exists. One of the missing parts of the puzzle may be a group of proteins called rhomboids. Rhomboids are found in all living ...
An all human iPSC derived model to study the role of microglia in neurodegeneration KU Leuven
The hypothesis of this proposal is that microglia play both cell-autonomous and reactive roles in neurodegeneration causing dementia. Although animal models have provided important information regarding the mechanisms underlying the dementia development, they fall short in that they do not fully recapitulate the human disease. With the advent of iPSC technology combined with advanced genome engineering and (co)culture systems, we now have the ...