Laying the foundations for tomorrow's medicine

In many neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer's and Parkinson's disease, the propagation and spreading of misfolded proteins in the nervous system has been linked to the progression of the disease. In a recent review article in the journal Nature Neuroscience, Professor Dr. Mathias Jucker at the HIH and Professor Dr. Lary Walker at the Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, USA, argue that this spreading is conceptually similar to metastic cancer. “The difference is that in degenerative brain disorders, there are misfolded proteins that  proliferate rather than transformed cells,” Jucker says. As in the case of cancer cells, the spreading of misfolded proteins and thus disease progression depends on both the misfolded protein (seed) and the host milieu – the soil. “The seed must fall on fertile ground for the development and progression of the disease. Itis therefore essential to understand both the pathogen and its environment to develop treatment strategies.”

Dr. Niklas Schwarz from the Hertie Institute for Clinical Brain Research, the University and the University Hospital Tübingen has been presented with the award "Ersatz und Ergänzungsmethoden zum Tierversuch" of the State of Baden-Württemberg for the development of a method that allows scientists to investigate human brain tissue in the Petri dish over several weeks. The new method answers some of the questions about human brain tissue which used to require animal experiments. For instance, it simplifies tests to find out whether human brain tissue can tolerate new drugs. Since its introduction to the scientific community a year ago, several laboratories around the world have started to successfully apply the Tübingen method. The award ceremony took place on October 25, 2018 at the Ministry of Rural Affairs and Consumer Protection in Stuttgart. Schwarz will use the prize money of 25,000 Euros for future studies.

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“We aim to revolutionize non-invasive therapeutic brain stimulation.” That is the goal set by Professor Dr. Ulf Ziemann and his team at the Hertie Institute for Clinical Brain Research, the University Hospital and the University of Tübingen. Working with colleagues at Aalto University in Finland and in Italy at the Chieti-Pescara Gabriele d’Annunzio University, Ziemann is developing a helmet which is capable of stimulating any part of the cerebral cortex using transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS). Timing of stimulation is coupled to the brain’s current state of activity. That link allows magnetic stimulation to alter the connection between brain areas especially effectively – easing brain network diseases such as strokes, depression and Alzheimer’s. The project, called “ConnectToBrain,” has earned the scientists research funding of ten million euros from the European Research Council, in the form of a Synergy Grant. The ERC announced its Synergy Grants today. 

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When we interact with the world, such as when we reach out to touch an object, the brain actively changes incoming sensory signals based on anticipation. This so-called ‘sensory gating’ has now been investigated by neuroscientists at the HIH and the Werner Reichardt Centre for Integrative Neuroscienceat the University of Tübingen. In rats touching objects with their whiskers, they found that these touch signals from active sensory perception were reduced by gating signals from higher brain areas. This way, sensory perception may be shaped by expectations generated in the higher brain. Such anticipatory signals could have important implications in understanding sensory hallucinations such as those encountered in schizophrenia. The study has been published in Nature Communications.

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How do messenger substances, so-called neurotransmitters, control the development and evolution of the cerebral cortex? This is the question Dr. Simone Mayer addresses in her research. Since September 2018 she heads the independent research group “Molecular Brain Development” at the HIH. In her work, she compares various mammalian species and uses a variety of cell biological, biochemical and bioinformatic methods. In addition to the basic mechanisms, she is interested in how disorders in these messenger systems may promote brain diseases. “Neocortical networks are at the heart of human cognition, but their high complexity may have contributed to the evolutionary emergence of various psychiatric and neurological disorders,” explains Mayer. Since neurotransmitters are targeted by various drugs, her research also sheds light on the risk and potential to influence brain development during pregnancy.

... read more about her research group