Projects
The impact of lysosomal Phospholipase D3 deficiency on activated response microglia regulation KU Leuven
The high region specialization and complexity of the brain provides microglia with a multiplicity of signals, requiring different responses. One of these activation states encompasses the activated response microglia (ARM) phenotype that is acquired when microglia surround amyloid plaques in Alzheimer brains. The phenotype is characterized by an increased lipid metabolism, phagocytosis rate, lysosomal protease content and the secretion of ...
Deciphering the role of TMEM106B in neurodegeneration using a humanized cortical neuronal xenotransplantation model. University of Antwerp
Dissceting the molecular basis of microglia synaps communication in AD. University of Antwerp
The eye as a window to the brain: tackling neurodegenerative disorders. KU Leuven
Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is the leading cause of dementia, affecting 43,8 million people in 2016 and an estimated 130 million by 2050. The pathological changes of AD in the brain occur gradually over 20-30 years before the onset of symptoms and therapies are increasingly aimed at the preclinical stages of the disease. Yet current methods to identify individuals with presymptomatic AD are expensive, invasive and not scalable at a population ...
Transcriptomic profiling of amyloid-induced responses in central and enteric neuronal cultures. University of Antwerp
MemorandumDiscourse-analytical research concerning dementia (patients) KU Leuven
UNRAVELLING THE ROLE OF NEURONAL MAPT-AS1 ON THE REGULATION OF TAU EXPRESSION KU Leuven
A possible strategy to reduce Tau pathology in Alzheimer's Disease is to lower or to inhibit Tau transcription. However, little is known about the regulation of Tau expression. Preliminary data indicate that MAPT-AS1, a long non-coding RNA associated with the MAPT gene that encodes Tau, positively regulates MAPT expression at the transcriptional level. The aims of this project are to gain insights into the mechanisms by which MAPT-AS1 ...
Cognitive brain circuits and the spread of tau in vivo in humans KU Leuven
Alzheimer disease (AD) is pathologically defined by selective neuronal loss and decrease in synaptic density, the accumulation of fibrillar β amyloid plaques and intra- and extraneuronal deposition of phosphorylated tau as neurofibrillary tangles, neuropil threads and dystrophic neurites [6]. Dementia has been recognized as a global health care problem associated with significant economic and social burden. It is therefore important to get a ...