Research Projects

Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is the most common cause of dementia in the elderly, and a major reason for disability and death. The time course of AD varies between different people affected, and being able to tell in advance how the disease is likely to progress would have a great value for patient, their caregivers and for all of society. In the...

Beta-amyloid (β-amyloid) deposition is considered to be a necessary - but not sufficient - step on the path towards Alzheimer’s disease (AD). Depiction of brain β-amyloid in vivo can support an early diagnosis, and even provide an opportunity for consider secondary prevention of AD. Currently, however, the value of β-amyloid PET remains elusive...

Glaucoma is the world's leading cause of irreverisble blindness, affecting 20 million people in Europe and the US. Known as the Alzheimer’s of the eye, glaucoma is a neurodegenerative disorder that causes deterioration in peripheral vision. Affected patients report ‘seeing through a black tunnel’. Treatments to halt vision loss are available...

Neurodegenerative diseases include Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, frontotemporal dementia, corticobasal degeneration, multiple system atrophy and progressive supranuclear palsy. We currently classify and treat these conditions based on symptoms and clinical findings. Although this approach seems logical, it...

DEMTEST has established a large European and global collaboration between national surveillance units and dementia research centres, facilitating cooperation between neurologists, neuropathologists and neuroscientists. We work on standardisation of tests that are currently available and harmonise their use between centers worldwide. We define...

Neurodegenerative disorders, represented mostly by Alzheimer's disease (AD) and Parkinson's disease (PD), are characterised by progressive neuronal impairment and death. In spite of the brain's known capacity for regeneration, lost neurons generally cannot be replaced. Therefore, drugs aimed at inhibiting neurodegenerative processes are likely to...

During the past decades, exceptional progress was made with in vivo medical imaging technologies to capture the anatomical, structural and physiological properties of tissues and organs in a patient, with an ever increasing spatial and temporal resolution. The physician is now faced with a formidable overflow of information, especially when a...

The brain barriers function to protect the central nervous system (CNS) from neurotoxic compounds. By the same traits they unfortunately block delivery of drugs to the CNS thus hindering proper diagnosis and effective treatment of neurological disorders including Alzheimer’s disease and multiple sclerosis. The unusual complexity of the brain...

Establishing efficient prevention strategies for dementia and Alzheimer's disease is a major health priority. Since the cascade of events leading to Alzheimer's disease begins many years before the disease is detected, efficient prevention should be initiated early.

This requires identifying individuals in the general population who are at high...

The cerebral microvascular system is essential to a large variety of physiological processes in the brain, including blood delivery and blood flow regulation as a function of neuronal activity (neuro-vascular coupling). It plays a major role in the associated mechanisms leading to disease (stroke, neurodegenerative diseases, …). In the last decade...

The calcium sensing receptor (CaSR) is a class C Gprotein-coupled receptor that plays a pivotal role in systemic calcium metabolism by regulating parathyroid hormone secretion and urinary Ca excretion. Abnormal CaSR function is implicated in calciotropic disorders, and in non-calciotropic disorders such as Alzheimer’s disease (AD), cardiovascular...

CLARA, the Center for Artificial Intelligence and Quantum Computing in System Brain Research, represents the interdisciplinary center of excellence focused on the next generation of artificial intelligence/machine learning applications and quantum-centric supercomputing tools to push the frontier of neurodegeneration research, particularly...