Research Projects

Late-onset Alzheimer’s disease (LOAD) is a neurodegenerative disorder that currently affects 2% of the population in industrialized countries; the risk of LOAD increases in individuals beyond the age of 70 and it is predicted that the incidence of LOAD will increase 4-fold within the next 50 years which may cause a great socioeconomic problem...

DORIAN GRAY project investigates the link between cardiovascular disease (CVD) and Mild Cognitive Impairment (MCI) in the ageing population. Its goal is to uncover underlying mechanisms to promote healthy, independent, and active living while reducing disease burden. Aligned with EU-Horizon Europe’s Strategic Plan on NCDs prevention, the project...

Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is the major cause of dementia which has no cure at the moment. The overall aim of the work described in this proposal is to create a long-term strategic partnership between Sheffield University (UK), Lisbon University (Portugal), Eli Lilly (UK) and Biofordrug (Italy) in order to develop chemical biology tools for better...

DECIDE (Diagnostic Enhancement of Confidence by an International Distributed Environment), aims at creating a e-Infrastructure to enhance the diagnostic confidence in chronic brain diseases such as Alzheimer and dementia. Proper management of these neurodegenerative diseases are thought to be very important in terms of health-economical point of...

Alzheimer's disease (AD) is the most common neurodegenerative disorder and is incurable. A drug candidate specifically inhibiting butyrylcholinesterase (BChE) activity will lead to improved clinical outcome in the treatment of AD. The fellow Qiong Shen (QS) has extensive experience, knowledge and technical skills in research into AD. Previously she...

Chronic migraine is defined as a headache persistent for more than 3 months or a severe headache persistent for more than 15 days within a month. It affects approximately 2% of the world population. The World Health Organization classifies severe migraine attacks as among the most disabling illnesses, comparable to dementia and quadriplegia...

Human populations are impregnated by various types of chemical pollutants reported as hazardous waste present in the environment. Certain pollutants have adverse effects on brain, but the underlying mechanisms and time-window exposures are still unknown, as well as their contribution on dementia, the 7th leading cause of death. EXPOSIGNALZ project...

As the use of nanoparticles becomes more prevalent, it is clear that human exposure will inevitably increase. Considering the rapidly ageing European population and the resulting increase in the incidence of neurodegenerative diseases, there is an urgent need to address the risk presented by nanoparticles towards neurodegenerative diseases. It is...

Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is a global health burden. There are currently no treatments that prevent AD or modify the course of the disease. Recent work has identified several subtypes of Alzheimer’s disease that become apparent once clinical symptoms appear. These subtypes can guide improved treatment and care decisions. Here we aim to predict which...

The Project eBrain-Health will deliver a distributed research platform for modeling and simulating complex neurobiological phenomena of human brain function and dysfunction in a data protection compliant environment. It will provide thousands of multilevel virtual brains from patients and healthy human controls for research and innovation. Brain...

Therapies for neurological disorders often involve deeply invasive brain operations or implants. A largely overlooked aspect of these conditions is the high comorbidity of GI-related disorders. Although the top-down relationship between the brain and peripheral organs has dominated the field, its now clear that activity of peripheral organs, in...

Alzheimer’s disease (AD) and other dementias affect over 7 million individuals in Europe. There is, as yet, no treatment to halt or reverse disease progression despite huge investments into research. The accumulation of the amyloid beta-peptide (Abeta), derived from the amyloid precursor protein (APP) in the brain, is a key factor in the...