Research Projects

What defines the functional specialization of a cell is its unique proteome. Proteins need to be translated and properly folded to ensure their biological function. Several protein quality control pathways have arisen during evolution, some of them specialized in monitoring protein folding in specific organelles . As a result of ageing, animals...

Alzheimers disease (AD) is one of the biggest scientific and socio-economic challenges of the 21st century. Currently, there is no cure. Aggregates of amyloid- and tau protein, along with neuroinflammation/gliosis, are hallmarks of AD that lead to synaptic and neuronal loss as the basis for cognitive decline. The latter correlates closely with the...

The three-dimensional organization of chromosomal DNA is essential for critical genomic functions, including chromosome segregation, gene expression, and DNA damage repair. Structural Maintenance of Chromosomes (SMC) complexes, such as cohesin, the Smc5/6 complex, and condensin, are integral to preserving chromosomal architecture and supporting...

White matter (WM) is being increasingly studied in Alzheimer’s disease (AD) as a possible key pathological driver. In-vivo, WM health can be measured through several metrics derived from diffusion weighted imaging (DWI). While these metrics provide information about the WM micro- and macro-structural alterations, the biological processes...

The pathogenesis of Alzheimer´s disease (AD) is not fully understood and no cure is available so far. Current therapeutic targets are insufficient and there is an urgent need for finding new pathways and mechanisms and novel targets to treat this terrible disease. Due to critical species-specific differences and the limitations of rodent models of...

UpSurgeOn is an Italian SME established in 2017, by Neurosurgeons for Neurosurgeons, with a focus on creating a educational platform composed by different educational apps, training and simulation devices actually in the Neurosurgical arena. We have 15 employees, including a combination of neurosurgeons, software developers, technicians and...

The French SME Amoneta Diagnostics has previously developed a diagnostic kit for Alzheimer’s disease (AD) based on two blood biomarkers that are scientifically proven to be associated with AD. The company holds the intellectual property for specific fluorescent probes that can detect these biomarkers in small amounts of blood using flow cytometry....

Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is the most frequent cause of dementia that affects one in 14 persons over the age 65 years and one in six persons over the age of 80 years. Increased deposition of the protein beta-amyloid (Aß) is a core brain pathology of AD that occurs years before the onset of clinical symptoms of dementia. Together with Aß...

Research in recent years has started to provide an alternative view to Alzheimer's etiology emphasizing the role of other factors such as inflammation and brain vascular alterations in the development of Alzheimer. Of major interest is the link between AD and hypertension, another global epidemic affecting millions of people worldwide. Hypertension...

Organs-on-chip hold great promise for the creation of complex and realistic disease models while having the potential to refine, reduce and (partly) replace existing animal models (3R principle). Of all organs, vasculature is extremely well-suited to realize on-chip since it pervades the whole organism, is present in all other organs, its...

Smart Health is EU Strategic Value Chain that contributes to growth, jobs and competitiveness. Health Data is the main enabler for the value chain, but it also depends on cutting edge technologies - AI, cloud computing, IoT, to integrate the dispersed knowledge and support innovative healthcare solutions and services. EC sets the creation of a...

There are 47 million people living with dementia worldwide and expected to increase to 131 million by 2050. A person with dementia experiences loss of function, especially memory, eventually affecting verbal communication and ultimately creating disconnection from the close ones such as family and friends. The SENSE-GARDEN project will create rooms...