Cellular and Systems Neurobiology

SYSTEMS BIOLOGY

GROUP LEADER
Mara Dierssen

POSTDOCTORAL FELLOWS
Ilario De Toma, Eduardo Dominguez, Ibrahim Tastekin

PhD STUDENTS
César Sierra, Julia Albaigès

TECHNICIAN
María Martínez de Lagrán

Summary

The Dierssen lab is centred on understanding cognition and behaviour and their perturbation in intellectual disability. Our main question is:

What are the changes in neuronal architecture and connectivity that disrupt cortical and hippocampal function, in genetic cognitive disorders? In other words, what is the multi-scale link from molecular alterations to impaired cognition and behaviour?

We are an interdisciplinary team of physicists, bioinformaticians and experimental biologists, and we focus on data collection (behaviour, 3D imaging, genomic data) of many variables of the system (longitudinal behavioural analysis, population based analysis in neuronal networks, gene expression patterns). We take advantage of computer modelling and bioinformatics analysis (gene networks, neuronal network modelling, etc.) to tackling classical unresolved questions in the field, such as: (a) pathological disturbances of structural optimality in single cell and neuronal networks, (b) genomic dependence of cognitive disturbances, (c) identification of predictive non-invasive biomarkers, (d) discovery of pro-cognitive therapies.

Fig. 1

Fig. 1

Structural inhomogeneities in LY-labelled and reconstructed CA1 pyramids identify position dependent genotype differences in Down syndrome mouse models

Fig. 2

Structural inhomogeneities in LY-labelled and reconstructed CA1 pyramids identify position dependent genotype differences in Down syndrome mouse models

Research Projects

  • Modelling micro-anatomical and network properties of cognition-related brain systems
  • Exploring molecular mechanisms of pro-cognitive therapies
  • High-throughput phenotypic cluster

Selected Publications

D’Amico D, … Dierssen M.
“Infralimbic Neurotrophin-3 Infusion Rescues Fear Extinction Impairment in a Mouse Model of Pathological Fear.”
Neuropsychopharmacology, 42(2):462-472 (2017).

Fructuoso M, … Dierssen M.
“Increased levels of inflammatory plasma markers and obesity risk in a mouse model of Down syndrome.”
Free Radic Biol Med, 114:122-130 (2017).

De la Torre R… Dierssen, M.
“Safety and efficacy of the combination of cognitive training and epigallocatechin-3-gallate for cognitive improvement in adults with Down syndrome: a double-blind randomised controlled trial”.
The Lancet Neurology, 15(8):801-810 (2017).

Burokas A, …Dierssen M, Maldonado R.
“Extinction and reinstatement of an operant responding maintained by food in different models of obesity.”
Addict Biol, doi: 10.1111/adb.12597. [Epub ahead of print] (2017).

Fourcade S… Dierssen M, Ferrer I, Villarroya F, Pamplona R, Vaquero A, Portero-Otín M, Pujol A.
“Loss of SIRT2 leads to axonal degeneration and locomotor disability associated with redox and energy imbalance.”
Aging Cell, doi: 10.1111/acel.12682. [Epub ahead of print] (2017).

Gómez-Grau M, … Dierssen M, Vilageliu L, Grinberg D.
“New murine Niemann-Pick type C models bearing a pseudoexon-generating mutation recapitulate the main neurobehavioral and molecular features of the disease.”
Science Reports, 7:41931 (2017).

Fenoll R, … Dierssen M, Novell-Alsina R, de la Torre R.
“Anomalous White Matter Structure and the Effect of Age in Down Syndrome Patients.”
J Alzheimers Dis 57:61-70 (2017).