Edinburgh UK DRI at The University of Edinburgh Edinburgh Beverly Roberts, Centre Manager beverly.roberts@ed.ac.uk Chancellor’s Building The University of Edinburgh Edinburgh Bioquarter 49 Little France Crescent Edinburgh EH16 4SB Centre profile 1. At a glance 2. Scientific Goals 3. Collaborations 4. Topics 5. Techniques 6. Scientific Advisory Board 7. Vacancies 8. Meet the team "The UK DRI at Edinburgh focuses on understanding how all the different cell types in our brains work together to keep the brain healthy, how this goes wrong in dementia, and how this process can be slowed or stopped to alter disease progression." Prof Giles Hardingham UK DRI Centre Director 1. At a glance Understanding the inner workings of the brain – and how things can go wrong UK DRI researchers in Edinburgh are aiming to piece together how all the different brain cells, systems and processes work together to keep our brains healthy over many decades. Unravelling how these finely-tuned interactions are disturbed even before a person has any specific signs or symptoms of dementia – and how changes are involved in driving disease progression – will open new avenues for the development of novel therapies. Our brain is an incredibly complex organ, made up of around 100 billion neurons and an equal number of other cells that provide vital support and protection. It is aided by an intricate network of blood vessels that supply nutrients and oxygen, working together in perfect harmony. It is essential to understand the function of each component, and the complex relationships between them, to understand how our most complicated organ works – and what happens when things go wrong in conditions such as dementia. By understanding the inner workings of our brains, the researchers hope to identify disturbances that can lead to neurodegenerative diseases. A main aim of the research programmes is to find new targets for the development of treatments - meaning that more people can live longer, healthier lives. Read more about the official opening of the UK DRI at Edinburgh Take a virtual laboratory tour of the UK DRI at Edinburgh 2. Scientific Goals The mission of the UK DRI at Edinburgh is to elucidate the interactions within and between the brain vasculature, neurons, macroglia and microglia which control the trajectory of neurodegenerative disorders leading to dementia and exploit this knowledge for therapeutic benefit. Synapse and circuit dysfunction leading to dementia are heavily influenced by the multicellular environment of the neurogliovascular unit (NGVU). Genetic, epidemiological and post-mortem studies point to inflammatory, vascular and metabolic (mitochondria, lipid, glucose-RNA- and APP- metabolism) factors in pathogenesis. This indicates central roles for NGVU components in disease progression, given their function in maintaining inflammatory, bioenergetic and metabolic balance in the brain. All NGVU cell types are altered by neurodegenerative disease and its primary risk factor, age. However, the interplay between NGVU components, and their impact on disease progression, is poorly understood, yet critical for progression to therapies. To understand this, it is also important to probe NGVU interactions underlying homeostasis in the healthy brain, which typically maintains human cognitive function for several decades. Identifying the regulators of adaptive and protective homeostatic processes is likely to reveal a largely untapped resource of therapeutic targets with cross-disease applicability. Achieving this aim will require a holistic view of the NGVU in disease progression, delineating key cell-(non)autonomous influences of disease-causing factors, requiring interdisciplinary, interlinked projects fuelled by complementary expertise. The centre will develop four inter-related themes through synergistic programmes, exploring how NGVU interactions maintain homeostasis during health, adapt and change during the prodrome, and drive pathology during disease. Scientists will use diverse approaches from animal and human stem cell models through to human imaging and experimental medicine. The specific themes are: 1. Macroglia in neuroprotection and neurotoxicity 2. Cerebrovascular & metabolic dysfunction 3. Inflammation and immunomodulation 4. Synapses and neurons as effectors of a dysfunctional NGVU Senior Administrative Team Beverly Roberts (Scientific Administrator) Alexa Jury (Laboratory Manager) 3. Collaborations Within UK DRI Prof Paul Matthews, UK DRI at Imperial Dr Nir Grossman, UK DRI at Imperial Prof John Hardy, UK DRI at UCL Prof Adrian Isaacs, UK DRI at UCL Prof Sarah Tabrizi, UK DRI at UCL UK DRI Co-investigator Prof Anna Williams, University of Edinburgh Beyond UK DRI MRC Centre for Inflammation Research, Centre for Cardiovascular Sciences and BHF Centre of Research Excellence. The Dundee-Edinburgh Parkinson’s Research Initiative which spans both clinical and discovery research with the aim of improving links between these disciplines. 4. Topics Vasculature, inflammation, macroglia, neurons, microglia, synapse 5. Techniques Mass cytometry, RNA-seq, proteomics, chimeric transplants, Chemogenetics (DREADDs), TRAP-seq, RNA-seq, RNAscope, Forward-Phase Antibody Microarrays, multiplex custom ELISA plates, mass spectrometry, proteomics, primary microglia cell culture (rodent and porcine), multi-species in vitro multi-cell platforms, human iPSC cell culture, MRI, flow cytometry, in vivo multiphoton imaging, MRI, electron microscopy 6. Scientific Advisory Board Professor Richard Morris (Chair), University of Edinburgh Professor Dwight Bergles, John Hopkins University Professor Beth Stevens, Harvard University Professor Maiken Nedergaard, University of Copenhagen 7. Vacancies The UK DRI at Edinburgh is currently looking to recruit excellent researchers to take up UK DRI Group Leaders positions at career-track level. Visit our Join Us page to see opportunities available at this centre. 8. Meet the team Axel Montagne UK DRI Group Leader Cerebrovascular and inflamm-ageing link to neurodegeneration and dementia Edinburgh READ MORE Barry McColl UK DRI Group Leader Microglial mechanisms influencing susceptibility and resilience to dementia-causing disease Edinburgh READ MORE Beverly Roberts Senior Administrator, UK DRI at Edinburgh Edinburgh READ MORE Bhuvaneish Selveraj UK DRI Emerging Leader Mechanisms of selective vulnerability of motor neurons in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis Edinburgh READ MORE Blanca Díaz-Castro UK DRI Group Leader Molecular architecture, function and dysfunction of the Blood Brain Barrier Edinburgh READ MORE Claire Durrant UK DRI Emerging Leader The role of tau in synapse survival and its relevance to Alzheimer’s disease Edinburgh READ MORE David Hunt UK DRI Group Leader How does aberrant innate immune activation damage the microvasculature of the brain? Edinburgh READ MORE Giles Hardingham UK DRI Centre Director Astrocytes as an upstream modulator and downstream effector of neurodegenerative pathology Edinburgh READ MORE Jian Gan UK DRI Group Leader Real-time interrogation of neural circuit dynamics underpinning cognition and its collapse in dementia Edinburgh READ MORE Joanna Wardlaw UK DRI Group Leader Small vessel disease and vascular contributions to neurodegeneration and dementia Edinburgh READ MORE Josef Priller UK DRI Group Leader Myeloid cells in neurodegenerative diseases Edinburgh READ MORE Patricio Opazo UK DRI Group Leader Synaptic compensatory plasticity in Alzheimer’s disease Edinburgh READ MORE Siddharthan Chandran UK DRI Group Leader Dissecting macroglial-neuronal crosstalk in C9ORF72 FTD/ALS Edinburgh READ MORE Tara Spires-Jones UK DRI Group Leader Non-cell autonomous mechanisms of synapse pathology Edinburgh READ MORE Veronique Miron UK DRI Group Leader How do microglia regulate myelin integrity and cognitive function in health and ageing? Edinburgh READ MORE Founding funders Latest tweets from @UKDRI Get involved in #dementia research! 🧠 A team from UK DRI at Imperial, led by @nir_grossman, are recruiting volunte… https://t.co/GWSvwsKB6L 26 Nov 2021 17:00 Reply Retweet Favourite RT @CamNeuro: 📢Join us for the last @CamNeuro of the year on Tue 30th Nov, when we welcome Prof Giovanna Mallucci @MallucciLab @UKDRI ▶️'… 26 Nov 2021 15:17 Reply Retweet Favourite Address UK Dementia Research Institute HQ 6th Floor, UCL Maple House Tottenham Court Road London W1T 7NF UK DRI Ltd. Company No. 11045257 | Charity No. 1179589 Terms and conditions Privacy, data and cookies To donate Sitemap Contact Newsletter UK DRI Portal Social Twitter LinkedIn © 2021 UK Dementia Research Institute