Three Health researchers receive grants for new brain research
Three researchers from the Department of Clinical Medicine and the Department of Biomedicine have been awarded the Lundbeck Foundation’s Ascending Investigator grants, totalling nearly DKK 18 million. The grants aim to strengthen research into brain diseases and mental disorders.
In a major funding round from the Lundbeck Foundation, three new research projects at Health will each receive almost DKK 6 million. The projects span a wide range of topics – from the brain’s cleansing system and neurodegenerative diseases to new methods for delivering medicine to the brain.
Here are the Health researchers receiving grants:
Associate Professor Rasmus O. Bak from the Department of Biomedicine receives DKK 5,498,941 for the project “Programmable Blood-Derived Cells as Trojan Horses for Brain Drug Delivery.”
In this project, the researchers are developing a new type of cell therapy in which specially programmed immune cells act as carriers of medicinal compounds within the brain. These cells reside in the brain and can be designed to release treatments only in specific areas and at specific times. This combination of gene therapy and synthetic biology may pave the way for more precise treatments for brain tumours and other neurological diseases.
Associate Professor Heidi Kaastrup Müller from the Department of Clinical Medicine and the Translational Neuropsychiatry Unit receives DKK 5,981,480 for the project “Unveiling the Secrets of ProGRAnulin in NeuroDEgenerative Diseases (UPGRADE).”
Frontotemporal dementia (FTD) often affects people between the ages of 40 and 60, and there is currently no curative treatment. A known genetic cause of the disease is low levels of the protective protein progranulin. In this project, researchers will examine how progranulin functions within brain cells and which receptors it influences. Using patient-derived nerve cells and a mouse model, the team aims to identify new therapeutic targets for FTD and related diseases.
Professor Brian Hansen from the Department of Clinical Medicine and the Center of Functionally Integrative Neuroscience (CFIN) receives DKK 5,954,722 for the project “Does Locus Coeruleus Dysfunction Impact Brain Waste Removal?”
The professor will investigate the role played by the brain structure known as the Locus Coeruleus (LC) in maintaining brain health. The LC is central to regulating our sleep phases, affects the brain’s blood vessels, and may play a role in clearing waste products from the brain. The project aims to determine what happens when the LC does not function optimally, and how such dysfunction can be detected. The goal is to contribute new knowledge about sleep, brain health, and neurodegenerative diseases.
The text is based on press material from the Lundbeck Foundation.