ERC Starting Grant for Albrecht Struppler Clinician Scientist Dr. Benedikt Zott

Albrecht Struppler Clinician Scientist Dr. Benedikt Zott secured an ERC Starting Grant for his project MONSil-AD!

MONSil-AD focuses on the question why some neurons fall silent in Alzheimer’s disease. Brain cells of patients with Alzheimer’s disease display characteristic activity patterns – often decades before classic symptoms such as memory problems emerge. At this early stage, some neurons are, so to speak, hyperactive. The mechanisms behind this phenomenon are already quite well understood. Later on, in contrast, an increasing number of neurons become less active and eventually fall completely silent. In animal models, Benedikt Zott aims to investigate whether the silencing of neurons is connected to the loss of their links with other neurons. He is also interested in the role played by the tau protein deposits that are typical of Alzheimer’s disease in the functioning of individual brain cells. In addition, Benedikt Zott wants to examine whether the protein sTREM2 could be partly responsible for shutting down nerve cells. A better understanding of these processes could help pave the way for new approaches to Alzheimer’s drugs.

Congratulations also to Annabelle Bohrdt, tenure track professor at the University of Regensburg, who won an ERC Starting Grant for her project QuaQuaMA. Funded by the IAS, Annabelle obtained her PhD in the IAS Focus Group Collective Quantum Dynamics with Rudolf Mößbauer Tenure Track Professor Michael Knap.