Assessing neurodegeneration throughout the entire brain at a single cell resolution after TBI in mice

• Applicant: Professor Dr. Ali Ertürk
• Subject Area: Molecular and Cellular Neurology and Neuropathology ; Molecular Biology and Physiology of Neurons and Glial Cells
• Term: from 2016 to 2020
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 317820778

The main goal of this proposal is to study neurodegeneration and regeneration throughout the entire brain at a single cell level after traumatic brain injury (TBI) in mice. To this end, we will: - map the structural connections of neurons (connectome) from the injury site to their neuronal cell bodies at a single cell resolution, - study glia cells and vasculature both at the lesion and away from the lesion, The main methodology will be tissue-clearing techniques (primarily 3DISCO that we developed) and subsequent imaging of intact brains using light-sheet microscopy. In parallel, we will also utilize traditional histology methods to confirm our aims in tissue sections at higher resolution.

• DFG Programme: Research Grants