The role of oxytocin in heart failure-induced cognitive and mood disorders

• Applicant: Ferdinand Althammer, Ph.D.
• Subject Area: Biological Psychiatry ; Molecular and Cellular Neurology and Neuropathology
• Term: from 2019 to 2021
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 436259390

Cardiovascular diseases, such as heart failure (HF) are the most common cause of death globally and pose debilitating health burdens to affected individuals. There is a high comorbidity between HF and cognitive and mood disorders resulting in memory loss, depression and anxiety, yet the underlying mechanisms remain elusive. The hypothalamic neuropeptide oxytocin (OT) is a key molecule modulating anxiety, depression and social memory in the brain. Recent studies showed that OT is critically involved in the devastating effects of HF. With this proposal, I want to investigate the role of OT to HF-induced effects on depression and anxiety. Using coronary ligature surgery as a HF model, I will perform electrophysiology, calcium imaging, genetic screening, immunohistochemistry and behavioral tests to study the effects of HF on hypothalamus-amygdala communication. This proposal will provide fundamentally new insights into the pathology of HF and help to develop target-specific approaches for affected patients.

• DFG Programme: Research Fellowships
• International Connection: USA
• Host: Professor Javier Eduardo Stern, Ph.D.