The intestinal microbiota as a regulator of aggressive and impulsive behavior (A07)

• Subject Area: Biological Psychiatry
• Term: since 2024
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 512007073

The project investigates sex-dependent behavioral effects of faecal microbiota transplantation to microbiome-depleted mice from AMD patients, as well as healthy controls. Impulsivity will be assessed via the continuous performance test and responses towards acute threat via the escalated resident intruder test. The goal is to determine the sex-dependent effects of faecal transplantation on selected readouts involved in the transfer of the patient’s phenotype to the mice, such as immune parameters, sex hormones, neuronal activity (and morphology, e.g., neurite outgrowth, spines, etc.), and gene expression (e.g., Rbfox1 and novel candidates).

• DFG Programme: CRC/Transregios
• Subproject of: TRR 379: Neuropsychobiology of Aggression: A Transdiagnostic Approach in Mental Disorders
• Applicant Institution: Rheinisch-Westfälische Technische Hochschule Aachen
• Project Heads: Professor Dr. Andreas Reif; Professor David Slattery, Ph.D.