Projekt

An universal finding across species is that the formation of memories requires differential gene-expression in brain cells. The activation and inactivation of particular genes in response to specific stimuli is a tightly controlled process and its deregulation contributes to neurodegenerative and neuropsychiatric diseases. ?Epigenetic processes" play a key role in the orchestration of these gene-expression dynamics and have been linked to brain diseases. One key epigenetic processes is linked to alterations that regulate the 3D structure of DNA and thereby define if a particular region of the genome is accessible for activation or not. However, to execute their cellular function, genes not only need to be transcribed but the corresponding messenger RNAs of coding genes have to be translated into proteins. So far, little is know if and how the regulation of these two processes of epigenetic gene-expression and protein translation are coupled. Based on preliminary data, the applicants hypothesize that another process, namely the methylation of messenger RNAs which is described as ?epi-transcriptomics", may close this gap and provide a link between gene-expression dynamics and protein production in neurodegenerative diseases.

• Prof. Dr. André Fischer

  Universitätsmedizin Göttingen
  Georg August Universität
  Dept. for Psychiatry and Psychotherapy
  German Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases
  Göttingen
  

• Dr. Kobi Rosenblum

  University of Haifa
  Sagol Dept. of Neurobiology
  Center for Brain Research
  Haifa
  Israel
  

• Dr. Daniel Riester

  Deutsches Zentrum für Neurodegenerative
  Erkrankungen
  Göttingen