Project

Unravelling the interplay between the complement pathway, immune cell infiltration and extracellular vesicles within the choroid plexus in the pathology of Parkinson’s disease.

Code
3F019019
Duration
01 November 2019 → 31 July 2020
Funding
Research Foundation - Flanders (FWO)
Research disciplines
  • Medical and health sciences
    • Inflammation
    • Neurological and neuromuscular diseases
Keywords
Parkinson
 
Project description

Parkinson’s disease (PD) is characterized by the aggregation of the protein alpha-synuclein (αSyn) and emerging evidence suggests an important role for extracellular vesicles (EVs) in the prion-like spreading of αSyn throughout the brain. Additionally, much of the downstream neurodegeneration in PD is believed to result from inflammatory processes including the activation of the complement system and inflammatory cell influx. The goal of my project is to study the interplay between the complement system, immune cell infiltration and EV secretion at the choroid plexus (CP) in PD pathology. Therefore, I will make use of a novel PD model recently generated by the research group based on a single intracerebroventricular (icv) injection of human recombinant αSyn oligomers (αSynO). This model allows me to study the different processes at the CP that forms a unique barrier between the blood and the central nervous system (CNS). I will focus on three processes: barrier integrity, inflammatory cell infiltration and complement activation, aiming to unravel the kinetics and interplay between the different events. Additionally, using the same in vivo mouse model, I will unravel the role of EVs in PD pathology. We will study their cellular sources, analyse their content, identify their recipient cells and study their consequences. Without any doubt, this study will reveal novel insights into the role of the CP within the pathogenesis of PD.