Project

Investigating the biomarker potential and pathological role of neuronal- and bacterial- derived extracellular vesicles in Parkinson’s disease.

Code
01P07621
Duration
01 October 2021 → 30 September 2022
Funding
Regional and community funding: Special Research Fund
Research disciplines
  • Natural sciences
    • Cellular interactions and extracellular matrix
    • Proteomics
  • Medical and health sciences
    • Medical proteomics
    • Neurological and neuromuscular diseases
    • Cell signalling
Keywords
Extracellular vesicles Parkinson's disease Biomarkers
 
Project description

Accumulating evidence indicates that extracellular vesicles (EVs) represent a highly interesting biomarker source. Indeed, neuronal-derived EVs (nEVs) separated from peripheral sources provide a snapshot of ongoing pathological changes in the brain whereas bacterial EVs (bEVs) have shown to reflect microbial dysbiosis. Interestingly, both neuronal changes and microbial dysbiosis are evident in Parkinson’s disease (PD) patients. Additionally, EVs are believed to play a role in PD pathogenesis, as it has been shown that nEVs can act as transport vehicles for disease-associated proteins and bEVs can elicit immunomodulatory effects. Here, both the biomarker potential and the pathological role of nEVs and bEVs will be investigated. To explore the biomarker potential, I will analyze size and protein content of nEVs and bEVs separated from plasma, nasal fluid and saliva of PD patients and healthy controls. The biofluids were chosen based on their accessibility, which is of major importance from a biomarker perspective. Additionally, to unravel the role of these nEVs and bEVs in PD pathogenesis, I will identify their recipient cells and validate whether the nEVs and bEVs can accelerate and/or initiate PD-like pathology in in vitro and in vivo models.