The primary role of the Scientific Advisory Board (SAB) is to provide constructive feedback to the Executive Board and the Director. Its objective is to offer independent and strategic advice on future scientific goals, as well as to peer review and evaluate the progress of research conducted by DANDRITE. The members of the SAB will be international researchers, primarily from academia, but also from the biotech and pharmaceutical industries. They are appointed to participate in four SAB meetings over the course of their term.
Scientific Director of the Max Planck Florida Institute
Yasuda Lab focuses on synaptic plasticity, the ability of synapses to change their connection strength. This process is thought to underlie learning and memory. Cascades of biochemical reactions in dendritic spines, tiny (~0.1 femtoliter) postsynaptic compartments emanating from dendritic surfaces, trigger diverse forms of synaptic plasticity.
Director of the Leibniz-Forschunginstitut für Molekulare Pharmakologie Berlin (FMP) and Professor of Molecular Pharmacology at the Institute for Pharmacy of the Free University of Berlin.
Research in the Volker Lab is centered on the visualization and manipulation of the endocytic machinery and of endosomal membrane organization using a combination of biochemical, genetic, chemical, and optical imaging approaches with a particular focus on the nervous system.
Professor at Department of Biosciences, University of Milan, Italy
Elena Cattaneo is leading the Laboratory of Stem Cell Biology and Pharmacology of Neurodegenerative Diseases, where she and her research group focus on neural stem cells, their potential application, and the neurodegenerative mechanisms of Huntington’s disease.
Professor at Department of Neurosciences, KU Leuven - Center for Molecular Medicine, Belgium
Veerle Baekelandt and her research group in the laboratory for Neurobiology and Gene Therapy are committed to gain insight in the underlying pathology of Parkinson's Disease (PD) and more recently Multiple System Atrophy (MSA), on both the molecular and cellular level. They specifically focus on the proteins α-synuclein and LRRK2, two key players in sporadic and familial PD.
Group Leader, Senior Scientist, and Deputy Head of Unit at the Epigenetics & Neurobiology Unit of the European Molecular Biology Laboratory (EMBL)
The research of Dr. Cornelius Gross aims to understand the neural circuit mechanisms controlling instinctive behaviors, with a special focus on fear and anxiety.
Professor, Head of Research Group at Biozentrum, University of Basel, Switzerland
Research in the Scheiffele Lab at the Biozentrum of the University of Basel explores cellular and molecular mechanisms of neuronal wiring in development and disease. The current main research themes are the control of neuronal synapse formation and specification by RNA alternative splicing and a dissection of circuit deficits underlying social behavior alterations in models of autism.
Professor at Department of Neuroscience, University of Copenhagen
Ole Kiehn and his research group study the molecular, cellular, and network diversification of locomotor circuitries in mammals with the goal of providing a unified understanding of the functional organization of neuronal circuits that execute movements.
Howard Hughes Medical Institute Investigator and Professor of Neurobiology
Her research aims to elucidate (1) what circuits in the mammalian brain control sleep, and (2) mechanisms by which the frontal cortex exerts top-down executive control.
Professor at the Brain Mind Institute, Laboratory of Sensory Processing, EPFL-SV-BMI-LSENS, Switzerland
Professor at Max-Planck-Institute of Neurobiology (Chair)
Prof. Rüdiger Klein's group is interested in understanding the principles of cell-cell communication in the developing and mature nervous system. Besides development, they are also interested in understanding how specific neuron populations contribute to certain types of behavior of adult mice. Furthermore, they also study the molecular mechanisms of neurodegeneration and neuroprotection.
Professor of biotechnology, Institute of Biotechnology, University of Helsinki (Chair)
Mart Saarma and his group investigate structure, biology and therapeutic potantial of neurotrophic factors. He studies GDNF family of neurotrophic factors and also novel neurotrophic factors CDNF and MANF in the development and in neurodegenerative disease.
Professor at Faculty of Medicine, University of New South Wales & Neuroscience Research Australia
Professor Glenda Halliday works on identifying and understanding the pathobiology of different stages of neurodegeneration, knowledge necessary for the development of therapies and strategies for the prevention of neurodegenerative syndromes. Her research has highlighted broader pathological involvement in Parkinson's disease and dementia with Lewy bodies, with recent work suggesting that lysosome dysfunction and immunity are involved.
Head of the Hamburg Unit of the European Molecular Biology Laboratory (EMBL)
Research Director of the Center for Structural Systems Biology (CSSB)
Matthias Willmanns' research group investigates a variety of protein-ligand complexes within the context of biological systems, employing a broad range of molecular and structural biology techniques, namely locally available synchrotron radiation facilities and the future Free Electron Laser in Hamburg. Their specific research interests are on: the architecture of the protein interactome in sarcomeric muscle cells, activity regulation in protein kinases, the architecture of the translocon of peroxisomes, structural systems biology in M. tuberculosis.
Professor at Dept. Neurosurgery, Massachusetts General Hospital
Professor Kathleen Sweadner's field of expertise is the structure, function, and biological roles of Na,K-ATPase isoforms in excitable tissues.
Professor of Cell Biology, Neuroscience & Physiology and Psychiatry, Skirball Institute of Biomolecular Medicine, New York University School of Medicine
Moses V. Chao's research group is studying the mechanism of action of trophic factors, such as NGF and BDNF, which are responsible for neuronal survival and synaptic plasticity. Since deficits in trophic factors are responsible for neurological disorders such as Alzheimer¹s and Huntington¹s disease, as well as psychiatric disorders (depression, anxiety), the group is currently defining receptor signal transduction pathways that can ameliorate these disorders.
