Grant: Foundation Grant

It was always believed that the adult brains cannot regenerate damaged brain tissue and that brain cells (neurons) must last throughout life. Recently, it was found that the adult brain contains active stem cells and progenitor cells, which have the capacity to regenerate new neurons. A major challenge is that most neural stem cells lie dormant in the adult brain and their numbers decline with age. It is therefore essential to identify new strategies to activate and expand the adult stem cell population. Defects in mitochondria, the energy producing powerhouse of the cells, is associated with neurodegenerative diseases. The impact of mitochondrial impairment in adult stem and progenitor cells in the adult brain remains unknown. Our preliminary data shows that adult stem and progenitor cells are highly sensitive to changes in mitochondrial dynamics and loss of mitochondrial function causes a severe impairment in the development of new neurons in the adult brain. In these studies we will manipulate mitochondrial dynamics in an effort to prevent the decline of adult neurogenesis in the aging brain or in neurodegeneration. The overall goal is develop new treatment strategies by which to regenerate damaged brain tissue.