ISF Institute of Stem Cell Research

Our research aims to elucidate the key mechanisms of neurogenesis in the developing and adult brain. In contrast to organs such as the skin, the small intestine or the hematopoietic system, most cells in the adult mammalian nervous system are permanently postmitotic, such as the neurons and the oligodendrocytes, and are not turned over nor regenerated once they die. Neurogenesis persists only in very few regions of the adult mammalian forebrain, and neurons degenerated after acute or chronic injury are not replaced in the adult mammalian brain. To overcome this, we study neurogenesis when and where it works with the aim to reactivate these mechanisms and re-instruct neurogenesis after brain injury. Using our developmental knowledge about neurogenesis, we have pioneered the approach to generate new neurons by direct reprogramming from glial cells, first in vitro and then in vivo which has now become a world-wide very active field of research and an interesting approach for novel therapeutic approaches to brain repair (Barker et al., Nature 2018; Grade & Götz, Regen. Medicine 2017).

Principle investigator Dr. Stefan H. Stricker joined the Institute for Stem Cell Research at the Helmholtz Zentrum München as a guest scientist associated with the Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität Munich. Since December 2016 he is the head of the MCN Junior Research group "Epigenome Editing" at the BioMedical Center.

We focus on basic and translational research in the field of the central nervous system (CNS) repair and regeneration aiming at novel strategies for brain repair and regeneration by modulating the function of glial cells. We aim at providing a basis for the development of new therapies for patients affected by stroke, neurotrauma or neurodegenerative diseases.