Department of Cellmorphology and Molecular Neurobiology
Faculty of Biology and Biotechnology
Ruhr University Bochum
Universitätsstr. 150
44801 Bochum
Room:
ND 05/594
Phone:
+49 (0)234 32-28851
Email:
andreas.faissner@ruhr-uni-bochum.de
The Department of Cell Morphology and Molecular Neurobiology aims at the elucidation of the molecular and cellular bases that regulate the generation of the central nervous system. Thematic groups focus i) on the biology of radial glia stem cells, motoneurons, glial progenitors and their microenvironment, the stem cell niche during development and under pathological conditions; ii) on neuron-glia interactions and their regulatory influence on axon growth and guidance, as well as synaptogenesis and synaptic plasticity; iii) on retinal stem cells and their integration into neural networks and the possible application to visual system lesions and degeneration. On the molecular level, glycoproteins of the extracellular matrix (ECM, e.g. tenascin-C), chondroitinsulfate proteoglycans (CSPGs) and their receptors, tyrosine phosphatases and downstream GTPases of the RhoA-family and GEFs (e.g. Vav-proteins) are studied using molecular and cell biological tools, and genetically modified animal models applying proteomics and transcriptomics. A particular interest is directed at the perineuronal nets and their functions for the stabilization of memory traces, and in the context of neuropsychiatric disease. The long-term aim is the understanding of the structure and functions of complex macromolecular interactomes of the extracellular matrix (ECM) in their biological context.
Reinhard, J., Mueller-Buehl, C., Wiemann, S., Roll, L., Luft, V., Shabani, H., Rathbun, D. L., Gan, L., Kuo, C.C., Franzen, J., Joachim, S. C., & Faissner, A. (2024). Neural extracellular matrix regulates visual sensory motor integration. IScience, 27(2), 108846. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.isci.2024.108846
Wegrzyn, D., Manitz, M.‑P., Kostka, M., Freund, N., Juckel, G., & Faissner, A. (2021). Poly I:C-induced maternal immune challenge reduces perineuronal net area and raises spontaneous network activity of hippocampal neurons in vitro. The European Journal of Neuroscience, 53(12), 3920–3941. https://doi.org/10.1111/ejn.14934
Bres, E. E., Safina, D., Müller, J., Bedner, P., Yang, H., Helluy, X., Shchyglo, O., Jansen, S., Mark, M. D., Esser, A., Steinhäuser, C., Herlitze, S., Pietrzik, C. U., Sirko, S., Manahan-Vaughan, D., & Faissner, A. (2020). Lipoprotein receptor loss in forebrain radial glia results in neurological deficits and severe seizures. Glia, 68(12), 2517–2549. https://doi.org/10.1002/glia.23869
Duscha, A., Gisevius, B., Hirschberg, S., Yissachar, N., Stangl, G. I., Eilers, E., Bader, V., Haase, S., Kaisler, J., David, C., Schneider, R., Troisi, R., Zent, D., Hegelmaier, T., Dokalis, N., Gerstein, S., Del Mare-Roumani, S., Amidror, S., Faissner, A. . . . Haghikia, A. (2020). Propionic Acid Shapes the Multiple Sclerosis Disease Course by an Immunomodulatory Mechanism. Cell, 180(6), 1067-1080.e16. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cell.2020.02.035
Gottschling, C., Wegrzyn, D., Denecke, B., & Faissner, A. (2019). Elimination of the four extracellular matrix molecules tenascin-C, tenascin-R, brevican and neurocan alters the ratio of excitatory and inhibitory synapses. Scientific Reports, 9(1), 13939. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-019-50404-9
Safina, D., Schlitt, F., Romeo, R., Pflanzner, T., Pietrzik, C. U., Narayanaswami, V., Edenhofer, F., & Faissner, A. (2016). Low-density lipoprotein receptor-related protein 1 is a novel modulator of radial glia stem cell proliferation, survival, and differentiation. Glia, 64(8), 1363–1380. https://doi.org/10.1002/glia.23009
Geissler, M., Gottschling, C., Aguado, A., Rauch, U., Wetzel, C. H., Hatt, H., & Faissner, A. (2013). Primary hippocampal neurons, which lack four crucial extracellular matrix molecules, display abnormalities of synaptic structure and function and severe deficits in perineuronal net formation. The Journal of Neuroscience : The Official Journal of the Society for Neuroscience, 33(18), 7742–7755. https://doi.org/10.1523/JNEUROSCI.3275-12.2013
Karus, M., Denecke, B., ffrench-Constant, C., Wiese, S., & Faissner, A. (2011). The extracellular matrix molecule tenascin C modulates expression levels and territories of key patterning genes during spinal cord astrocyte specification. Development (Cambridge, England), 138(24), 5321–5331. https://doi.org/10.1242/dev.067413
Sirko, S., Neitz, A., Mittmann, T., Horvat-Bröcker, A., Holst, A. von, Eysel, U. T., & Faissner, A. (2009). Focal laser-lesions activate an endogenous population of neural stem/progenitor cells in the adult visual cortex. Brain : A Journal of Neurology, 132(Pt 8), 2252–2264. https://doi.org/10.1093/brain/awp043
Sirko, S., Holst, A. von, Wizenmann, A., Götz, M., & Faissner, A. (2007). Chondroitin sulfate glycosaminoglycans control proliferation, radial glia cell differentiation and neurogenesis in neural stem/progenitor cells. Development (Cambridge, England), 134(15), 2727–2738. https://doi.org/10.1242/dev.02871
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Last update: Feb 07, 2024
