Aging and Neurodegeneration

The goal of our group is to discover new therapeutic strategies to combat the underlying alterations of the cognitive loss in pathological brain aging. The research aims to enable or enhance endogenous neuroprotective mechanisms in experimental systems of aging and Alzheimer disease (AD). We mainly focus in the involvement of epigenetic changes against neuroinflammation-linked neurodegeneration. The group uses animal models, cell cultures and samples of human tissue to investigate neuroprotection and prevention therapies. Studying the mechanisms of neurotoxicity and neurodegeneration of AD has allowed the group to define targets in the prevention of pathological brain aging: some of the targets are changes in the brain such as the accumulation of abnormal proteins, inflammation, oxidative stress and decreased neurotropic factors. The strategy is to strengthen the cellular mechanisms of defence against these process with new drugs and life style therapies.