ERC Consolidator Grant for Casper Hoogenraad

The research group of Hoogenraad has recently developed new imaging tools to visualize and manipulate the cytoskeleton and transport components in living neurons. With the ERC grant they will focus on the changes that occur within the microtubule cytoskeleton during the different stages of neuronal polarization and differentiation. The ultimate goal is to understand how cytoskeleton reorganizations control the development of neurons. Microtubules – tubular protein structures – play a crucial role in the development of all neurons in our body. They control the stability of neurons and are responsible for transporting building blocks throughout the cell. Hoogenraad: “If we get a better insight in how neurons develop and function in the brain, we might be able to understand better how diseases such as Alzheimer and ALS develop.”

Press Release:
FOM – UU