Animal Models of Diseases
The Barcelona Training Platform will provide a library of animal models of diseases (specially focussing on neurological diseases) for phenotyping diseases by imaging techniques. We aim at:
- Providing the molecular basis underlying disease generation, progression, and therapies (including stem cell strategies)
- Providing adequate experimental animal models that reproduce many or certain disturbancies associated with the diseases
- Phenotyping brain injury and neurodegenerative disorders by micro-PET and micro-SPECT (AD, PD, stroke, epilepsy, disorders involving neurotransmitter alterations)
- Identifying new molecular targets relevant to disease diagnostics
- Validating the use of new imaging tracers together with P18: imaging the cardiovascular system (clinical)
Objectives:
The Barcelona Training Platform could offer training for scientists and students in various specialities:
- Cellular and molecular biology/biochemistry for undertanding the molecular mechanisms underlying brain diseases
- Development of strategies to interfer with disease progression
- Imaging: micro-PET and micro-SPECT imaging for phenotyping brain injury and neurodegeneration and gene and stem cell strategies
- Validation in animal models of the use of new diagnostic PET tracers
- Together with P18: imaging the cardiovascular system (clinical)
Description of work:
a) Available training infrastructure
- Biology laboratories for developing research in experimental animals and in cell cultures
- Access to radiochemistry laboratories, micro- and clinical PET camera, microSPECT applications
b) Specific training packages
These are one-week teaching packages:
- Development of specific animal models for neurological diseases (1 week)
- Development of neural cell models in vitro for tracer validation (1 week)
- Imaging cerebral alterations in animals by micro-PET (1 week)
- Imaging the Cardiovascular System (1 week)
Moreover, training may include:
- Direct involvement in ongoing research projects with daily discussions on progress and problems, hard- and software handling of microPET.
- Participation in weekly research meetings and selected lectures from the Wolfson Brain Imaging Centre and it's affiliates with the University of Cambridge
- Postgraduate research opportunities within MSc/MD/PhD programme
