DZNE Göttingen

In Göttingen, the DZNE is researching the basis for new therapies against Alzheimer’s and other diseases of the nervous system, paying special attention to the question of how genes are regulated and in what way their activity is disturbed in brain diseases.

In this context, lifestyle habits play a key role: Diet, exercise, stress, and environmental influences can increase or decrease the risk of disease because they affect the activity of genes, without changing the genetic material. This phenomenon is based on so-called epigenetic mechanisms at the molecular level. The Göttingen-based scientists at the DZNE are investigating how these processes affect brain diseases in order to pave the way for new treatment strategies.

Through human clinical studies, the experts at the DZNE are also conducting research to improve the early detection of dementia and movement disorders and to develop new therapies. They are particularly interested in the detection of “biomarkers,” which are biological indicators (in the blood or cerebrospinal fluid, for example) that help to detect a disease and assess how it will progress.

In addition to research on age-related brain diseases, the DZNE site in Göttingen is also dedicated to neurodegenerative diseases in children and adolescents.