DZNE Berlin

Research at the DZNE site in Berlin focuses primarily on neurological disorders that occur in various forms of dementia and affect functions such as logical thinking, perception, and memory formation. In the laboratories at the Campus Charité Mitte, the scientists are investigating topics that include the fundamentals of synaptic transmission and network activity in the brain, the mechanisms of vascular dementia, and autoimmune reactions against synaptic proteins, which can irreparably damage the cells.

In line with the DZNE’s larger strategy, the work in Berlin strongly follows the principle of translation, meaning the transfer and application of knowledge across the boundaries of individual research fields and institutions. Accordingly, the scientists in fundamental research cooperate closely with clinical research and with general practitioners in the Berlin research centers. The DZNE Berlin is part of an interactive research network between the Charité Medical University Berlin, the Humboldt University of Berlin, the Free University of Berlin, the Max Delbrück Center for Molecular Medicine, and the Leibniz Institute for Molecular Pharmacology. 

At the Berlin DZNE site, experts are also specifically recruited for the translational research mentioned above in order to expand networking efforts and create new interactions between researchers in Berlin and those at the other DZNE sites.