In our pursuit of advancing neuroscience, our team is on a mission to investigate the pathophysiology of multiple sclerosis and develop new therapeutic approaches for demyelinating, neuroinflammatory, and neurodegenerative diseases.
Here’s a sneak peek into our research interests:
🧠 Key Focus Areas
remyelination: exploring the brain’s potential for repair.
protection from demyelination: strategies to shield against demyelination.
neurodegeneration: novel approaches to tackle these complex processes.
blood-brain barrier: its function in both health and disease.
💊 Drug Development
Through our research, we’re on a quest to develop new therapeutic approaches that precisely target remyelination and/or neuroinflammation. Collaborating with top-notch researchers and clinicians around the world amplifies our progress.
🔍 Tools
We’re not just researchers, we’re molecular and cellular biologists. Our experiments come to life with an arsenal of tools, including primary brain cells, organotypic brain slices, human blood-brain barrier models, primary immune cells, and brain and immune cell lines. Human brain tissue and patient samples add real-world depth to our investigations.
🐭 In Vivo Explorations
Promising targets aren’t just theoretical concepts; we put them to the test using various in vivo models, from the LPS model to the cuprizone model and the experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis (EAE) model.
🧑🔬 Educating Future Minds
Beyond the lab bench, we’re committed to shaping the next generation of neuroscientists. Our educational opportunities span the spectrum, welcoming students and researchers from undergraduate to postdoctoral levels.
FUNDING
Ongoing
National Science Centre, grant registration number: SONATA 18: 2022/47/D/NZ3/02613, title: EBI2 receptor as a new myelin repair therapy in multiple sclerosis. Funding amount: 1,707,496 PLN; PI: A. Rutkowska
National Science Centre, Grant registration number: OPUS 17: 2019/33/B/NZ4/03000, title: The EBI2 receptor/oxysterol signalling in multiple sclerosis pathophysiology, therapy and diagnostics. Funding amount: 1,699,526 PLN; PI: A. Rutkowska
„The Student Grant” funded under the Excellence Initiative – Research University, Medical University of Gdansk, title: Function of Piezo1 mechanoreceptor in oligodendrocytes differentiation, myelination and remyelination of the central nervous system. Funding amount: 25,000 PLN; Grantee/Student: O. Krajewski; Scientific Advisor: A. Rutkowska
„The Student Grant” funded under the Excellence Initiative – Research University, Medical University of Gdansk, title: Expression and function of mechanosensitive ion channel PIEZO1 in T CD4+ lymphocytes population from patients with multiple sclerosis. Funding amount: 25,000 PLN; Grantee/Student: M. Padzik; Scientific Advisor: A. Rutkowska
Previous
National Science Centre, Grant registration number: POLONEZ: 2016/21/P/NZ3/00897, title: The function of EBI2 receptor in human oligodendrocytes and its role in the cuprizone model for demyelination. Funding amount: 944,754 PLN; PI: A. Rutkowska
Inkubator GUMed, 2nd ed., title: Ocena toksyczności ostrej i przewlekłej zmodyfikowanego oksysterolu CF3-7α,25OHC i barbadyny in vivo. Funding amount: 150,000 PLN; PI: A. Rutkowska
„The Young Creator of Science” funded under the Excellence Initiative – Research University, Medical University of Gdansk, title: A pilot study of relapsing experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis model of multiple sclerosis in TDAG8 knock-out mice. Funding amount: 50,000 PLN; PI: A. Rutkowska
„The Young Creator of Science” funded under the Excellence Initiative – Research University, Medical University of Gdansk, title: Remyelination-enhancing properties of EBI2/7α,25OHC-induced signalling in the cuprizone model of MS. Funding amount: 50,000 PLN; Grantee/Student: M. Opielka; Scientific Advisors: Prof. B. Karaszewski, A. Rutkowska