Research Interest

The aim of this program is to study cellular processes involved in neurodegeneration. The research lines focus in the study of inter-organelle communications and secretory pathways.

Organelles engage in extensive communication with each other, either directly through membrane contacts or indirectly by regulating signalling pathways. In this area of research, mitochondrial communication with other organelles is studied, as well as how it regulates neuronal functions and governs cell fate decisions.

We are interested in the cellular and molecular mechanisms underlying biogenesis, trafficking and exocytosis of secretory organelles and excitation-secretion coupling secretion in neural and endocrine cells. Multiple in-vitro, ex-vivo and in vivo approaches are used to study alterations of secretory processes in neurons and glial cells in Alzheimer’s disease. The results of our research are expected to contribute to the identification of new biomarkers of neurodegenerative diseases.

Technologies & Methods

• Primary cultures (neurons and astrocytes)
• Live cell imaging
• Bioenergetic assays
• AAV generation
• Flow cytometry
• Split luciferase complementation assay
• General techniques of biochemistry and molecular biology (western blot, qPCR, cloning…)
• General histological methods, immunolabeling and in situ hybridisation
• Brain and CSF analysis in rodents and humans
• Biochemical and imaging secretion assays
• Brain stereotaxic surgery
• Optogenetic methods

Active Projects

Modulació de la senyalització retrògrada mitocondrial com a tractament de la síndrome de Leigh. Fundació La Marató de TV3. 415/C/2020. Francesc X. Soriano

Vesículas de centro denso en neuronas y astrocitos: mecanismos de exocitosis y su potencial uso como biomarcadores de neurodegeneración. Ministerio de Ciencia, Innovación y Universidades. PID2019-107738RB-I00. Fernando Aguado

Estudio del papel de Mfn2 en la regulación de programas transcriptionales inducidos por la actividad sináptica. Ministerio de Ciencia, Innovación y Universidades. PID2020119322GB-I00. Francesc X. Soriano

ER-mitochondria contacts in neurodegeneration. Looking for a novel therapeutic approach. Ministerio de Ciencia, Velux Stiftung. Project number 1262. Francesc X. Soriano

Selected Publications

• • Antón-Galindo, E., Dalla Vecchia, E., Orlandi, J. G., Castro, G., Gualda, E. J., Young, A. M. J., Guasch-Piqueras, M., Arenas, C., Herrera-Úbeda, C., Garcia-Fernàndez, J., Aguado, F., Loza-Alvarez, P., Cormand, B., Norton, W. H. J., & FernàndezCastillo, N. (2022). Deficiency of the ywhaz gene, involved in neurodevelopmental disorders, alters brain activity and behaviour in zebrafish. Molecular Psychiatry, 27(9), 3739–3748. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41380-022-01577-9

• • Lennol, M. P., Sánchez-Domínguez, I., Cuchillo-Ibañez, I., Camporesi, E., Brinkmalm, G., Alcolea, D., Fortea, J., Lleó, A., Soria, G., Aguado, F., Zetterberg, H., Blennow, K., & Sáez-Valero, J. (2022). Apolipoprotein E imbalance in the cerebrospinal fluid of Alzheimer’s disease patients. Alzheimer’s Research & Therapy, 14(1), 161. https://doi.org/10.1186/s13195-022-01108-2

• • Torres-Cano, A., Portella-Fortuny, R., Müller-Sánchez, C., Porras-Marfil, S., Ramiro-Pareta, M., Chau, Y.-Y., Reina, M., Soriano, F. X., & Martínez-Estrada, O. M. (2022). Deletion of Wt1 during early gonadogenesis leads to differences of sex development in male and female adult mice. PLOS Genetics, 18(6), e1010240. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pgen.1010240