NEWS ARCHIVE
Aug 26, 2023 | How Blood That Leaks into the Brain Makes Immune Cells Toxic
“Our study answers, for the first time in a comprehensive way, how blood that leaks into the brain hijacks the brain’s immune system to cause toxic effects in brain diseases,” said Akassoglou, who is also director of the Center for Neurovascular Brain Immunology at Gladstone and a professor of neurology at UC San Francisco (UCSF). “Knowing how blood affects the brain could help us develop innovative treatments for neurological diseases.”
Read the full article here.
Aug 25, 2023 | Revealing How Blood Triggers Brain Disease Learn more
In patients with neurological diseases like Alzheimer’s disease and multiple sclerosis, immune cells in the brain known as microglia that normally fulfill beneficial functions become harmful to neurons, leading to cognitive dysfunction and motor impairment. These harmful immune cells may also contribute to age-related cognitive decline in people without dementia.
Jul 19, 2023 | Nature Immunology Selected Our Image For The July 2023 Volume 24 Cover
Katerina Akassoglou and colleagues provide single-cell RNA-sequencing and phosphoproteome analyses of CNS microglia and macrophages in response to blood proteins including activated complement and fibrin. Their findings point to potential therapeutic targeting of microglia activation by immune and vascular signals.
May 01, 2023 | Exclusive: Therini raises $36M, will target fibrin protein for Alzheimer’s and diabetic macular edema
Therini Bio has raised a $36 million Series A and will head to the clinic with an antibody that neutralizes fibrin, a blood clotting protein, that it hopes could have broad applications in tamping down inflammation.
Read more here.
Jan 11, 2023 | Our Chapter Was Selected For The Alzheimer’s Disease Book Cover
The laboratory of Dr. Katerina Akassoglou developed a method for three-dimensional imaging of neurovascular alterations and blood-brain barrier disruption in cleared human brains. The image shows fibrin (red) around damaged blood vessels (green) and amyloid (blue) in the brain from a patient with Alzheimer’s disease.
Image Credit: Mario Merlini
Nov 30, 2022 | Katerina Akassoglou Elected Fellow of the American Society for Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics (ASPET)
This honor recognizes ASPET’s most distinguished members for their meritorious efforts to advance pharmacology, through their scientific achievements, mentorship, and service to the Society.
Nov 29, 2022 | AES 2022 | Microglial surveillance required to regulate neuronal function: implications for epilepsy Learn more
Sep 09, 2022 | Katerina Akassoglou Received the 2022 ISFP Prize
Katerina Akassoglou, PhD received the 2022 ISFP Prize “for outstanding contributions to the field of fibrinolysis and proteolysis” at the 3rd Joint Meeting of the International Society for Fibrinolysis & Proteolysis and the Plasminogen Activation Workshop, held at Caen, France in September, where she delivered the ISFP Prize lecture. Dr. Akassoglou is the first woman to receive the award since its inauguration in 1974.
Apr 11, 2022 | Andrew Mendiola – Awarded K99
Andrew Mendiola, received a K99 award from the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke for his project “Epigenomic regulation of oxidative stress-producing innate immunity in neuroinflammation.”
The purpose of the NIH Pathway to Independence Award (K99/R00) program is to facilitate a timely transition of outstanding postdoctoral researchers with a research and/or clinical doctorate degree from mentored, postdoctoral research positions to independent, tenure-track or equivalent faculty positions. The program will provide independent NIH research support during this transition in order to help awardees to launch competitive, independent research careers.
Apr 08, 2022 | COVID-19 linked to neurological symptoms, studies show
SAN FRANCISCO (KGO) -- Two new research papers are shedding light on what can happen to the brain after getting COVID
Gladstone Institutes Senior investigator, Professor Katerina Akassoglou explains how this damage could be happening.
"The evidence from the brain from COVID patients we know that there are blood leaks in the brain of those patients in inflammation and when there is a leaky area between the blood and the brain this could be an amplifier of neurological symptoms," said Professor Akassoglou.
Read more here.
Feb 04, 2022 | Katerina Akassoglou elected lifetime AAAS Fellow
Katerina Akassoglou, PhD, has been elected into the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS), a lifetime distinction by the world’s largest general scientific society.
Dec 07, 2021 | Katerina Akassoglou Elected to National Academy of Inventors
Katerina Akassoglou, PhD, senior investigator at Gladstone Institutes, has been named a fellow of the National Academy of Inventors (NAI). Election to NAI is the highest professional distinction given solely to academic inventors.
Oct 08, 2021 | Meet the Most Influential Women in Bay Area Business class of 2021
Dr. Katerina Akassoglou, named one of the Most Influential Women in Bay Area Business. To view the full article, click here.
Aug 27, 2021 | Way Seen to Counter Blood-clotting Molecule That Blocks Myelin Repair
Study by the Akassoglou Lab showed that blocking a particular receptor protein of the BMP signaling pathway, effectively promoted the maturation of myelin-producing cells and myelin repair. To read the full article, click here.
Aug 25, 2021 | New Line of Drugs Could Help Promote Brain Repair in Multiple Sclerosis
Members of Akassoglou Lab working on a new study for new line of drugs to potentially stimulate myelin repair in the presence of toxic blood leaks in the brain. To view the full article, click here.
Aug 25, 2021 | New Line of Drugs Could Help Promote Brain Repair in Multiple Sclerosis Learn more
Aug 24, 2021 | Brain Selected Our Image For The August 2021 Volume
The Akassoglou Lab showed toxic blood leaks in the brain inhibiting remyelination with implications for the development of therapeutic strategies for neuro-repair in multiple sclerosis and other neurological diseases with blood-brain barrier disruption and myelin damage. From Petersen et al. BMP receptor blockade overcomes extrinsic inhibition of remyelination and restores neurovascular homeostasis. Pp. 2291-2301.
Aug 24, 2021 | Momentum, NMSS Magazine – A big part of the MS puzzle
Barancik Prize winner Katerina Akassoglou, PhD, studies links between the brain, immune system, and blood-brain barrier.
Click here to view complete article.
Aug 24, 2021 | Overcoming obstacles to promote repair in multiple sclerosis
Scientists at Akassoglou Lab identifying toxic elements that inhibit repair of damaged myelin and producing studies to find new treatments. To view full article click here.
Jul 09, 2021 | Zhaoqi Yan – BrightFocus Alzheimer’s Disease Research Program Award Recipient
Since 1985, the Alzheimer's Disease Research (ADR) program has awarded nearly $140 million to support promising research in fields ranging from molecular biology to genetics to epidemiology. ADR is currently supporting 133 outstanding biomedical researcher projects.
“Our study answers, for the first time in a comprehensive way, how blood that leaks into the brain hijacks the brain’s immune system to cause toxic effects in brain diseases,” said Akassoglou, who is also director of the Center for Neurovascular Brain Immunology at Gladstone and a professor of neurology at UC San Francisco (UCSF). “Knowing how blood affects the brain could help us develop innovative treatments for neurological diseases.”
Read the full article here.Aug 25, 2023 | Revealing How Blood Triggers Brain Disease Learn more
Katerina Akassoglou (left) and Andrew Mendiola (right) show how blood makes the brain’s immune cells toxic, pointing to new treatments for Alzheimer’s disease and multiple sclerosis.
Jul 19, 2023 | Nature Immunology Selected Our Image For The July 2023 Volume 24 Cover
Katerina Akassoglou and colleagues provide single-cell RNA-sequencing and phosphoproteome analyses of CNS microglia and macrophages in response to blood proteins including activated complement and fibrin. Their findings point to potential therapeutic targeting of microglia activation by immune and vascular signals.
May 01, 2023 | Exclusive: Therini raises $36M, will target fibrin protein for Alzheimer’s and diabetic macular edema
Therini Bio has raised a $36 million Series A and will head to the clinic with an antibody that neutralizes fibrin, a blood clotting protein, that it hopes could have broad applications in tamping down inflammation.
Read more here.Jan 11, 2023 | Our Chapter Was Selected For The Alzheimer’s Disease Book Cover
The laboratory of Dr. Katerina Akassoglou developed a method for three-dimensional imaging of neurovascular alterations and blood-brain barrier disruption in cleared human brains. The image shows fibrin (red) around damaged blood vessels (green) and amyloid (blue) in the brain from a patient with Alzheimer’s disease.
Image Credit: Mario MerliniNov 30, 2022 | Katerina Akassoglou Elected Fellow of the American Society for Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics (ASPET)
This honor recognizes ASPET’s most distinguished members for their meritorious efforts to advance pharmacology, through their scientific achievements, mentorship, and service to the Society.Nov 29, 2022 | AES 2022 | Microglial surveillance required to regulate neuronal function: implications for epilepsy Learn more
Sep 09, 2022 | Katerina Akassoglou Received the 2022 ISFP Prize
Katerina Akassoglou, PhD received the 2022 ISFP Prize “for outstanding contributions to the field of fibrinolysis and proteolysis” at the 3rd Joint Meeting of the International Society for Fibrinolysis & Proteolysis and the Plasminogen Activation Workshop, held at Caen, France in September, where she delivered the ISFP Prize lecture. Dr. Akassoglou is the first woman to receive the award since its inauguration in 1974.Apr 11, 2022 | Andrew Mendiola – Awarded K99
Andrew Mendiola, received a K99 award from the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke for his project “Epigenomic regulation of oxidative stress-producing innate immunity in neuroinflammation.”
The purpose of the NIH Pathway to Independence Award (K99/R00) program is to facilitate a timely transition of outstanding postdoctoral researchers with a research and/or clinical doctorate degree from mentored, postdoctoral research positions to independent, tenure-track or equivalent faculty positions. The program will provide independent NIH research support during this transition in order to help awardees to launch competitive, independent research careers.Apr 08, 2022 | COVID-19 linked to neurological symptoms, studies show
SAN FRANCISCO (KGO) -- Two new research papers are shedding light on what can happen to the brain after getting COVID
Gladstone Institutes Senior investigator, Professor Katerina Akassoglou explains how this damage could be happening.
"The evidence from the brain from COVID patients we know that there are blood leaks in the brain of those patients in inflammation and when there is a leaky area between the blood and the brain this could be an amplifier of neurological symptoms," said Professor Akassoglou.
Read more here.Feb 04, 2022 | Katerina Akassoglou elected lifetime AAAS Fellow
Katerina Akassoglou, PhD, has been elected into the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS), a lifetime distinction by the world’s largest general scientific society.
“I’m grateful to my lab members and collaborators for their immeasurable contributions to these studies over the past 20 years. Election to AAAS further encourages us to follow our curiosity about how brain diseases start and progress and we look forward to new discoveries contributing to the advancement of science.”
Dec 07, 2021 | Katerina Akassoglou Elected to National Academy of Inventors
Katerina Akassoglou, PhD, senior investigator at Gladstone Institutes, has been named a fellow of the National Academy of Inventors (NAI). Election to NAI is the highest professional distinction given solely to academic inventors.
“Election to the NAI further encourages us to pursue challenging problems in biology and medicine to develop urgently needed treatments for devastating human diseases.”
Oct 08, 2021 | Meet the Most Influential Women in Bay Area Business class of 2021
Dr. Katerina Akassoglou, named one of the Most Influential Women in Bay Area Business. To view the full article, click here.Aug 27, 2021 | Way Seen to Counter Blood-clotting Molecule That Blocks Myelin Repair
Study by the Akassoglou Lab showed that blocking a particular receptor protein of the BMP signaling pathway, effectively promoted the maturation of myelin-producing cells and myelin repair. To read the full article, click here.
Aug 25, 2021 | New Line of Drugs Could Help Promote Brain Repair in Multiple Sclerosis
Members of Akassoglou Lab working on a new study for new line of drugs to potentially stimulate myelin repair in the presence of toxic blood leaks in the brain. To view the full article, click here. Aug 25, 2021 | New Line of Drugs Could Help Promote Brain Repair in Multiple Sclerosis Learn more
Aug 24, 2021 | Brain Selected Our Image For The August 2021 Volume
Illustration by Ella Marushchenko
Aug 24, 2021 | Momentum, NMSS Magazine – A big part of the MS puzzle
Barancik Prize winner Katerina Akassoglou, PhD, studies links between the brain, immune system, and blood-brain barrier.
Click here to view complete article.Aug 24, 2021 | Overcoming obstacles to promote repair in multiple sclerosis
Scientists at Akassoglou Lab identifying toxic elements that inhibit repair of damaged myelin and producing studies to find new treatments. To view full article click here.Jul 09, 2021 | Zhaoqi Yan – BrightFocus Alzheimer’s Disease Research Program Award Recipient
Since 1985, the Alzheimer's Disease Research (ADR) program has awarded nearly $140 million to support promising research in fields ranging from molecular biology to genetics to epidemiology. ADR is currently supporting 133 outstanding biomedical researcher projects.
