Experimental Thesis project availability in Neuroscience

Experimental Thesis project availability in Neuroscience

Laboratory Antonella Ragnini-Wilson, Ed PP1 second Floor AA 2026/2027
We are looking for 2 motivated students interested in an experimental thesis focused on the mechanism of regeneration of the myelin sheath for Multiple Sclerosis remyelination therapies Loss of myelin is a hallmark of several debilitating neurological disorders, including multiple sclerosis, leukodystrophies, and neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, and frontotemporal dementia. Our group uses phenotypic screening and AI-based virtula screen combined with biochemical and genetic tools, to identify and validate pro-myelinating compounds that promote myelin repair and thereby nerve functional recovery. The thesis project will focus on validating recently identified compounds in human iPSC-derived OPCs and investigating their molecular targets and mechanisms of action in Oli-neuM mouse oligodendroglial cell lines. Students will receive hands-on training in modern experimental techniques, including cell culture, immunostaining and immunoblotting, high-content microscopy, RT-PCR, CRISPR/Cas9 genome editing, gene silencing, and transcriptomic analysis. This project offers a valuable opportunity to gain experience in translational neuroscience research with direct relevance to human disease. The duration of the experimental project is 1 year. Students at the end of the first year of their Master’s course are encouraged to apply For information and application, please contact: Antonella.Ragnini@uniroma2.eu, with the object experimental thesis request

Experimental Thesis in Neurobiology at the Laboratory of Prof. Antonella Ragnini

Admission Procedure at the Master of Science in Biotechnology of Tor Vergata University of Rome

We are seeking highly motivated students to undertake a laboratory experimental study for Master Thesis (LM) in Biotechnology.
Possibility to start in September -December 2024.
Project Title: Study of the mechanism of action drugs promoting remyelination in cellular models.
Remyelination is the natural process that restores the myelin of damaged axons in the adult brain. Myelin can be disrupted during life as a consequence of injury, viral infection or disease progression. Remyelination can restore saltatory current and thereby neuronal function. Unfortunately, remyelination is incomplete as a consequence of disease progression or ageing. Cumulating data suggest that pharmacological intervention can be used to restore the ability of neural stem cells to mature into myelinating Ols. We previously selected some promising drugs that need to be studied to clarify their molecular mechanism of action (Al Jaf et al., Cells 2024). Understanding how remyelination occurs in adult CNS in normal and pathological conditions will open new avenues for the possibility of treating neurodegenerative diseases among which are Multiple Sclerosis, Alzheimer’s, Parkinson and ageing-related dementia. Drug screening, HTS imaging and analyses, qPCR and CRISP-CAS9 KO and Knock-in are among the methodologies that you will learn during the thesis.
For position enquire please e-mail to: antonella.ragnini@uniroma2.it