Search
-
- Page
The Topic Partners
27.02.2024
-
- News from the Institutes
How Stress Disrupts the Brain’s Navigational System
Persons under stress may have a harder time spatially orienting themselves. Researchers in Bochum have discovered why.
13.03.2026
-
- Topic
Basic Research
Basic research is aimless. But eminently important.
-
- Glossary
Neurofibrils
Neurofibrils are fine fibrous structures in nerve cells that consist mainly of neurofilaments (a form of intermediate filaments) and other components of the cytoskeleton. They run in bundles through the cell body and the extensions of neurons and contribute significantly to the stabilization and shaping of the nerve cell. They appear as characteristic features of neurons even in the early embryo. Alzheimer's disease causes profound changes in cytoskeletal structures: the protein tau, which normally stabilizes microtubules, becomes excessively phosphorylated, detaches from the microtubules, and aggregates to form the typical neurofibrillary tangles (fibrillary bundles). These are a central pathological feature of the disease.
-
- News from the Institutes
Interaction between interneurons stabilizes gamma oscillations in a brain
PV+ cells act as the “conductors” of visually induced gamma oscillatory rhythm
26.05.2025
-
- Glossary
Tau protein
Tau proteins are particularly prevalent in the central nervous system. Their function is to stabilize microtubules – the structures that give cells their shape and support. Under certain circumstances, enzymes attach too many phosphate groups to tau proteins. As a result, the proteins are no longer broken down properly and form toxic aggregates within the neurons. Alongside senile plaques, aggregated tau proteins are considered a classic hallmark of Alzheimer's disease.
-
- Topic
The Glymphatic System
The brain also produces waste. And the brain also has a waste disposal system.
-
- Glossary
Dementia
Dementia is an acquired deficit of cognitive, social, motor, and emotional abilities. The most well-known form is Alzheimer's disease. "De mentia" means "without mind" in English.
-
- Glossary
Biomarker
In medicine, a biomarker is a substance that provides information about the physiological state of an organism. Biomarkers can either be produced in the body itself or describe chemical compounds that doctors introduce into the body to test certain physiological functions. Several indicators, for example, are being discussed as possible biomarkers for Alzheimer's disease. These include the concentration of soluble amyloid precursor protein in the blood and the activity of the enzyme that cleaves the precursor protein to produce plaque-forming beta-amyloid. Disease-related changes detected by imaging techniques are also often referred to as biomarkers. For example, the breakdown of brain tissue can be detected by MRI.
-
- Glossary
Plaques
Senile plaques accumulate in the gray matter of the brain when a protein – known as amyloid precursor protein – is not broken down correctly. Inflammation and disorders of fat or sugar metabolism can promote plaque formation. On average, the deposits reach a diameter of 50 micrometers. The appearance of plaques is one of several anatomical changes in the brain that pathologists can use to diagnose Alzheimer's disease after death.
