Cell Biology of Alzheimer's Disease Laboratory - Honours projects available in 2009
An Honours project undertaken in this lab would be administered by the Discipline of Anatomy & Histology.
- Oxidative-stress and mitochondrial dysfunction in the initiation of Alzheimer-like cytoskeletal abnormalities
Supervisor + contact details:
Oxidative stress and mitochondrial dysfunction are associated with neurodegenerative diseases including Alzheimer's disease (AD). Evidence of oxidative stress has been demonstrated during mild cognitive impairment and early on in AD along with the development of neuropathological lesions that include characteristic intracellular inclusions of hyperphosphorylated tau protein and extracellular amyloid deposits. The aim of this project is to determine whether there is a relationship between mitochondrial function, oxidative stress and tau hyperphosphorylation in neurons. A combination of techniques will be used including primary neuronal cell culture, cell viability assays, immunoprecipitation, Western blotting, and fluorescence microscopy.
- Chronological development of cytoskeletal abnormalities in the Alzheimer's Disease brain
Supervisor + contact details:
- Dr Karen Cullen
- Dr Claire Goldsbury
This project investigates the development of cytoskeletal lesions in the Alzheimer's Disease brain. Postmortem brain tissue from well-characterised Alzheimer's Disease cases with very early stage to late stage degeneration will be used to determine the progression of cytoskeletal abnormalities from early to late-stage disease. Results will be validated using a primary neuronal cell culture model. Techniques will include immunohistochemistry, confocal microscopy and electron microscopy.
