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INSTITUTE OF MOLECULAR GENETICS
AND GENETIC ENGINEERING
University of Belgrade

Cardiff Neuropsychiatric patient-iPSC International Consortium

Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC), 2022-2023
Principal Investigator: Prof. Adrian Harwood, Cardiff University
Participants: Academician Milena Stevanovic, dr Danijela Drakulic, dr Natasa Kovacevic Grujicic, dr Mina Peric 

Building on two funded international collaborations that currently support knowledge exchange and innovation, research groups from Cardiff, Belgrade, Maastricht and Thessaloniki will develop large-scale funding applications for neuroscience and mental health research. One of the biggest biological challenges today is to understand the molecular mechanisms that control development and maintenance of healthy brain function. A powerful emerging approach focusses on the cells of the human brain through application of stem cell-based technologies. By combining with computational approaches from human genetics; human behavioural and social measurements, and in vivo structural and functional brain imaging, we now could integrate multidisciplinary data to understand human brain function and create the next generation of tools for mental health research. To maximise the effectiveness of this research it is imperative to work in partnership at the international level. Our scientific approach investigates changes of neurodevelopment and synaptic function due to chromosomal rearrangements of the human genome that have a high impact on human mental health; these have strong correlation between genetic change and biological phenotype. Such mutations offer biological case studies to establish mechanistic understanding, develop cell-based tools for human neuroscience and offer an important enabler for vertical data integration from human genetics to brain physiology. The overall objective of this International Partnership Fund is to further build on an existing collaborative activity, supported by current and multiyear finding, to create a core of European researchers, who will lead future large-scale research projects and consortium funding applications, such as in the Horizon Europe programme or equivalent.

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