The University of Oxford team will collaborate with three leading European scientists: Dr Dario Bonanomi, a neuroscientist at Ospedale San Raffaele in Italy; Dr Isabelle Brunet, a vascular biologist at the Collège de France; and Dr Tambet Teesalu, a nanoscientist at the University of Tartu in Estonia. Together, this international consortium will combine complementary expertise in neuroscience, vascular biology, and nanotechnology to unravel the mechanisms that coordinate communication between nerves and blood vessels.
The Oxford component of the project will focus on the cells which form the inner lining of blood and lymphatic vessels (endothelial cells), how they sense and respond to mechanical forces, and the role that this plays in the neurovascular interface. Professor Tzima's group will combine molecular, biophysical and imaging approaches to explore how these mechanical cues regulate nerve–vessel interactions. They will investigate how the disruption of these interactions may contribute to peripheral neuropathies, a group of debilitating conditions that affect millions of people worldwide.
Read the full story on the Radcliffe Department of Medicine website.