Organizing Committee Member
Laura Cancedda
Senior Group Leader/Researcher
Italian Institute of Technology
Italy
Biography
The goal of my laboratory is to understand the molecular determinants of cortical circuit development and wiring in physiology and pathology. In particular, a main focus of the laboratory is to try to understand how diverse developing neurons influence one another during neuronal migration, axon and dendrite polarization, and formation of neuronal networks. Indeed, we believe that the extracellular milieu of a specific developing brain cell is strongly influenced by the presence of other cells that are developing themselves (cellular environment). Notably, as development is by definition a dynamic process, the cellular environment will constantly change over time and it will be different in different brain areas. This may have tremendous conceptual consequences for the treatment of neurodevelopmental disorders, and we believe that the study of the different cellular environments during brain development may eventually lead to the identification of specific therapeutic windows to address aberrant neuronal development with much reduced side effects. To address these issues, we have developed two lines of research in the laboratory: a first line focuses on basic and translational animal research on brain development in health and animal models of neurodevelopmental disorders, and a second one focuses on promoting new technological approaches in developmental neuroscience.
Research Area
Neurology