Biomedical Research Center SAS
Topic
Extracellular vesicles as mediators of exercise effects in patients with Parkinson’s disease. In vivo and in vitro studies
PhD. program
animal physiology
Year of admission
2025
Name of the supervisor
prof. MUDr. Barbara Ukropcová, PhD.
Contact:
Receiving school
Faculty of Natural Sciences, Comenius University in Bratislava
Annotation
Regular exercise is an effective supportive therapeutic strategy for patients with PCh, the second most common neurodegenerative disease. In our previous work, we showed a positive effect of exercise on the clinical status and metabolism of patients with PCh. Exercise stimulates brain plasticity through systemic mechanisms that are activated during muscle contraction. These include exerkines, bioactive molecules that are released into the circulation during exercise and act also at the level of the brain. Exerkines can be transported in extracellular vesicles (EVs), complex mediators of tissue crosstalk. The aim of our clinical and in vitro studies is: 1. to determine the effects of physical exercise on the brain (MRI) and cognitive functions (cognitive test battery) of patients with mild and moderate PCh; 2. to analyze the effect of acute and regular exercise on exerkines and EVs from blood, cerebrospinal fluid, and conditioned media from primary muscle cells of patients with PCh; 3. investigate the role of identified exercise-regulated molecules in intercellular communication using established in vitro cell culture models.