Elga de Vries
Research Line
Neuro-immunology: The neurovascular unit in health and disease
Altered activation of the immune system, neuroinflammation (marked by activated astrocytes and microglia), and dysfunction of the neuro-protective brain barriers are pathological hallmarks of many neurodegenerative disorders, such as multiple sclerosis (MS), various forms of dementia, including Alzheimer’s disease (AD), and stroke. It becomes increasingly clear that chronic neuroinflammation, an altered immune response and neurovascular dysfunction may even be causal for onset and progression of such cognitive disorders, but underlying mechanisms remain unknown. The translational research of the De Vries group is therefore focused on understanding how alterations at the level of the immune system and the brain barriers underlie neuroinflammatory and neurodegenerative conditions. In our current research, we aim to define underlying pathways that initiate neuro-inflammation as potential targets for treatment and identify if such alterations may serve as biomarkers for disease in well-defined patient cohorts. A better understanding of such pathological processes may in future lead to potential novel intervention strategies to fight neurogical disorders.
Contact details: he.devries@amsterdamumc.nl
Key Publications HE de Vries
1. Derada Troletti C, Enzmann G, Chiurchiù V, Kamermans A, Tietz SM, Norris PC, Jahromi NH, Leuti A, van der Pol SMA, Schouten M, Serhan CN, Engelhardt B*, Kooij G*, de Vries HE* *(equal contribution) Pro-resolving lipid mediator lipoxin A4 attenuates neuro-inflammation by modulating T cell responses and modifies the spinal cord lipidome..Cell Rep. 2021 1;35:109201.
2. van Olst L, Rodriguez-Mogeda C, Picon C, Kiljan S, James RE, Kamermans A, van der Pol SMA, Knoop L, Michailidou I, Drost E, Franssen M, Schenk GJ, Geurts JJG, Amor S, Mazarakis ND, van Horssen J, de Vries HE, Reynolds R, Witte ME. Meningeal inflammation in multiple sclerosis induces phenotypic changes in cortical microglia that differentially associate with neurodegeneration. Acta Neuropathol. 2021;141:881-899.
3. Rodríguez-Lorenzo S, Konings J, van der Pol S, Kamermans A, Amor S, van Horssen J, Witte M, Kooij G, de Vries HE.Inflammation of the choroid plexus in progressive multiple sclerosis: accumulation of granulocytes and T cells. Acta Neuropathol Commun. 2020 8;9
4. Wouters E, de Wit NM, Vanmol J, van der Pol SMA, van Het Hof B, Sommer D, Loix M, Geerts D, Gustafsson JA, Steffensen KR, Vanmierlo T, Bogie JFJ, Hendriks JJA, de Vries HE. Liver X Receptor Alpha Is Important in Maintaining Blood-Brain Barrier Function. Front Immunol. 2019 10:1811.
5. Derada Troletti C, Fontijn RD, Gowing E, Charabati M, van Het Hof B, Didouh I, van der Pol SMA, Geerts D, Prat A, van Horssen J, Kooij G, de Vries HE.Inflammation-induced endothelial to mesenchymal transition promotes brain endothelial cell dysfunction and occurs during multiple sclerosis pathophysiology. Cell Death Dis. 2019; 10:45