Andras Simon

Group members:
Andras Simon, group leader
Daniel Berg, PhD stud
Paula Borg, PhD stud
Matthew Kirkham, postdoc

ANDRAS SIMON
Department of Cell and Molecular Biology (CMB)
Andras.Simon@ki.se

Natural examples of regeneration, such as salamanders, may unravel novel strategies for cell replacement of damaged or lost tissues. We study regeneration mechanisms in an aquatic salamander, the newt, which has the widest repertoire of regenerative abilities among adult vertebrates.

Our group has two main interests.

The first dimension of our research is to understand how skeletal muscle contributes to new tissues during limb regeneration. We have identified a multipotent stem cell population in salamander skeletal muscle and we try to understand how these cells take part in limb regeneration. Salamander skeletal muscle may also undergo a unique dedifferentiation process during limb regeneration, and we aim to reveal the mechanisms underlying skeletal muscle dedifferentiation.

The second dimension of our research is to reveal how brain regeneration can take place. Here we focus at neurogenesis/regeneration of adult dopaminergic neurons in a salamander model of Parkinson’s disease. The role of GFAP expressing neural stem cells is currently in the focus of our research and we aim to understand how these are activated in the early phases of dopaminergic regeneration.

5 SELECTED PUBLICATIONS:

Berg D.A., Kirkham M., Wang H., Frisén J., and Simon A. (2011) Dopamine controls neurogenesis in the adult salamander midbrain in homeostasis and during regeneration of dopamine neurons. Cell Stem Cell 8:426-433.

Berg D.A., Kirkham M., Beljajeva A., Knapp D., Habermann B., Ryge J., Tanaka E.M., Simon A.. (2010). Efficient regeneration by activation of neurogenesis in homeostatically quiescent regions of the adult vertebrate brain. Development 137, 4127-4134.

Morrison, J.I., Borg, P., Simon A. (2010). Plasticity and recovery of skeletal muscle satellite cells during limb regeneration. Faseb J. 24, 750-756.

Parish C.L., Beljajeva A., Arenas E., Simon A. (2007) Midbrain dopaminergic neurogenesis and behavioral recovery in a salamander lesion-induced regeneration model. Development 134, 281-287.

Morrison J.I., Lööf S., He P., Simon A. (2006) Salamander limb regeneration involves the activation of a multipotent skeletal muscle satellite cell population. J. Cell Biol. 172, 433-440.

LINKS:

For more information, please visit our lab website.