NeuroCure

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NeuroCure is a Cluster of Excellence in the neurosciences at the Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin.

The Cluster is funded by the German federal and state governments – initially through the Excellence Initiative (2007-2018) and since then as part of the Excellence Strategy (2019-2025). The focus of the Cluster is on investigating neurological and psychiatric disease mechanisms and transferring findings from basic research into clinical application – in short, “translation”.

Research

In the current funding phase, the Cluster brings together 23 excellent scientists from clinical and basic research. Through interdisciplinary collaboration, these researchers have the potential to transform both basic and translational neuroscience research.

In terms of content, the Cluster focuses on research projects in all phases of life, from early development to advanced age.

Rather than restrict the focus to a specific brain disease, NeuroCure researchers aim to elucidate overlapping mechanisms that can occur in various neurological and psychiatric diseases.

Research approaches range from molecular methods and imaging techniques to behavioural and neuropsychological investigations. The focus is on developmental disorders, but also diseases such as Parkinson's, multiple sclerosis, dementia and epilepsy, as well as various psychiatric clinical pictures such as schizophrenia, addiction and depression.

Strategies

Expansion of Berlin as a neuroscience location

In cooperation with the Charité, NeuroCure’s partner institutions are working together to further expand the well-established neuroscience community in Berlin, both by strengthening the network of current research activities and establishing new professorships and junior research groups. The Cluster’s partner institutions include the Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin and Freie Universität Berlin, as well as the non-university research institutions Max Delbrück Center for Molecular Medicine (MDC), Leibniz-Forschungsinstitut für Molekulare Pharmakologie (FMP), Max Planck Unit for the Science of Pathogens (MPUSP) and the German Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases (DZNE).

Expansion of the research infrastructure

With NeuroCure's support, resources have been pooled and central facilities expanded to enable high availability of technical innovations and professionalization of services. This has created an attractive environment for cutting-edge research. The established central facilities are now available to all local neuroscientists and support research with modern equipment and methodological expertise.

Promotion of young researchers

The training and support of early career scientists is one of NeuroCure's central concerns. The Cluster supports young researchers at various career stages with specific educational programs, tailored skills courses, seminar series, and networking platforms.

Equal opportunity and diversity

Promoting equal opportunity and diversity among researchers is one of NeuroCure's declared objectives. A major focus is on sustainably increasing the proportion of women in higher academic positions through measures to recruit, retain, empower, and increase the visibility of women scientists. Further, in recognition that discrimination occurs along multiple dimensions, including (but not limited to) gender, sexual orientation, race, religion, socio-economic background, disability, and age, we aim to promote awareness of unconscious bias, reduce barriers to participation and foster an inclusive environment where researchers of all backgrounds and gender identities can thrive.

Innovation funding

By providing start-up funding for highly innovative projects, clinical trials and tandem projects between experimental and clinical researchers, NeuroCure is able to react flexibly and quickly to new trends in neuroscience. Funding is allocated efficiently and transparently on the basis of internal allocation procedures.

Structures and programs to promote the translation of scientific knowledge into clinical application (translational modules)

Clinical Research Center: Translating findings from basic research into clinical application

The NeuroCure Clinical Research Center (NCRC) was established in July 2008 as the clinical research center of NeuroCure within the Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin. It creates the structural conditions for the efficient implementation of clinical studies and forms the heart of the Cluster.

The NCRC is currently establishing a Neuroscience Clinical Research Unit (Neuroscience CRU) together with the neurological and psychiatric units of the Clinical Research Unit of the Berlin Institute for Health Research (BIH).

SPARK - Module

In cooperation with the SPARK-BIH program, a SPARK module was established in the Cluster at the beginning of the current funding phase. SPARK-BIH is a mentoring program that supports early stage academic inventions with education, mentorship and funding. It is based on the highly successful SPARK program developed at Stanford University by Prof. Daria Mochly-Rosen. A SPARK coordinator advises and supports NeuroCure scientists on projects that could potentially lead to clinically relevant neuroscientific therapies, diagnoses and devices. The aim of the module is to advance the process by which research findings are transformed into developing concrete diagnostic procedures, medical devices, and active substances. Selected projects are identified and funded through calls for proposals.

Value and Open Science (VOS) module

Through the VOS module established in 2019, NeuroCure aims to support scientists with research data management and to promote the concept of Open Science. This measure serves to increase the quality and thus the benefits of biomedical research. Through consultation and training, scientists learn how to increase the transparency and robustness of their results from basic and clinical research. The VOS module is organized in close cooperation with the QUEST Center for Responsible Research.

External links

Official website

References

This article "NeuroCure" is from Wikipedia. The list of its authors can be seen in its historical and/or the page Edithistory:NeuroCure. Articles copied from Draft Namespace on Wikipedia could be seen on the Draft Namespace of Wikipedia and not main one.

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