5. Manolis Pasparakis, Ph.D., group leader
Institute for Genetics
Dept. of Mouse Genetics and Inflammation
University of Cologne
Zülpicher Strasse 47
D-50674 Cologne
Germany
Fax: +49 221 470 5163
Email address: pasparakis@uni-koeln.de
http://www.genetik.uni-koeln.de/groups/Pasparakis/
The Institute for Genetics at the University of Cologne,
located in Cologne (Germany), is a research centre focussed on using genetic
technologies to study gene function in development and disease. Available
facilities include a "state of the art" transgenic core facility with large
capacity to produce transgenic and knockout mice using a variety of techniques
including pronuclear and blastocyst injections and also tetraploid embryos to
produce fully ES cell derived mice. The Department of Mouse Genetics and
Inflammation, headed by Manolis Pasparakis at the Institute for Genetics is
using transgenic and knockout mice to study in vivo the function of inflammatory
and stress-response signalling pathways in the pathogenesis of inflammatory and
degenerative diseases. In addition to expertise in molecular and cellular
biology and biochemistry, the Pasparakis group has strong expertise in the most
advanced technology used for mouse genetic manipulation, including the
generation of transgenic and knockout mice using either pronuclear injections or
homologous recombination in mouse embryonic stem (ES) cells. This group also has
strong expertise in conditional gene targeting using the Cre/loxP and the
Flp/FRT recombinase systems and also in the generation of ES cell derived mice
by using injection of ES cells into tetraploid mouse embryos. The Pasparakis
group has generated mice with conditional (loxP-flanked) alleles of IKK1, IKK2
and NEMO, the subunits of the IKK complex that are essential for NF-kappaB by
nearly all known stimuli. The successful application of conditional gene
targeting by the Pasparakis group is documented by its previous and recent
results on the role of IKK signalling in inflammatory skin disease (Nenci et
al., 2006; Pasparakis et al., 2002a), in lymphocyte development and maintenance
(Pasparakis et al., 2002b; Schmidt-Supprian et al., 2003), in stroke (Herrmann
et al., 2005), in insulin resistance and atherosclerosis (Kanters et al., 2003;
Rohl et al., 2004) and in autoimmune inflammation of the CNS (van Loo et al.,
2006). The Pasparakis group will provide to the network knowledge, expertise and
training in the generation and analysis of conditional knockout mice. The
Institute for Genetics at the University of Cologne is one of the leading
European institutions on mouse biology and is participating in several local but
also EU-wide projects using mouse models to investigate the mechanisms causing
human disese. In addition, the Department of Manolis Pasparakis participates,
together with other leading European laboratories, in a large European Network
of Excellence (MUGEN) that focusses on the investigation of mechanisms and
pathways involved in chronic immunopathologies.
Appointed research fellows
Experienced researcher: Apostolis Polykratis
Appointed on the IMDEMI project from 10-8-2006 to 9-8-2008
Early stage researcher: Rozina Kardakaris, Greece
Appointed on the IMDEMI project from 1-10-2005 to 30-9-2008
Publications
originating from the IMDEMI project
Gareus R, Kotsaki E, Xanthoulea S, van der Made I, Gijbels MJ, Kardakaris
R, Polykratis A, Kollias G, de Winther MP, Pasparakis M.
Endothelial cell-specific NF-kappaB inhibition protects mice from
atherosclerosis. Cell Metab 8: 372-383, 2008.
(PDF)
Imai Y, Kuba K, Neely GG, Yaghubian-Malhami R, Perkmann T, van Loo G,
Ermolaeva M, Veldhuizen R, Leung YH, Wang H, Liu H, Sun Y, Pasparakis M,
Kopf M, Mech C, Bavari S, Peiris JS, Slutsky AS, Akira S, Hultqvist M, Holmdahl
R, Nicholls J, Jiang C, Binder CJ, Penninger JM. Identification of
oxidative stress and Toll-like receptor 4 signaling as a key pathway of acute
lung injury.
Cell 133: 235-249, 2008.
(PDF)
Publications
Manolis Pasparakis
(link to PubMed)
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