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Panoramic view on the North Campus © Jürgen Huhn​/​TU Dortmund
Medical Physics and Radiotherapy

Gaining a Better Understanding of the Brain at the Molecular Level

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The photo shows a person in a laboratory working at a microscope. © André Wirsig​/​Universitätsklinikum Dresden
Researchers are studying the biological mechanisms underlying radiation-induced brain damage in order to better predict the risk of side effects.
What happens in the brain after radiotherapy? And how do changes affect brain function and the quality of life of those affected? An interdisciplinary collaborative project, which brings together researchers from five German locations and is funded by the federal government with over two million euros, is investigating these questions. Medical physicist Prof. Armin Lühr from TU Dortmund University is participating in the project. He combines data from medical imaging techniques such as magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) with data from detailed tissue examinations to investigate the molecular and cellular causes of abnormal MRI images and predict changes in the brain.

Brain tumors are among the most common diseases requiring radiotherapy. Although the treatment is effective, healthy brain cells can also be damaged in the long term depending on the location and size of the irradiated brain areas as well as the intensity of the radiation. In about one-fifth of those treated, changes in healthy brain tissue, which are visible on MRI, can be detected later on. In up to 20 percent of the cases, these changes can cause symptoms and impair quality of life.

The new “UncovRT” project (Uncover molecular mechanisms of side effects after cranial Radiation Therapy to improve quality of life for long term survivors of brain cancer) aims to systematically document, for the first time, the impact of treatment-related changes in the brain on quality of life and brain function in adult patients and children. The Federal Ministry of Research, Technology, and Space (BMFTR) is funding the project with approximately two million euros as part of the “National Decade Against Cancer”. The initiative also supports research projects in the field of “Cancer Survivors”: Cancer survivors often have to cope with the long-term effects of their disease or the therapy used to treat it. 

Developing predictive models for long-term effects

The interdisciplinary consortium is led by Prof. Mechthild Krause, Professor of Translational Radiation Oncology at TU Dresden and Director of the Clinic and Polyclinic for Radiotherapy and Radiation Oncology at the Carl Gustav Carus University Hospital, and brings together scientists from research institutions in Dresden, Hamburg, Heidelberg, Essen, and Dortmund. The team will establish a shared database for clinical, translational, and preclinical data. This database will serve as the foundation for analyzing changes in the brain observed in follow-up MRI scans that may occur after radiation treatment. In preclinical studies using mouse models, the groups from Dresden, Hamburg, and Heidelberg are investigating the biological mechanisms of radiation-induced brain damage and identifying molecular parameters that can predict the risk of such damage. “Together, we aim to further develop predictive models that will eventually use MRI scans to estimate whether, when, and in which brain regions late effects might occur,” says Prof. Armin Lühr, holder of the Chair of Medical Physics and Radiotherapy at the Department of Physics at TU Dortmund University. A particular focus is on better understanding the temporal progression of these processes in order to determine appropriate time points for preventive or therapeutic measures. 

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