Karin Danzer is a full professor of neurodegeneration at the German Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases (DZNE) Ulm and at Ulm University (UULM), where she leads the research group “Mechanisms of Propagation”. 

She studied Biology in Ulm and in Würzburg in Germany and at the University of Cardiff in the United Kingdom. She earned her Ph.D. in neurodegeneration at Ulm University and at Boehringer Ingelheim Pharma GmbH and Co.KG in Biberach, Germany, where she followed a postdoctoral training. After a couple years abroad as a research fellow at the Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School in Boston USA, she joined Ulm University as an assistant professor, and was promoted to full professor in 2021.

Her research focuses on studying the pathological mechanisms underlying neurodegenerative diseases, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and Parkinson’s disease in particular. The main goal is to elucidate why neuropathology, characterized by the aggregation and accumulation of misfolded proteins, starting from a localized area, propagates to different regions of the brain. Using in vitro and in vivo models, as well as human patient samples, her team investigates the mechanisms of protein aggregation, inflammatory responses, and gene expression regulation at the single-cell level, to understand why individual cell populations are particularly vulnerable to neuronal aggregates and identify the factors contributing to this. In particular, the team focuses on alpha-synuclein and TDP43, two proteins known to form insoluble aggregates in neurons of Parkinson’s and ALS patients, respectively. 

She is a principal investigator in the German Collaborative Research Center 1506 “Aging at Interfaces” and is also a member of the steering committee. Within this CRC, her research objective is to investigate whether cellular aging and its altered mechanisms are the cause of protein aggregation, or if the duration of exposure to misfolded proteins determines the accumulation of protein aggregates and their harmful effects on the brain.

Since 2020 she has been a member of the clinicians and medical scientist board of the Medical Faculty Ulm, and a member of the PhD committee of the International Graduate School of Molecular Medicine.

Keywords: Neuroscience, Neurology, Neurodegenerative Diseases, Parkinson’s, Dementia, Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS), Fundamental Research, Clinical Research, Health Care Research, Population Health Sciences, Systems Medicine.

Ulm – September 28th, 2023

How did you (decide to) become a scientist?

I had always been interested in the natural sciences, especially in medicine-related fields, while I was in school. During my high school years, I also took classes, dealing with subjects like biology, and especially neuroscience.  I have always been interested in the brain and neuroscience. I suggested that I wanted to study in this research field to my parents, but, initially, they were not very happy about it.  They expressed their concern that “This is an area where you’ll never find a job. You should do something that is medicine-related, but not just in the field of research. If you become a medical doctor, you can also work in a hospital or if you study pharmacy, you can also work in a pharmacy”. But I made my way in the end, and I started studying biology and ever since I’ve been quite happy about that.

What is your drive and excitement in science and in doing what you do now?

I would like to understand the mechanisms of diseases, especially neurodegenerative diseases.  We have no clue about why our neurons are dying like in Alzheimer’s disease or Parkinson’s disease. We have to do something about it, I think it’s very important. Since there’s no treatment so far, the only thing that we can do is to do research, identify pharmacological targets, and then really work to develop therapies. I believe there is still a lot of work to do, and I like to do something and contribute to a field where there’s a lot to do. 

Would you have one word to give as a gift to other women and, more generally, to young aspiring scientists, women or men?

What has always helped me throughout my career is passion. I think young scientists should do what they’re passionate about. They should follow their heart. It doesn’t make sense to me to choose a study subject because you think you’ll make a lot of money in that field but you are not really passionate about it. They should choose what they like best and what they’re interested in. Because you love it so much, you will invest a lot of energy into it, study a lot, and in the end, you will be successful and very good at what you are doing. Then, the job and everything around it will come on its own, as a natural consequence. This is what I believe: go for what you like to do. I always say to my students they should think about what they would be willing to do even at 8 pm, after two nights of very little sleep, for their careers. This will be the right path.