Alexander disease (AxD) is a primary genetic disorder of astrocytes caused by dominant mutations in the gene encoding the intermediate filament (IF) protein GFAP. This disease is characterized by excessive accumulation of GFAP, known as Rosenthal fibers, within astrocytes.
Albee Messing
Researchers make headway toward understanding Alexander disease
Researchers at the University of Wisconsin–Madison have made a surprising and potentially crucial discovery about Alexander disease, a rare and fatal neurological disorder with no known cure. Using a mouse model for this disease, which …
Thoughts of Gratitude: The Rijkaarts
May 18, 2016 Adityarup “Rup” Chakravorty, Waisman Communications Jelte Rijkaart is 10 years old, with a ready smile, dark brown hair and warm brown eyes. He enjoys hanging out with people, especially his brother Roan. …
Albee Messing, VMD, PhD
TDP-43 mislocalization in a mouse model of Alexander disease Legend: Mislocalized TDP-43 colocalizes with GFAP in GfapR236H/+ mice. TDP-43 (red) and GFAP (green) immunolabeling in coronal brain sections from 10-week-old mice. Nuclei are labeled with DAPI (blue). In WT mice, TDP-43 is primarily …
Tracing a path towards neuronal cell death in Alexander disease
A fruit fly model of a rare, neurodegenerative disease is helping researchers trace the series of steps that lead to neuronal cell death. Damage to astrocytes – star-shaped cells found in the brain and spinal cord – is found in many neurodegenerative conditions, but it’s been unclear exactly what role astrocyte dysfunction plays in the development of disease.
Messing named director of Waisman Center
Albee Messing, a University of Wisconsin-Madison professor of comparative biosciences and an international leader in research on Alexander disease, has been named director of the Waisman Center, UW-Madison School of Medicine and Public Health Dean …
Morgridge Institute, UW partners select postdoctoral fellows
Andy Pohl, PhD, is one of three scientists selected for the inaugural Morgridge Institute for Research Postdoctoral Fellows program designed to prepare promising young scientists for a changing research landscape. Pohl’s UW research mentor is …
Waisman Center art featured at campus exhibit
Katie Sweeney, Waisman Center Communications The McPherson Eye Research Institute unveiled its new exhibit, Seeing Beyond Disabilities: Unique Insights, on January 29 in the Mandelbaum and Albert Vision Gallery at the Wisconsin Institutes for Medical Research. The exhibit features …
Albee Messing, VMD, PhD to serve as interim Waisman Center director
On September 1, Albee Messing, VMD, PhD will step in as the Interim Director of the Waisman Center, while Marsha R. Mailick, PhD serves as the Interim Vice Chancellor for Research at the Graduate School. …
Rare disease yields clues about broader brain pathology
Alexander disease is a devastating brain disease that almost nobody has heard of — unless someone in the family is afflicted with it. Alexander disease strikes young or old, and in children destroys white matter in the front of the brain.