Research
Research
Molecular mechanisms regulating social fear in adolescence and adulthood
Social interactions are essential for mammalian survival and evolution. Being presented as complex combination of visual, olfactory, auditory, and tactile stimuli, social situations require coordinated orchestration of multiple neuronal and molecular pathways within the brain.
I am interested in post-transcriptional regulators of gene expression, such as non-coding RNAs and microRNAs, which are known to be involved in somatic and affective disorders and were also shown to modulate social and emotional behaviours. In this context, I aim to reveal how microRNAs orchestrate molecular underpinnings of anxiety-related behaviour and of social fear / social avoidance using the social fear conditioning paradigm. Adolescence is a critical phase of enhanced vulnerability towards social trauma and the subsequent development of social and emotional dysfunctions.
I am specifically interested in investigating the underlying neuropeptidergic and molecular mechanisms leading to acute and persistent consequences of social stress in adolescence.
Answering these questions requires a combination of molecular, behavioural, and pharmacological approaches, such as microRNA Deep Sequencing, RNAScope, qPCR, immunohistochemistry, western blotting, in vitro stimulation of cell cultures, social and cued fear conditioning, social preference testing, and general anxiety testing in combination with viral and pharmacological manipulations in selected brain regions using stereotactic surgeries.
Profile
Profile
| Since 2020 | Postdoctoral researcher in Prof. Dr. ID Neumann´s group, Department of Behavioural and Molecular Neurobiology. Research focus: Molecular mechanisms regulating social fear in adolescence and adulthood |
| 2015-2019 | PhD student in Prof. Dr. ID Neumann´s laboratory, Department of Behavioural and Molecular Neurobiology |
| 2013-2015 | M.Sc. in Biology at the University of Regensburg Focus: Immunology, molecular Human Biology, Neuroscience Master thesis with Prof. Dr. ID Neumann, Department of Behavioural and Molecular Neurobiology |
| 2010-2013 | B.Sc. in Biology at the University of Regensburg Bachelor thesis with Prof. Dr. PJ Flor, Department of Molecular and Cellular Neurobiology |
Born January 27th in Straubing, Germany.
Publications
Publications
2022
Leschik J, Gentile A, Cicek C, Péron S, Tevosian M, Beer A, Radyushkin K, Bludau A, Ebner K, Neumann I, Singewald N, Berninger B, Lessmann V, Lutz B. Brain-derived neurotrophic factor expression in serotonergic neurons improves stress resilience and promotes adult hippocampal neurogenesis. Progress in Neurobiology.
Royer M, Pai B, Menon R, Bludau A, Gryksa K, Perry RB, Ulitsky I, Meister G, Neumann ID. Transcriptome and chromatin alterations in social fear indicate association of MEG3 with successful extinction of fear. Molecular Psychiatry.
Menon R, Süß T, Oliveira VEM, Neumann ID, Bludau A. Neurobiology of the lateral septum: regulation of social behavior. Trends in Neuroscience.
2021
Winter J, Meyer M, Berger I, Royer M, Bianchi M, Kuffner K, Peters S, Stang S, Langgartner D, Hartmann F, Schmidtner AK, Reber SO, Bosch OJ, Bludau A, Slattery DA, van den Burg EH, Jurek B, Neumann ID. Chronic oxytocin-driven alternative splicing of Crfr2α induces anxiety. Molecular Psychiatry.
Oliveira VEM, Lukas M, Wolf HN, Durante E, Lorenz A, Mayer AL, Bludau A, Bosch OJ, Grinevich V, Egger V, de Jong TR, Neumann ID. Oxytocin and vasopressin within the ventral and dorsal lateral septum modulate aggression in female rats. Nature Communications.
2020
Tang Y, Benusiglio D, Lefevre A, Hilfiger L, Althammer F, Bludau A, Hagiwara D, Baudon A, Darbon P, Schimmer J, Kirchner MK, Roy RK, Wang S, Eliava M, Wagner S, Oberhuber M, Conzelmann KK, Schwarz M, Stern JE, Leng G, Neumann ID, Charlet A, Grinevich V. Social touch promotes interfemale communication via activation of parvocellular oxytocin neurons. Nature Neuroscience.
2019
Bludau A, Royer M, Meister G, Neumann ID, Menon R. Epigenetic Regulation of the Social Brain. Trends in Neuroscience.
2017
Peterlik D, Stangl C, Bauer A, Bludau A, Keller J, Grabski D, Killian T, Schmidt D, Zajicek F, Jaeschke G, Lindemann L, Reber SO, Flor PJ, Uschold-Schmidt N. Blocking metabotropic glutamate receptor subtype 5 relieves maladaptive chronic stress consequences. Brain Behavior, and Immunity.
Peterlik D, Stangl C, Bludau A, Grabski D, Strasser R, Schmidt D, Flor PJ, Uschold-Schmidt N. Relief from detrimental consequences of chronic psychosocial stress in mice deficient for the metabotropic glutamate receptor subtype 7. Neuropharmacology.
2015
Jong TR, Menon R, Bludau A, Grund T, Biermeier V, Klampfl SM, Jurek B, Bosch OJ, Hellhammer J, Neumann ID. Salivary oxytocin concentrations in response to running, sexual self-stimulation, breastfeeding and the TSST: The Regensburg Oxytocin Challenge (ROC) study. Psychoneuroendocrinology.
