Dr. Katerina Akassoglou: Treating the Neurovascular System

Treatment of central nervous system diseases is arduous. Currently, no therapies are available that eliminate the toxic cells that kill neurons. However, Dr. Katerina Akkasoglou, Professor in the Department of Neurology at the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF) and Senior Investigator at the David J. Gladstone Institutes, continues working on novel therapies that aim to shift the landscape of neurological disease treatment.

In 2021, a team of scientists at Gladstone and UCSF, led by Dr. Akassoglou, launched the Center for Neurovascular and Brain Immunology. The center’s mission is to provide an integrated platform for basic and clinical research at the intersection of vascular biology, immunology and neuroscience. 

For years, neurological diseases were categorized rigidly, falling into specific categories like neurodegenerative, vascular and inflammatory. Dr. Akassoglou and her team recognized the need for reassessment of the etiology of neurological diseases. These diseases arise from a network of mechanisms across multiple systems. In several diseases, a foundational change at the neurovascular interface – an influx of blood proteins to the brain through a leaky blood-brain barrier – occurs early in disease and correlates with progression and symptoms in a range of diseases, like multiple sclerosis, Alzheimer’s disease, traumatic brain injury, stroke and depression. 

The center leverages research and technology to catalyze the development of new drugs, biologics and biomarkers.

The Center for Neurovascular and Brain Immunology was not the first time Dr. Akassoglou and her team were at the forefront of neurological disease research. Over the years, the team made multiple exciting discoveries, including a shared pathophysiology of neurological and psychiatric diseases in which fibrin deposition in the brain elicits neurotoxic inflammation.

When blood proteins extravasate into the brain, fibrin – vital to blood clotting – activates the brain’s immune system and triggers neuronal death. Fibrin does not typically enter the brain, but in patients with certain neurological disorders, the blood-brain barrier can become permeable, allowing the leakage of fibrin into the brain. 

In a 2018 study, Dr. Akassoglou developed the first potential treatment for fibrin inhibition without affecting its clotting function. This study showed that fibrin-targeting immunotherapy could insulate the brain from the toxic effects of fibrin leakage in animal models. 

Therini Bio, a spinout company from the Gladstone Institutes dedicated to developing novel therapeutics to treat inflammatory neurological diseases, is currently working on fibrin-targeting therapies.

Dr. Akassoglou is working on a pipeline of innovative cell therapies to eradicate neurotoxic inflammation and promote neuronal repair with applications in many diseases, including multiple sclerosis and Alzheimer’s. 

The Foundation for a Better World has been partnering with Dr. Akassoglou and Gladstone since 2020 and remains highly encouraged by the research. Her dedication, innovation and expertise are remarkable, addressing a broad range of potential indications. Her contributions to neurological disease research cannot be overstated. We are excited to support such promising, vital work.