SCOPE
Neurological disorders include Alzheimer disease and other dementias, stroke, multiple sclerosis, Parkinson’s disease, brain tumors, traumatic disorders of the nervous system such as brain trauma, epilepsy and migraine. Hundreds of millions of people worldwide are affected by neurological disorders. For example, stroke is the third most common cause of death worldwide. Alzheimer’s disease is the most common type of dementia, affecting 35 million individuals in the world, with an expected threefold increase by 2050. Furthermore, multiple sclerosis, an inflammatory demyelinating disease of the brain and the spinal cord, affects two million people globally, with rates varying widely in different regions and populations. However, many aspects of etiology, genetics and pathogenesis of neurological disorders are still not clearly defined. In addition, for many of these diseases, no good predictive or diagnostic test is available. Finally, and most importantly, for many neurological disorders the current treatments are largely symptomatic and no final cure can be achieved. For these reasons, neurological disorders have become a major health problem for many countries, whose burden is expected to rise with the aging of the population. Turkey’s Science and Technology High Council declared ‘Neuroscience’ as one of the priority areas of health and technology. The Neurological Disorders Program at iBG-izmir aims to identify novel genes/mutations responsible for familial and non-familial neurological disorders, to discover new biomarkers and to develop novel therapeutic tools and approaches for the treatment of these disorders. To this end, we will study a wide range of patient samples, as well as established and newly generated in vitro and in vivo animal models of neurological disorders. The funding will be obtained from TUBITAK, Ministry of Health, industrial partners and EU research funds.

FOCUS AREAS AND MILESTONES
The focus areas and 5 years goals with milestones of the Program are as follows:

• Development of in vitro and in vivo models: 3D cultures of induced pluripotent stem cells to study differentiation
to neural stem cells, current type neural or glial cells. In addition to in vitro models, we aim to develop new transgenic animal models of neurological disorders. Our minimal goals are the development of one novel in vitro or in vivo model during the first 3 years, and another one within 5 years.

• Discovery of novel predictive genes/mutations: Many neurological disorders have a genetic etiology. We will investigate familial and non-familial forms of neurological disorders to find disease causing novel genes/mutations by whole exome sequencing. Our minimal goals are biobanking of at least 30 families during the first 3 years, and whole exome sequencing within 5 years.

• Biomarker discovery and development of diagnostic tools: Circulating serum micro RNAs (miRNAs), and other possible biomarkers will be investigated to find novel biomarkers for neurological novel mutations will be developed. Additionally, these biomarkers and novel driver mutations in neurological cancers could be possible targets for treatment. Our minimal goals are to identify one novel biomarker or target molecule during the first 3 years, and finish preclinical validation within 5 years.