The quest for brain disorder biomarkers

The identification of disease markers in tissues and body fluids requires an extensive and thorough analysis of its protein constituents. In our efforts to identify biomarkers for affective and neurological disorders we are pursuing several different strategies. On one hand we are using animal models that represent defined phenotypes characteristic for the respective disorder in humans. In addition, we are analyzing human specimens from carefully phenotyped patient groups. Several fractions representing different protein classes from human cerebrospinal fluid obtained by lumbar puncture are used for this purpose. Our biomarker identification efforts range from classical proteomics approaches such as two dimensional gel electrophoresis and mass spectrometry to phage display screens with cerebrospinal fluid antibodies.