Researcher Spotlight: Julen Goikolea, PhD

Dr. Goikolea joined the laboratories of Michael Brehm, PhD and Dori Schafer, PhD, in February of 2024. His research, funded by a recently awarded National Institutes of Health (NIH) R24 grant, is focused on improving how Alzheimer's Disease is investigated. He is developing a model that will allow for the study of human immune cells in the brains of mice to understand the disease better and potentially discover new treatment options.

After completing his undergraduate studies as a biotechnology major in his native Spain, Dr. Goikolea earned his master’s degree in biomedicine at The University of Groningen in the Netherlands, and a PhD in medical science at the Karolinska Institute in Stockholm, Sweden.  

Why UMass Chan Medical School

While focusing on the inflammatory aspect of Alzheimer's Disease as a postdoc in Stockholm, he became aware of Dr. Schafer’s contributions to the field and reached out to her.  She described her collaboration with the Brehm lab to optimize human cells to study the disease in a “humanized” mouse model. 

“It sounded like science fiction to me,” said Dr. Goikolea.  “To study immune cells of the brain in vivo was extremely exciting to me and I wanted very much to be a part of it.”

Developing a Novel Model to Study the Brain  

Brain-specific immune cells called microglia are known to be intimately involved in most brain disorders.  Human genetic studies have identified a strong association between microglia-enriched genes and the development of Alzheimer’s Disease.  There is growing evidence that rodent microglia do not accurately correspond to the biology of that in humans.  Like diabetes research, rodent models do not completely translate to studying human cells and tissues.

Dr. Goikolea’s ambitious project is to develop a model that will allow human cells to enter the brain and “humanize” the entire immune system and investigate how these human immune cells in the brain as well as other organs interact with and respond to toxic proteins present in Alzheimer’s Disease.  

“I’m working on a complete, pre-clinical, human-specific model to study Alzheimer’s Disease like never before,” he said.  “If we succeed, it will provide an avenue to test new therapeutic strategies that take the bigger immune picture into account to treat many neurodegenerative disorders.”

A Collaborative Effort

Dr. Goikolea appreciates the collaborative environment within the Diabetes Center of Excellence and the Department of Neurobiology.  “It’s wonderful to be able to bounce ideas off each other in the lab, share protocols, and use each other’s strengths and expertise to learn from one another,” he said.  

He values the support he receives from both principal investigators who he is working under.  “Dr. Brehm is always available to answer questions, look at data, and provide feedback and ideas,” he added.  “There is a culture of collaboration here unlike any place I’ve ever been.”

The opportunity to connect with other experts in the field has been helpful thanks to Drs. Brehm and Schafer’s many connections.