Dr Karen Stroobants

Karen Stroobants is a post-doctoral researcher in the Centre for Protein Misfolding Diseases at the Chemistry Department of the University of Cambridge. With a strong background in biophysical characterisation of proteins, she recently engaged in the study of membrane protein aggregates and their potential role in neurodegenerative diseases. The formation of aggregates has been identified as a crucial common feature in disorders such as Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s diseases, and amyloid formation was studied extensively for few specific associated proteins. More recently, widespread aggregation of numerous other proteins, with high vulnerabilities for aggregation, was proposed to contribute to the disease progression. Membrane proteins are among the most aggregation prone proteins and those in the respiratory chain and glucose metabolism were previously associated to pathological pathways. Karen's current research envisions the biophysical characterisation of membrane protein aggregates as well as the establishment of their potential role in neurodegenerative disease pathways.