Marco Capogna is professor in neuroanatomy and has a long research career behind him. He is now swapping the prestigious University of Oxford with a professorship at Aarhus University.

2016.03.08 | Ida Kellemann Thomsen

Marco Capogna conducts research on the brain's reaction to traumatic experiences. This april he will swop the prestigious University of Oxford with a professorship at Aarhus University.

His daily work takes place at one of the world's best universities, the University of Oxford. But now the Department of Biomedicine at Aarhus University will benefit from his long experience as a neuroscience researcher. In April 2016, Italian Marco Capogna will move his research and his family to Aarhus.

Marco Capogna carries out research into the brain's response to distressing experiences, as this is key to treating anxiety and phobias that are in all probability originate from a network of nerve cells that are the basis of what we refer to as ‘fear-memory’," explains Marco Capogna.

Traumatic experiences are stored in this three-sided network, which together manages fear, memory and physical reactions. This is why such experiences become imprinted in both the mind and the body and can surface again at troublesome moments.

Mouse brains with promising results

One area of Marco Capogna’s work involves experiments on mice in which the mice are subjected to fear memory and anxiety test. Here he can see what happens in the brain after the mouse has been repeatedly startled. It has been shown that traumatic experiences are able to change the brain's genes. This is for instance true of a special kind of protein that triggers the substance dopamine, which is central to the brain’s reward system. When the genes are altered, the substance cannot be released, which increases the feeling of anxiety.

 "The three regions of the brain are significantly altered in cases where a person has a mental disorder. I therefore hope that my research will help to make it easier to transfer results from animal testing to human beings, in this way helping the development of drugs and also helping psychiatric patients," says the newly appointed professor.

 He is looking forward to beginning work as a professor and lecturer at Aarhus University, where he will keep a particular eye on talented young students:

"It is important that we help to shape the researchers and professionals of the future in this field," says Marco Capogna. He also aims to use his new position to strengthen Aarhus University's international network.

Further information:  

Professor Marco Capogna

Aarhus University, Department of Biomedicine

marco.capogna@biomed.au.dk