Michael A. van der Kooij

Michael A. van der Kooij
Jr. Group Leader
AG Müller, Translational Psychiatry
Hanns-Dieter-Hüsch Weg 19, 55128 Mainz
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Research Interests

My research aims to understand how the brain adapts to stress with a keen interest in the role of energy metabolism, notably glucose- and mitochondrial function. However, as stress affects not just the brain, but the physiology of the organism as a whole, my research takes into account the crosstalk between peripheral- and central energy metabolism.

Key techniques: Behavioral analysis (cognition, social and emotional behavior, motor impairments), Stress induction (incl. social defeat), intracerebral surgery (cannula placement, pharmacology, CSF extraction), brain microdissection.

Research system/organism: Mouse

Five Most Relevant Publications
  1. Temporal profiling of an acute stress-induced behavioral phenotype in mice and role of hippocampal DRR1. Jene T, Gassen NC, Opitz V, Endres K, Müller MB, van der Kooij MA. Psychoneuroendocrinology. 2018, 91:149-158.
  2. Diazepam actions in the VTA enhance social dominance and mitochondrial function in the nucleus accumbens by activation of dopamine D1 receptors. van der Kooij MA, Hollis F, Lozano L, Zalachoras I, Abad S, Zanoletti O, Grosse J, Guillot de Suduiraut I, Canto C, Sandi C. Mol Psychiatry. 2018, 23(3):569-578.
  3. Mitochondrial function in the brain links anxiety with social subordination. Hollis F*, van der Kooij MA*, Zanoletti O, Lozano L, Cantó C, Sandi C. PNAS 2015, 112(50):15486-91. *shared first authorship.
  4. Role for MMP-9 in stress-induced downregulation of nectin-3 in hippocampal CA1 and associated behavioural alterations. van der Kooij MA, Fantin M, Rejmak E, Grosse J, Zanoletti O, Fournier C, Ganguly K, Kalita K, Kaczmarek L, Sandi C. Nat Commun 2014, 5:4995.
  5. Impaired hippocampal neuroligin-2 function by chronic stress or synthetic peptide treatment is linked to social deficits and increased aggression. van der Kooij MA, Fantin M, Kraev I, Korshunova I, Grosse J, Zanoletti O, Guirado R, Garcia-Mompó C, Nacher J, Stewart MG, Berezin V, Sandi C. Neuropsychopharmacology 2014, 39(5):1148-58.