Country: Germany
City: Freiburg
Institution: Medical Center – University of Freiburg
Website: Klinik für Neurologie und Neurophysiologie | Universitätsklinikum Freiburg
PI/Co-PI: Prof. Prof. h. c. Dr. h. c. Heinz Wiendl, MD / PD Rick Dersch, MD
Team members (name, position and contact e-mail):
Prof. Prof. h. c. Dr. h. c. Heinz Wiendl, MD Director Department of Neurology and Neuroscience, Heinz.wiendl@uniklinik-freiburg.de
Rick Dersch, MD Attending Neurologist, clinical head of CSF lab, rick.dersch@uniklinik-freiburg.de
Christian Keller, PhD, MD Attending Neurologist, deputy clinical head of CSF lab, christian.keller@uniklinik-freiburg
David Schafflick, PhD Scientific head of CSF lab, David.schafflick@uniklinik-freiburg.de
Our group focuses on developing and validating biomarkers that improve diagnosis, disease stratification, and monitoring across the full spectrum of neurological disorders. Using high-quality CSF and blood samples from a clinically diverse patient population, we integrate routine diagnostics with advanced molecular approaches, including ultrasensitive protein quantification (NfL, GFAP), multi-omic profiling, advanced flow cytometry, and autoantibody detection. A central goal is to identify signatures for different inflammatory, neurodegenerative, and vascular disorders that enable early detection and mechanistic understanding of complex CNS diseases. By combining standardized biobanking, cuttingedge analytics, and close clinical phenotyping, we aim to contribute robust biomarkers for translational research and to support harmonized biomarker development within the BIoMS consortium.