Silvia Maioli

I am a research group leader and Docent (Associate Professor).

I defended my PhD at the University of Bologna in 2011 and did my postdoc at Karolinska Institutet. I have been working within the neuroscience field in relation to Alzheimer’s Disease (AD) since my PhD, and my work is investigating the mechanisms for risk factors for Alzheimer's Disease, focusing on ApoE, cholesterol metabolism, and oxysterols.

My extensive knowledge in the field of mouse behavior and mouse models of neurodegenerative disease, coupled with my role as Facility Coordinator for the Animal Behavior Core Facility (ABCF) at KI, positions me as a hands-on researcher. I also work with a variety of molecular biology techniques.

Research

My research is focused on understanding the biological mechanisms behind risk factors for neurodegenerative diseases like Alzheimer's Disease (AD), with a focus on sex differences.

Changes in brain cholesterol metabolism occur in the early stages of the disease and are considered important drivers of the neurodegenerative cascades in AD. AD risk factors such as hypercholesterolemia, hypertension, and lifestyle affect brain cholesterol metabolism. I study the role of cholesterol metabolites and transporters in the brain during neurodegenerative processes by using in vitro and in vivo models, as well as human samples. In addition, I am interested in the connection between cholesterol metabolism and sex hormones. Sex hormones, including estrogen and testosterone, originate from cholesterol and promote neuroprotective functions in the brain. Both cholesterol and sex hormones are shaped by genes and the environment (for example, medications and diet), serving as potential preventive and therapeutic targets for AD.

Another significant area of research in my lab is multi-medication therapies and related sex differences. We are actively studying the effects of different combinations of drugs commonly used in AD comorbidities using mouse models and human data from various clinical cohorts.