Is it possible to make the human brain produce new dopamine cells and thus repair itself from serious diseases such as Parkinson's? This is one of the central questions in Professor Thomas Perlmann's research. He leads a research group at the newly opened biomedicum at Karolinska Institutet in Solna.

- "This grant comes at a very good time, just when we are planning to take our research in partly new directions. It means a lot for our ability to move forward," says Thomas Perlmann, Professor of Molecular Developmental Biology at Karolinska Institutet.

Perlmann's previous research has focused on understanding how neurons are formed in the fetal stage and what makes stem cells become dopamine cells. The loss of dopamine cells is associated with many of the severe symptoms that affect patients with Parkinson's disease. Disturbances in dopamine cell function are also associated with other serious conditions - such as schizophrenia, autism and drug addiction.

- 'We want to understand why there is normally no regeneration of this type of neuron in humans when several animal species can regenerate cells. This is an important fundamental question, but it would also be very exciting if we could get the brain to reactivate the formation of new neurons and thus get the brain to repair itself. If we found this mechanism, it would open up the possibility of curing or at least improving the diagnosis of people suffering from Parkinson's disease, for example," says Thomas Perlmann.