Project Partners

Karl-Heinz Wagner

(AT)

Jana Muchová

(SK)

Daniel König

(AT)

Ingrid Žitňanová

(SK)

Zdeňka Ďuračková

(SK)

Zuzana Országhová

(SK)

Monika Kolář

In her PhD, she is exploring how oxidative stress and genomic instability shape the boundary between normal aging and early neurodegenerative change. Her work profiles antioxidant status and DNA damage in healthy older adults and tests lifestyle-based interventions (targeted nutritional supplementation and structured strength training) to modulate ROS-related pathways.

Hannah Schnopfhagen

Her research includes dietary assessment methods, nutrition data, and epidemiological analyses, with a particular focus in understanding dietary patterns and their relevance for cognitive and physical health in older adults. She further supports the project through project organization and coordination between the different project partners.

Leah Lund

In her PhD, she investigates chromosomal damage in human cells, focusing on micronuclei as biomarkers of genomic instability linked to aging. She supports the BrainHealth project with science communication, knowledge transfer, and translating findings into accessible materials.

Annika Erb

In her PhD research, she investigates the relationship between participants’ performance on a cognitive test battery and a range of brain biomarkers. She is further involved in the recruitment process and project organization.

Corinna Heisler

In her PhD, she investigates how dietary and physical activity interventions promote healthy aging. Within the EU-funded BrainHealth project, she drives study design and execution, coordinates data acquisition and participant engagement, and oversees integrated laboratory and analytical workflows.

Frieder Lachenmayer

In his PhD, he investigates the relationship between maximal muscle strength of the lower extremity – assessed via isokinetic knee and hip flexion/extension – and cognitive health in aging. He supports the project with performance diagnostics, training design, and the development of digital research tools.

Maximilian Beck

Zuzana Paduchová

Investigates oxidative stress, free radicals, and antioxidant systems in physiological and pathological processes, focusing on modulation by natural and synthetic compounds. In clinical and animal models, research examines omega-3 fatty acids, polyphenols, and probiotics in chronic disease prevention and treatment.

Mária Chomová

Her research focuses on molecular mechanisms of mitochondrial dysfunction in neurodegenerative, ischemia reperfusion, and metabolic injuries of the central nervous system, including the effects of diabetes mellitus on mitochondrial function in cortical and hippocampal regions.

Monika Ďurfinová

She focuses primarily on changes in neurotransmission in neurodegenerative diseases, with emphasis on neurotransmitters and their metabolites. She also monitors oxidative stress, inflammatory, and angiogenesis markers in disease progression, including pneumonia, sepsis, and diabetes.

Zuzana Sumbalová

She focuses on mitochondrial respirometry and bioenergetics. Since 2018, she has applied respirometric analysis of mitochondrial function in blood cells in human medicine and studies mitochondria in animal models and cultured cell lines, collaborating on high-resolution respirometry methods.

Monika Dvořáková

She focuses on oxidative stress in various free radical-associated diseases. Recently, her attention has been devoted to the potential risk of metal and metal oxide nanoparticles used for biomedical applications, focusing on their influence on oxidative stress.

Martina Horváthová

She works as a lecturer at the Institute of Medical Chemistry, Biochemistry and Clinical Biochemistry of the Faculty of Medicine, where she studies oxidative stress and inflammatory markers in various diseases and is involved in several team projects.

Gajdošová Lívia

Her research focuses on aging, particularly oxidative stress, mitochondrial dysfunction, and lifestyle-related factors. She investigates how omega-3 fatty acids and physical activity affect antioxidant defense, metabolic health, mobility, cognitive function, and cognitive frailty in experimental models.

Lucia Pastvová

She is a PhD student whose dissertation focuses on the influence of nutrients on the origin and development of age-related diseases. She investigates vitamin D, proteins, and physical exercise in the development of sarcopenia in laboratory rats.

Soňa Tkačiková

She is a PhD student investigating the mechanisms underlying neurodegeneration and aims to identify potential therapeutic targets. She uses microglial cell line models and searches for bioactive compounds that may modulate these processes.

Nemcová Lenka

She is a PhD student investigating inflammatory, coagulation, and oxidative stress parameters associated with disease progression in patients with COVID-19 and in an experimental model of COVID-19 with hypertension and obesity.

Hrobárová Lenka

She is a PhD student whose research focuses on metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD), fatty acid profiles, and metabolic comorbidities including obesity, diabetes mellitus, and metabolic syndrome, using gas chromatography to characterize fatty acid composition.

Mária Janubová

Her research interests have focused on cellular senescence in various cell lines. Currently, she is investigating the mechanisms that delay the aging process in astrocyte cell line models. This research involves the use of molecular, immunological, and biochemical approaches.

Katrenčíková Barbora

Since 2017, she has worked at the Institute of Medical Chemistry, Biochemistry and Clinical Biochemistry of the Faculty of Medicine, where she studies oxidative stress markers. She is on the teams of assoc. prof. J. Muchová and prof. Z. Ďuračková.