PhD Program Mental Health and Neuroscience
The PhD program "Mental Health and Neuroscience: Disease Mechanisms - Diagnostics and Therapy - Clinical Neuroscience" at the KL Krems is an excellence-oriented doctoral program with an interdisciplinary focus in the field of mental health, basic neurobiological research, and clinical and applied neuroscience: It enables PhD students to develop and conduct experimental and empirical research projects in these highly relevant bridging disciplines in health science. The aim is to enable future scientists to take a coherent view of the different subject areas and at the same time carry out specialized research work.
The term mental health refers to a person's emotional, psychological and social well-being. When mental health is impaired, our thinking and mood are affected, which ultimately has an impact on our behavior. Illnesses, especially brain diseases, have a direct impact on mental health. Neuroscience uses physiology and pathophysiology as well as clinical diagnostics and therapy to explore the fundamental properties of the normal and diseased nervous system and its impact on mental health. In recent years, international health institutions have become increasingly aware of the global importance of mental health (e.g. https://www.who.int/health-topics/mental-health, www.mentalhealth.gov). Therefore, the PhD programme follows international recommendations to support the greater integration of global mental health and neuroscience into research on psychiatric diagnosis, pathogenesis, nervous system disorders and their treatment.
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Faculty of the PhD programme Mental Health and Neuroscience:
Clinical research - a holistic view of the human being
At the Clinical Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapeutic Medicine at the University Hospital Tulln, Prim. Assoc. Prof. PD. Dr. Martin Aigner works on clinical research issues. "The collaboration gives us the opportunity to adapt research in line with needs and structures. Clinical operations can be updated through research and at the same time provide research with important questions. The Mental Health and Neuroscience research area is therefore of great importance for a holistic view of the body and mind."
Researching the interaction is also relevant for practice and new therapies, for example in questions of nutrition, the investigation of the nervous system or the intestines and the effect of microbiomes.
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The Work and Organizational Psychology unit at KL University, led by Univ.-Prof. Dr. Heike Heidemeier, integrates research in organizational psychology with research on individual differences. A primary objective of our work is to explore how motivational dispositions and individual differences in self- and identity construction facilitate or hinder effective self-regulation. For instance, we investigate how these individual traits interact with group-level determinants – such as competition within teams and gender dissimilarity in work groups – as well as workplace characteristics like autonomy and skill utilization, to better understand their impact on well-being, motivation, and overall functioning at work. Additionally, part of our current research agenda focuses on a core component of narcissism: entitlement. Our goal in this area is to gain insight into the underlying psychological mechanisms and to illuminate how an elevated sense of entitlement serves as a risk factor for employability and mental health.
Dr. Matej Hotka's research focuses mainly on understanding the process of epileptogenesis and the role played by neuronal metabolism. Specifically, Dr. Hotka is interested in the effect of pathological neuronal firing of different intensities on neuronal bioenergetics. The research work is conducted on primary cultures of mouse and rat hippocampal neurons. Single-cell metabolic measurements using fluorescence-based indicators and laser scanning confocal microscopy are performed to investigate neuronal metabolism. Metabolic data are complemented by measurements of neuronal electrical activity assessed by patch-clamp electrophysiology.
Researching neurophysiological processes through data analytics
Prof. Dr. Sascha Klee heads the Department of Biostatistics and Data Science at KL. "The planned PhD program has a strong connecting component, which lies in the field of data science. I see excellent opportunities here to apply new methods of data processing and multimodal statistical analyses and to develop them further. On the other hand, my division itself has many years of experience in the field of modeling and analyzing neurophysiological processes, which makes the program even more attractive for future research work."
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The function of synapses in health and disease
The working group of Prof. Gerald Obermair, Head of the Department of Physiology in the Mental Health and Neuroscience research focus area at Karl Landsteiner University, is investigating the role of calcium-regulating proteins in the connections between nerve cells in the brain, the synapses. "The contractions of heart and skeletal muscles and the release of hormones and neurotransmitters are made possible by calcium. Special pores in the cell membranes, known as calcium channels, regulate how much calcium enters the cells and thus regulate a wide range of important bodily functions." The diverse functions of calcium channels therefore represent a key area of research when it comes to understanding the progress of neurodevelopmental disorders: In recent years, for example, many mutations have been discovered which can lead to over- or under-functioning of calcium channels and have thus been linked to the development of autism, for example. The calcium channels not only regulate the influx of calcium, but are also responsible for the correct formation and wiring of synapses. This is of particular interest as neurological developmental disorders in particular can be caused by synaptic malfunctions and incorrect networking.
Interdisciplinary collaboration in cognitive research
Prim. Assoc. Prof. PD Dr. Stefan Oberndorfer, Head of the Clinical Department of Neurology at the University Hospital St. Pölten - Lilienfeld, conducts research in the field of clinical neurooncology. This includes the diagnosis and treatment of brain tumors, as well as the neurotoxicity of neuro-oncological and oncological treatment strategies.“My research projects aim to preserve or restore neuronal function in various pathological processes, such as neuro-oncology, multiple sclerosis, epilepsy, neuroinfectiology and stroke.” He sees the interdisciplinary collaboration with Karl Landsteiner University as a great asset when it comes to future issues. "In a broader sense, an intact nervous system and cognitive functions are an important factor for mental health. The joint development of research questions involving basic research in the field of neuro-oncology and cognitive research contributes significantly to the quality of life in various neurological diseases.
Ethics as a compass for mental and physical health
The task of the Department of Biomedical Ethics and Healthcare Ethics at KL is to provide a basic knowledge of ethical challenges, but also to sharpen the skills of students with regard to the ethical evaluation of procedures and research approaches as well as clinical decisions, describes the head, Univ.-Prof. Dr. phil. habil. Giovanni Rubeis. "My research focuses on the ethical issues of neurotechnology, such as deep brain stimulation or neuroprosthetics, as well as neuroenhancement. I also conduct research into digital health technologies in the field of mental health, particularly AI applications and mental health apps." The main focus here is on the question of how these technologies can be designed and used in a personalized way. “In the HORIZON Europe project “ASP-belong”, for example, we are currently working on the prospects of participatory technology development for a mental health app for young people based on augmented reality.” However, according to the expert, ethical questions always arise from new developments and processes and are of crucial importance, especially in times of artificial intelligence.
Methods and measurements as the basis for questions
At the Department of Psychological Methodology within the Mental Health and Neuroscience research focus, Prof. Dr. Stefan Stieger, head of the department, and his team are working on the latest issues. "Our focus areas include experience sampling, i.e. closely timed longitudinal measurements in the field over a certain period of time using smartphones and wearables, but also the analysis of large data sets in order to investigate effects not only at an individual but also at a global level. Mental health must always be considered on a psychological and physiological level. Neuroscience supports our research with imaging techniques."
Prof. Struhal and his team have a strong scientific interest in critical care neurology, neurodegeneration including dementias and movement disorders, autonomic nervous system, and pioneer fields in neurology including methodology of algorithm development for bio signal evaluation and big data approaches. Multiprofessional collaboration is key in this team, including KL partners (division of Psychiatry and Psychotherapeutic Medicine, Tulln, division of biostatistics and data science, KL, Division of diagnostic and interventional radiology, Tulln, Division of Neurology, St. Pölten), as well as national and international research partners.
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Program Director and Coordinator
Univ.-Prof. Mag. Dr. Gerald Obermair
Leitung
PhD Programm Mental Health and Neuroscience, Fachbereich Physiologie