RNA Editing and Hyperexcitability Disorders
Head of the group
Brief Biography
In June 2000, the Université Pierre et Marie Curie (Paris, France) conferred the doctorate in neurosciences (summa cum laude) on Jochen C. Meier. The work presented in his doctoral dissertation headed ‘Cell surface insertion of glycine receptor and dynamics of its trapping by gephyrin in cultured neurons‘ was performed in the laboratory of Professor Antoine Triller at the École Normale Supérieure. From 2000 to 2006, he studied glycine and GABA type A receptors and molecular mechanisms of synapse formation in the laboratory of Professor Rosemarie Grantyn, for what he was awarded the Venia Docendi et Legendi in physiology, medicine (Charité Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Germany). In 2006, he was awarded a Helmholtz-University-Research-Group fellowship to study glycine receptor RNA editing at the Max Delbrück Center for Molecular Medicine (Berlin). In 2007, Jochen Meier was appointed juniorprofessor by the medical faculty of the Charité. He joined the editorial board of European Journal of Neuroscience in 2008, and since January 2010 he is chief editor of Frontiers in Molecular Neuroscience. For further information click here.
In 2004 and 2006, he published book chapters in The Superior Colliculus and Molecular Mechanisms of Synaptogenesis, respectively.
Since 2010, he is member of the German Neuroscience Society.
Editorial Boards
2010 - Chief Editor
Frontiers in Molecular Neuroscience
2010 - Associate Editor
Frontiers in Neuroscience
2008 - Associate Editor
Frontiers in Molecular Neuroscience
2008 - Scientific Review Associate
European Journal of Neuroscience
Honors & Awards
2010 Outstanding joint mid-term evaluation by Charité
and MDC faculties of the W1 professorship
2009 Associate Editor Award
Frontiers Research Foundation, Lausanne, Switzerland
2009 List position 2, Professor (W2) of Cellular Neurophysiology
University of Mainz, Germany
2007 List position 1, Professor (W1) of Molecular Neurophysiology
Charité Berlin, Germany
2006 No. 2, Teaching Award
International MD-PhD program Medical Neurosciences
Charité Berlin, Germany
1999 Doctorate scholarship, French Government, CIES (1 year)
1998 Doctorate scholarship, NATO, DAAD (1 year)
1996 Doctorate scholarship Kekulé
Foundation of the Chemical Industry VCI (2 years)
Excitation / Inhibition Control -
Plasticity of Post-transcriptional Processing in Disease
Homeostatic regulation of excitatory and inhibitory synaptic transmission in the brain – also known as E-I balance – is essential for normal brain function, and dysregulation of this balance ultimately causes disease. A core aspect of the work concerns the study of the brain at the molecular level, by investigating a post-transcriptional enzymatic process known in research as “RNA editing”. Thereby, after the DNA text of the genes has been transcribed into RNA, individual letters are replaced with others by enzymatic processing. As a result, the original genetic text no longer corresponds exactly to the resulting protein text. By this means, the cell succeeds in disregarding the information coded in the genome, and through specific alterations can give its own genetic text a completely different meaning. RNA editing is evolutionarily very old. Nevertheless, in humans only a few editing sites were identified so far. He is searching for such sites in the nervous system in order to find out what role they play in nervous system disorders, such as temporal lobe epilepsy. Within this context, he is more closely scrutinizing the glycine receptor - one of the neuronal receptors that inhibit electrical impulses in the brain, and he is investigating how the plasticity of post-transcriptional RNA processing (including RNA splicing) can serve as a basis for novel therapy concepts. In this respect, he is also focusing on GABA type A receptors and gephyrin.
Selected Conferences & Colloquia
2011 Neurobiology Colloquium
RNA processing in neurobiology of disease
December 19, University of Cologne, Germany
2011 Biochemistry Colloquium
RNA processing in neurobiology of disease
December 12, University of Erlangen, Germany
2010 International Symposium
Batumi Neuroscience Conference
Function & Dysfunction of the Nervous System
RNA Plasticity in Temporal Lobe Epilepsy
August 2-6, Batumi, Georgia
2010 International Symposium
Winter Conference on Neural Plasticity
Hippocampal glycine receptors in the flow of
space and time - a long way from receptor diffusion
to tonic inhibition
February 6-13, Aruba, Caribbean
2009 International Symposium
The Glycine System
Glycine receptors and glioblastoma
January 26-27, Hasselt University, Belgium
2008 Neurobiology Colloquium
Molecular dynamics of hippocampal glycine receptors -
excitation control in epilepsy?
June 16, University of Cologne, Germany
2007 International Symposium Gephyrin:
Where do we Stand, Where do we Go?
Co-expression of GABA(A) receptor loops and gephyrin
suggests protein-protein interactions
September 09-11, Chexbres, Switzerland
2006 Neurobiology Colloquium
Molecular Mechanisms of Postsynaptic Glycine and
GABA(A) Receptor Anchoring
January 23, University of Cologne, Germany
2005 Pharmacology Colloquium
Postsynaptic mechanisms of glycine and GABA(A)
receptor anchoring
January 26, University of Zurich, Switzerland
Teaching
Molecular Neurobiology & Cell Biology, MDC
International MD-PhD programme Medical Neurosciences, Charité
Medicine regular degree programme, Charité
As of today, Jochen Meier was teaching more than 1,000 hours in the field of physiology at the Charité Universitätsmedizin Berlin, i.e. in the regular degree programme of medicine and in the interdisciplinary reformed degree programme of medicine. His teaching performance in the regular degree programme of medicine has been evaluated with the grade +1.33 (max.: +2.0; min.: -2.0).
Furthermore, he is involved in the international degree programmes of Medical Neurosciences (Charité), Molecular Neurobiology and Molecular Cell Biology (both MDC Berlin). In 2006, the students of the Medical Neuroscience programme awarded him the Teaching Award.
List of courses:
• Seminars in Physiology (3. and 4. Semester)
Regelstudiengang Medizin, Charité
• Practical courses in Physiology (4. Semester)
Regelstudiengang Medizin, Charité
• Seminar Das ZNS bei psychiatrischen Erkrankungen
Regelstudiengang Medizin, Charité
• Seminar Haut (5. Semester)
Reformstudiengang Medizin (interdisciplinary), Charité
• Seminar Auge (5. Semester)
Reformstudiengang Medizin (interdisciplinary), Charité
• Seminar Ohr (5. Semester)
Reformstudiengang Medizin (interdisciplinary), Charité
• Lecture on Channelopathies, international MD-PhD programme
Medical Neurosciences, Charité Berlin
• Lecture on Learning and Memory, international MD-PhD
programme Molecular Cell Biology, MDC
• Lecture on Gross and Fine Anatomy of the CNS
International MD-PhD programme Molecular Neurobiology, MDC
• Lecture on Hyperexcitability Disorders, MDC PhD lecture, MDC
Public Relations
2010 Exposition of scientific images,
Best Scientific Image Award - 3. rank
Author: Carola Bernert
"Lange Nacht der Wissenschaften"
2009 Lecture "Learning & Memory" on behalf of the
German Neuroscience Society within the
framework of the continuing education course
"Neues aus der Hirnforschung"
2009 Organization of the MDC Neuroscience Retreat
2009 Exposition of scientific images,
Best Scientific Image Award - 2. rank
"Lange Nacht der Wissenschaften"
2008 Exposition of scientific images,
Best Scientific Image Award - 2. rank
"Lange Nacht der Wissenschaften"
Science & Art
2011 Scientific Image: Call for Symposia
Tenth Göttingen Meeting of the
German Neuroscience Society
2011 Scientific Images: Wissen.med Newsletter
Rebmann Research GmbH & Co. KG
2011 Scientific Image: Placard
13th MDC/FMP PhD Retreat
2010 Scientific Image: Christmas Card
BBB Management GmbH Campus Berlin-Buch
2010 Scientific Images: Flyer
International MD-PhD program Medical Neurosciences
Charité Berlin, Germany
2010 Scientific Image: Call for Application
Schilling Award 2011
German Neuroscience Society
2010 Scientific Image: Postcard
Long Night of Sciences Berlin 2011
2010 Scientific Image: Placard
Long Night of Sciences Berlin
2010 Scientific Images: Call for Registration
International MD-PhD program Medical Neurosciences
Charité Berlin, Germany
2010 Scientific Image: Call for Application
FENS EJN Young Investigator Award
2010 Scientific Image: Call for Symposia
Ninth Göttingen Meeting of the
German Neuroscience Society
2010 Scientific Image: Cover
Function and Dysfunction of the Nervous System
MDC Research Report
2009 Scientific Image: Christmas Card
BBB Management GmbH Campus Berlin-Buch
Collaboration
Berlin, Germany:
Rosemarie Grantyn, Rene Jüttner, Tengis Gloveli,
Michael Synowitz, Peter Horn, Christoph Dehnicke,
Helmut Kettenmann, Erich Wanker, Udo Heinemann,
Michael Fähling, Holger Scholz
Cologne, Germany:
Günter Schwarz
Freiburg, Germany:
Carola Haas, Akos Kulik
Bochum, Germany:
Günter Gisselmann,
Hanns Hatt
Paris, France:
Pascal Legendre,
Catalina Betancur
Diepenbeek, Belgium:
Jean-Michel Rigo
Marcel Ameloot
Zurich, Switzerland:
Jean-Marc Fritschy
Brisbane, Australia:
Joseph Lynch
Kyoto, Japan:
Yoshinori Marunaka
Ken-ichi Nakajima
Shanghai, China:
Tian-le Xu
Funding
DFG Sachbeihilfe
DFG SFB-Transregio 3
Helmholtz