Excellent doctoral thesis honored
The University of Magdeburg honors its brightest minds every year. At the end of 2022, Marie Wölfer, MD, was awarded the PhD Prize of the Medical Faculty of Magdeburg for her doctoral thesis on the study of the effect of ketamine as an antidepressant.
The Medical Faculty Magdeburg, as well as the other eight faculties of the Otto-von-Guericke University Magdeburg, honors every year the outstanding doctoral thesis of a young scientist with the doctoral award. For the year 2022 Dr. med. Marie Wölfer award. She receives the award for her dissertation on the investigation of the antidepressant mechanisms of action of ketamine by means of functional magnetic resonance imaging and their connection with the altered concentration of certain messenger substances in brain regions that are of particular importance in depression. Dr. Wölfer is currently an assistant physician at the Universitätskinderklinik active. active. She completed her medical studies in Magdeburg. Already during her studies, Dr. Wölfer did her experimental doctoral thesis in the Clinical Affective Neuroimaging Laboratory (CANLAB) Magdeburg under the supervision of Prof. Dr. Martin Walter and in cooperation with the Institut für Physiologie started under the supervision of Prof. Dr. Volkmar Leßmann. The doctoral award of the faculty is endowed with 1,500 euros. The award was presented by the Dean of the Faculty of Medicine Prof. Dr. Daniela C. Dieterich at the end of November 2022 during the Academic Ceremony of the University of Magdeburg.
Photo: Portrait Dr. med. Marie Wölfer,
Photographer: Jana Dünnhaupt/University of Magdeburg
"The promotion of young talents at our faculty is a special concern for us. We are pleased to honor Dr. Wölfer with the doctoral award for her outstanding performance and to be able to support her on her further path. We will continue to put all our efforts into creating the best conditions for our young scientists," emphasized Dean Prof. Dr. Dieterich.
After successfully completing her studies, Dr. Wölfer initially continued her research at the Medical Faculty in Magdeburg, and subsequently spent two and a half years at theDepartment of Biomedical Engineering am New Jersey Institute of Technology (NJIT) to work in the USA. She already received the doctoral scholarship of the Medical Faculty Magdeburg as well as a foreign research scholarship of theDeutschen Akademischen Austauschdienstes (DAAD). „to now also be honored with the doctoral award is something special for me. I would like to expressly thank all the people who supported me during my doctorate and the faculty. I would also like to thank the subjects of our study for their participation," says Dr. Wölfer.
The topic of her work is of high clinical relevance. About 264 million people worldwide suffer from depression. Current antidepressant pharmacotherapy shows a delay in action of up to several weeks, and about 30 percent of depressed patients do not respond to adequate therapy and are thus considered treatment-resistant. "In recent years, treatment with ketamine infusions in low so-called subanesthetic doses has received considerable attention because of its antidepressant effects, which begin within hours. Yet the antidepressant mechanisms of action of ketamine are poorly understood," Dr. Wölfer explains, while pointing out that the clinical picture of depression is very complex. "In addition to faulty connections of brain networks, it also includes misregulation of messenger substances in the brain - the so-called neurotransmitters. The brain's ability to adapt and form new synapses and networks - synaptic plasticity - is also severely impaired."
Using 7-tesla ultrahigh-resolution magnetic resonance imaging, Dr. Wölfer examined the brain structures and networks in question and how their connections changed after ketamine administration, as well as their association with peripheral markers of neuroplasticity and inflammation. "We were able to show in the paper that ketamine can critically alter the connectivity of resting state brain networks. These are networks that are mainly active at rest, i.e. when our thoughts can unfold unhindered. Depressed patients in particular show a negative bias in their thoughts. We were also able to show that the altered connections of the brain regions are related to changes in the glutamatergic system. Furthermore, we found an association with peripheral brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) concentration, an important protein of synaptic plasticity. Research into the antidepressant mechanism of action of ketamine enables scientists to better understand the clinical picture of depression and to further improve therapy in the future.
"During my PhD, I found the combination of different methods and disciplines particularly exciting. I received very good support from my supervisor and colleagues within the research group and collaborations, which ultimately led to me being able to continue working on the research topics in the US.
Scientific contact:
Dr. med. Marie Wölfer, Assistant physician at the University Children's Hospital of the Otto von Guericke University Magdeburg, E-Mail: , Tel.: +49-391-67-17408