Brain blood vessels are key for keeping the brain working properly. They supply brain cells with oxygen and nutrients and are involved in many brain pathologies such as brain tumours, brain blood vessel malformations, stroke, and neurodegenerative diseases. The growth of new blood vessels relies on a process called angiogenesis.

Angiogenesis is highly dynamic during brain development and almost inactive in the adult healthy brain but is reactivated in a variety of brain diseases. However, the specific ways in which this happens is unclear.

Our research aims to better understand how brain blood vessels grow and function during development as well as in adulthood and disease, and how they are arranged in space. This can greatly improve our knowledge of the brain and its blood vessels and therefore our ability to develop treatments for various brain pathologies.

Our goal is to explore how these brain blood vessels behave in three different situations: in development before birth, during adult life, and in disease. By combining several advanced techniques, we aim to create a detailed map of human brain blood vessels in development, adulthood and disease at unprecedented resolution.