Dr Cara Croft
Senior Lecturer in Neuroscience
Research
Neurodegeneration, Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease, Proteinopathy, Pharmacology, brain slice culture
Interests
My group is interested in understanding the early and late events in Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s disease in 5D; space, time, chemistry. This will allow us to identify novel therapeutic targets in these diseases. We have expansive experience of modelling the key protein inclusions found in these neurodegenerative conditions in murine organotypic brain slice culture models which represent a 3D cytoarchitecturally relevant system that can be manipulated with recombinant adeno-associated viruses to develop pathology and for 4D imaging studies. We are now expanding these approaches to novel iPSC-derived human brain slice models for the next generation of neurodegenerative disease modelling.Publications
2024
Yang F, Beltran-Lobo P, Sung K, Goldrick C, Croft CL, Nishimura A, Hedges E, Mahiddine F, Troakes C, Golde TE, Perez-Nievas BG, Hanger DP, Noble W and Jimenez-Sanchez M (2024). Reactive astrocytes secrete the chaperone HSPB1 to mediate neuroprotection. American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) Science Advances vol. 10, (12) 2023
Beltran-Lobo P, Hughes MM, Troakes C, Croft CL, Rupawala H, Jutzi D, Ruepp M-D, Jimenez-Sanchez M, Perkinton MS, Kassiou M, Golde TE, Hanger DP, Verkhratsky A, Perez-Nievas BG and Noble W (2023). P2X7R influences tau aggregate burden in human tauopathies and shows distinct signalling in microglia and astrocytes. Elsevier Brain Behavior and Immunity vol. 114, 414-429. 2022
Croft CL, Paterno G, Vause AR, Rowe LA, Ryu DH, Goodwin MS, Moran CA, Cruz PE, Giasson BI and Golde TE (2022). Optical pulse labeling studies reveal exogenous seeding slows α-synuclein clearance. Springer Nature npj Parkinson's Disease vol. 8, (1) Khalil B, Chhangani D, Wren MC, Smith CL, Lee JH, Li X, Puttinger C, Tsai C-W, Fortin G, Morderer D, Gao J, Liu F, Lim CK, Chen J, Chou C-C, Croft CL, Gleixner AM, Donnelly CJ, Golde TE, Petrucelli L, Oskarsson B, Dickson DW, Zhang K, Shorter J, Yoshimura SH, Barmada SJ, Rincon-Limas DE and Rossoll W (2022). Nuclear import receptors are recruited by FG-nucleoporins to rescue hallmarks of TDP-43 proteinopathy. Springer Nature Molecular Neurodegeneration vol. 17, (1) Xia Y, Prokop S, Bell BM, Gorion K-MM, Croft CL, Nasif L, Xu G, Riffe CJ, Manaois AN, Strang KH, Quintin SS, Paterno G, Tansey MG, Borchelt DR, Golde TE and Giasson BI (2022). Pathogenic tau recruits wild-type tau into brain inclusions and induces gut degeneration in transgenic SPAM mice. Springer Nature Communications Biology vol. 5, (1) Moore BD, Levites Y, Xu G, Hampton H, Adamo MF, Croft CL, Futch HS, Moran C, Fromholt S, Janus C, Prokop S, Dickson D, Lewis J, Giasson BI, Golde TE and Borchelt DR (2022). Soluble brain homogenates from diverse human and mouse sources preferentially seed diffuse Aβ plaque pathology when injected into newborn mouse hosts. Free Neuropathology vol. 3, (9) 2021
Croft CL, Goodwin MS, Ryu DH, Lessard CB, Tejeda G, Marrero M, Vause AR, Paterno G, Cruz PE, Lewis J, Giasson BI and Golde TE (2021). Photodynamic studies reveal rapid formation and appreciable turnover of tau inclusions. Springer Nature Acta Neuropathologica vol. 141, (3) 359-381. 2020
Goodwin MS, Croft CL, Futch HS, Ryu D, Ceballos-Diaz C, Liu X, Paterno G, Mejia C, Deng D, Menezes K, Londono L, Arjona K, Parianos M, Truong V, Rostonics E, Hernandez A, Boye SL, Boye SE, Levites Y, Cruz PE and Golde TE (2020). Utilizing minimally purified secreted rAAV for rapid and cost-effective manipulation of gene expression in the CNS. Springer Nature Molecular Neurodegeneration vol. 15, (1) 2019
Croft CL, Futch HS, Moore BD and Golde TE (2019). Organotypic brain slice cultures to model neurodegenerative proteinopathies. Springer Nature Molecular Neurodegeneration vol. 14, (1) Futch HS, McFarland KN, Moore BD, Kuhn MZ, Giasson BI, Ladd TB, Scott KA, Shapiro MR, Nosacka RL, Goodwin MS, Ran Y, Cruz PE, Ryu DH, Croft CL, Levites Y, Janus C, Chakrabarty P, Judge AR, Brusko TM, de Kloet AD, Krause EG and Golde TE (2019). An anti-CRF antibody suppresses the HPA axis and reverses stress-induced phenotypes. Rockefeller University Press Journal of Experimental Medicine vol. 216, (11) 2479-2491. Croft CL, Cruz PE, Ryu DH, Ceballos-Diaz C, Strang KH, Woody BM, Lin W-L, Deture M, Rodríguez-Lebrón E, Dickson DW, Chakrabarty P, Levites Y, Giasson BI and Golde TE (2019). rAAV-based brain slice culture models of Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s disease inclusion pathologies. Rockefeller University Press Journal of Experimental Medicine vol. 216, (3) 539-555. 2018
Futch HS and Croft CL (2018). SIRT1: A Novel Way to Target Tau? Society for Neuroscience Journal of Neuroscience vol. 38, (36) 7755-7757. Croft CL and Noble W (2018). Preparation of organotypic brain slice cultures for the study of Alzheimer’s disease. F1000Research F1000Research vol. 7, Croft CL, Moore BD, Ran Y, Chakrabarty P, Levites Y, Golde TE and Giasson BI (2018). Novel monoclonal antibodies targeting the microtubule-binding domain of human tau. Public Library of Science (PLoS) PLOS ONE vol. 13, (4) 2017
Strang KH, Croft CL, Sorrentino ZA, Chakrabarty P, Golde TE and Giasson BI (2017). Distinct differences in prion-like seeding and aggregation between Tau protein variants provide mechanistic insights into tauopathies. Elsevier Journal of Biological Chemistry vol. 293, (7) 2408-2421. Croft CL, Kurbatskaya K, Hanger DP and Noble W (2017). Inhibition of glycogen synthase kinase-3 by BTA-EG4 reduces tau abnormalities in an organotypic brain slice culture model of Alzheimer’s disease. Springer Nature Scientific Reports vol. 7, (1) Futch HS, Croft CL, Truong VQ, Krause EG and Golde TE (2017). Targeting psychologic stress signaling pathways in Alzheimer’s disease. Springer Nature Molecular Neurodegeneration vol. 12, (1) Croft CL, Wade MA, Kurbatskaya K, Mastrandreas P, Hughes MM, Phillips EC, Pooler AM, Perkinton MS, Hanger DP and Noble W (2017). Membrane association and release of wild-type and pathological tau from organotypic brain slice cultures. Springer Nature Cell Death & Disease vol. 8, (3) e2671-e2671. 2016
Kurbatskaya K, Phillips EC, Croft CL, Dentoni G, Hughes MM, Wade MA, Al-Sarraj S, Troakes C, O’Neill MJ, Perez-Nievas BG, Hanger DP and Noble W (2016). Upregulation of calpain activity precedes tau phosphorylation and loss of synaptic proteins in Alzheimer’s disease brain. Springer Nature Acta Neuropathologica Communications vol. 4, (1) 2015
Hughes ATL, Croft CL, Samuels RE, Myung J, Takumi T and Piggins HD (2015). Constant light enhances synchrony among circadian clock cells and promotes behavioral rhythms in VPAC2-signaling deficient mice. Springer Nature Scientific Reports vol. 5, (1) 2014
Phillips EC, Croft CL, Kurbatskaya K, O'Neill MJ, Hutton ML, Hanger DP, Garwood CJ and Noble W (2014). Astrocytes and neuroinflammation in Alzheimer's disease. Portland Press Biochemical Society Transactions vol. 42, (5) 1321-1325. 2013
Atherton J, Kurbatskaya K, Bondulich M, Croft CL, Garwood CJ, Chhabra R, Wray S, Jeromin A, Hanger DP and Noble W (2013). Calpain cleavage and inactivation of the sodium calcium exchanger‐3 occur downstream of Aβ in Alzheimer's disease. Wiley Aging Cell vol. 13, (1) 49-59.