The purpose of our research is to increase the understanding of the pathophysiology of neurological disorders with a focus on primary headache disorders such as cluster headache by identifying, characterizing and modelling genetic markers within the human genome.
Photo: Pixabay,Mohamed HassanThe Centre for Cluster Headache includes all research at Karolinska Institutet regarding cluster headaches and offers a well-integrated collaboration between research and clinical operations. The main goal of our research is to understand the molecular and genetic mechanisms behind cluster headache, as well as to identify new targets for diagnosis and treatment.
Photo: Cecilia OdlindMany of us get headaches from time to time, without it causing too much trouble. But for those who suffer from migraines, or worse from cluster headaches, it may imply a severe disability. Andrea Carmine Belin’s research focuses on the genetics behind cluster headache, a condition sometimes referred to as “suicide headache”.
Photo: Johannes Frandsén,Johannes FrandsenAndrea Carmine Belin is a neuroscientist at Karolinska Institutet. Her research focuses on hereditary brain diseases and, among other things, cluster headache, an extremely painful disease which comes in attacks. It is not known what causes the disease, and so far, there are no effective treatments.
Photo: Katrin RodegastA conversation with Thomas Perlmann, Professor of Molecular Developmental Biology, Lars Olson, Professor of Neurobiology at the Department of Neuroscience, Andrea Carmine Belin, Associate Professor at the Department of Neuroscience, and President Ole Petter Ottersen, Karolinska Institutet.
Photo: Image by Jan Vašek from PixabayCluster headache (CH) strikes as a unilateral pain of extreme intensity and a majority of patients report a circadian and circannual pattern in their attacks.
The cause of this potentially life-threatening disorder (referred to as suicide headache due to suicide attempts when treatment is insufficient), is currently unknown and there is no cure.
Cluster headache affects 0.1% of the population world-wide and genetic factors in addition to circadian rhythm has been proposed to be involved in the pathophysiology.
The objectives of our research is to investigate the potential molecular mechanisms behind cluster headache and the link to circadian rhythm and genetic factors. This will allow insight into pathogenic mechanisms of cluster headache and lead to the identification of targets in the development of novel and more efficient treatment strategies.
This project is performed by using and further extending a unique biobank of biological tissue and clinical data from patients with cluster headache and controls in Sweden.
Contact information for the Carmine Belin Laboratory at the Department of Neuroscience, Karolinska Institutet.
Karolinska Institutet
Department of Neuroscience
171 77 Stockholm
Karolinska Institutet
Biomedicum, D7
Solnavägen 9
171 65 Solna
Tomtebodavägen 16
171 65 Solna
