Cellular Neurobiology

Cellular Neurobiology Group Images
Group leader
Maren Schenke
Maren Schenke
Assistant Professor of Molecular Cell Biology
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Research focus

Our lab develops human-relevant neuronal models derived from induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) to study neural development and function. Our main focus is on cellular 3D models of the human brain (brain organoids), which consist of neurons, astrocytes, and oligodendrocytes and mimic key features of the human brain while remaining experimentally accessible. By increasing physiological relevance and incorporating factors such as sex as a biological variable, we capture inter-individual variability that contributes to neurodevelopmental disorders like autism, which can be modeled using patient-derived cells. We characterize these organoids in depth, assessing their cellular composition, developmental trajectory, and functional maturation through cell biology, electrophysiology, and multi-omics approaches. Using these models, we investigate how neurotoxicants, pharmaceutical compounds, and disease-related factors impact neuronal development, ultimately contributing to more personalized approaches in medicine.

Join our Team

We are always interested in hearing from motivated researchers who wish to join our group. We welcome applications from students at the Bachelor’s or Master’s level, as well as potential PhD candidates and postdoctoral researchers. While we occasionally post openings for funded positions, we especially encourage inquiries from applicants who already hold or plan to apply for their own fellowships or funding and we will support their funding applications.

To express interest, please send an email to mschenke@constructor.university with a brief summary of your research interests, your background, potential funding if applicable and your CV.

Currently, we have one opening for a 3-year PhD position, which will be posted soon.

Recent Publications
  • Schenke, M., Laird, J., Rittenhouse, A., Kucheryavenko, V., Neuhaus, W., Chen, O., Sabunciyan, S., Maertens, A., Smirnova, L. (2025). Genetic Background and Sex Modulate Androgen Responses in Human Brain Microphysiological System, bioRxiv 2025.12.03.692130, https://doi.org/10.64898/2025.12.03.692130
  • van der Molen, T., Spaeth, A., Chini, M., Hernandez, S., Kaurala, G., Schweiger, H., Geng, J., Bartram, J., Dendukuri, A., Zhang, Z., Gonzales-Ferrer, J., Bhaskaran-Nair, K., Blauvelt, L. J., Petzold, L. R., Alam El Din, DM., Smirnova, L., Laird, J., Schenke, M., Colquitt, BM., Mostajo-Radji, MA., Hansma, P. K., Teodorescu, M., Hierlemann, A., Hengen, K. B., Hanganu-Opatz, I. L., Kosik, K. S., Sharf, T. (2025), Preconfigured neuronal firing sequences in human brain organoids. Nat Neurosci. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41593-025-02111-0 
  • Giridhar, N. J., Hambrecht, B., Schenke, M., Seeger, B., Bischler, T., Briese, M., & Lüningschrör, P. (2025). Temporal transcriptomic profiling of human three-dimensional neuromuscular co-cultures. Biology Open, 14(9), bio062196.; https://doi.org/10.1242/bio.062196 
  • Debad, S., Aungst, J., Carstens, K., Ferrer-Alegre, M., Fitzpatrick, S., Fritsche, E., Geng, Y., Hartung, T. Hogberg, H., Li, R., MacMahon, S. Mangas, I. Marty, S. Musser. S., Perron, M., Rattan, S., Rüegg, J., Sachana, M., Schenke, M., Shafer, T., Smirnova, L., Talpos, J., Tanguay, R.L., Terron, A., Bandele, O. (2025) State of the science on assessing developmental neurotoxicity using new approach methods., ALTEX, 42(1), pp. 121–144; https://doi.org/10.14573/altex.2410231. 
  • Alam El Din, D.-M., Moenkemoeller, L., Loeffler, A., Habibollahi, F., Schenkman, J., Mitra, A., van der Molen, T., Ding, L., Laird, J., Schenke, M., Johnson, E. C., Kagan, B. J., Hartung, T., & Smirnova, L. (2024). Human neural organoid microphysiological systems show the building blocks necessary for basic learning and memory. Commun Biol 8, 1237 (2025). https://doi.org/10.1038/s42003-025-08632-5.
  • Hutchings, A.-J., Hambrecht, B., Veh, A., Jadhav Giridhar, N., Zare, A., Angerer, C., Ohnesorge, T., Schenke, M., Selvaraj, B. T., Chandran, S., Sterneckert, J., Petri, S., Seeger, B., Briese, M., Stigloher, C., Bischler, T., Hermann, A., Damme, M., Sendtner, M., & Lüningschrör, P. (2024) Plekhg5 controls the unconventional secretion of Sod1 by presynaptic secretory autophagy. Nat Commun 15, 8622. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-024-52875-5
  • Hartung, T., Schenke, M., Smirnova, L. (2024) Brain organoids as a translational model of human developmental neurotoxicity, In Advances in Neurotoxicology (Vol. 12, pp. 83-106), https://doi.org/10.1016/bs.ant.2024.07.002