The research of Prof Pietro Cortelli is on:
1) Genetic and phenotipic characterization of prion diseases
(Fatal Familial
Insomnia,Creutzfeldt-Jakob,Gerstmann-Straussler-Scheinker)
Parkinson's disease, Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis, Familial
Hemiplegic migraine.
2) The role of the autonomic nervous system in health and
disease with a focus on neurological control of the circulation in
man. A variety of autonomic disorders, from syncope to sweating
abnormalities, are studied. There is a special emphasis in patients
with cardiovascular autonomic disorders (in particular postural
hypotension), a variety of neurological disorders (such as
Parkinsons's disease, Multiple System Atrophy, Pure Autonomic
Failure) and sleep disorders involving the autonomic nervous system
(such as OSAS, Ondine syndrome).
3) Evaluation of autonomic circadian rhythms in
neurodegenerative disorders and particularly in prion diseases
4) Autonomic, clinical and neurophysiological aspects of
mitochondrial diseases
5) Autonomic, clinical, neurophysiological, functional
imaging evaluation of primary headache
6) Sleep disorders
The
Autonomic Unit at “Clinica Neurologica”, Department of “Scienze
Neurologiche”, University of Bologna is actively involved in
clinical research, both integrative and reductionist; this is
reflected in the publications from our Units. All the research currently
conducted is in humans on the role of the autonomic nervous system
in health and disease, with a particular emphasis on the
neurological and neurohormonal control of the cardiovascular system
during the wake and sleep state. Other systems – sudomotor
and gastrointestinal, and their involvement in many diseases is
studied. There is
active collaboration between the Units and other colleagues and
Departments together with collaboration at other Universities, in
Italy and abroad. A
further feature of the research is the utilisation of non-invasive
approaches, which within the Units involve a combination of
physiological, biochemical and pharmacological techniques. These,
together with other facilities such as neuro-imaging (positron
emission tomography and functional magnetic resonance scanning)
(directed by other colleagues) and as a special investigation room
for the evaluation of autonomic circadian rhythms, enable in-depth, in
vivo studies
on multiple occasions in a number of patient groups. These include patients
with a wide range of neurological disorders (such as the primary
autonomic failure syndromes and Parkinson's disease), and general
medical disorders (hypertension), those who fall between major
disciplines (syncope due to vaso-vagal in the young and carotid
sinus hypersensitivity in the elderly) and in addition, select
groups such as those with Fatal Familial Insomnia, Cluster
Haedache, Slerodermia, Narcolepsy and sleep related breathing
disorders (OSAS). The
Unit is also active in the application of novel technology and in
evolving newer diagnostic techniques, such as automatic analysis of
cardiovascular reflexes and heart rate variability. There are
research interests in other aspects of autonomic dysfunction, such
as sudomotor disorders and gastro-intestinal tract
dysfunction. There
are studies in patients with spinal cord injuries, designed to
determine ANS functions in wake and sleep conditions, with “Unità
Spinale” at “Ospedale Carreggi, Firenze”. Research continues to
contribute to understanding both physiological and
pathophysiological processes in humans, using clinical neurological
models.
Research
funding has been from a variety of sources, with major funding
being through competitive project and equipment grants from the RFO
(University of Bologna), PRIN (Ministero della Ricerca) ,
Finalizzata (Ministero della Salute). Research Fellows from the
Unit have progressed on to career posts (Consultants/Senior
Lecturers) mainly in neurology.
