Sandrine Da Cruz

Sandrine Da Cruz is a Professor at the Faculty of Medicine, KU Leuven, and head of the Laboratory of Neurophysiology in Neurodegenerative Disorders (VIB-KU Leuven). She is affiliated with the VIB-KU Leuven Center for Brain & Disease Research, LBI-KU Leuven Brain Institute, and LISCO-KU Leuven Institute for Single Cell Omics. As a senior academic staff member, she serves on the Council of the Faculty of Medicine and the Department of Neurosciences.

Her research focuses on motor neuron diseases, particularly amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and frontotemporal dementia (FTD), with emphasis on RNA-binding proteins (TDP-43, FUS), protein aggregation, and neuromuscular junction (NMJ) dynamics. She investigates axonal translation mechanisms and extracellular matrix contributions to NMJ homeostasis in neurodegenerative contexts.

The most recent publications highlight her work on FUS-ALS therapies, TDP-43 pathophysiology, and NMJ maintenance in ALS. Her studies span molecular mechanisms of protein mislocalization, seeded aggregation models, and translational approaches to neurodegenerative disease.

Da Cruz contributes to translational medicine through clinical trials (e.g., antisense oligonucleotide jacifusen for FUS-ALS) and fundamental research on stress response pathways and cellular resilience in ALS/FTD.

She leads multiple funded projects as promotor, including studies on single-cell mass spectrometry imaging, NMJ-targeted ALS interventions, and integrated stress response mechanisms. Collaborative efforts include international consortia on neurodegenerative disease modeling and therapeutic development.