Neurobiology of Stress Resilience

PD Dr. Benjamin Jurek

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PD Dr. Benjamin Jurek

The DFG-funded StressEVs project, led by PD Dr. Benjamin Jurek, investigates how stress shapes behavior over time and how extracellular vesicles contribute to the stress response. It combines long-term behavioral monitoring in mice with molecular analyses to explore mechanisms of stress susceptibility and resilience.

Using deep learning and data-driven analysis, the project examines behavioral dynamics in male and female mice under home-cage conditions. In parallel, it investigates changes in extracellular vesicle distribution and molecular cargo to assess their role in cellular communication and their potential as biomarkers of the stress response. By linking behavioral patterns with molecular changes, StressEVs aims to better understand individual differences in adaptation to stress.

Publications

Selected Publications:

• Jurek, B., Schlegel, P., Zglinicki, B., Aman, L., Kovarova, V., Narayan, S., Florea, R., Ziuzia, P., Badura, A., Schmidt, M. V., & Slezak, M. (2026). Long-term deep phenotyping of behavioral traits in mice using homecage monitoring. Neuroscience and Biobehavioral Reviews, 180, 106453. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.neubiorev.2025.106453
  
• Jurek, B., Meyer, M., Alfonso-Prieto, M., Ribeiro, R., Milenkovic, VM., Winter, J., Hoffmann, P., Wetzel, CH., Giorgetti, A., Carloni P., and Neumann ID (2022). Structure-function relationships of the disease-linked A218T oxytocin receptor variant. Molecular Psychiatry, doi.org/10.1038/s41380-021-01241-8
  
• Jurek B, Denk L, Schäfer N, Salehi MS, Pandamooz S, Haerteis S. Oxytocin accelerates tight junction formation and impairs cellular migration in 3D spheroids: evidence from Gapmer-induced exon skipping. Front Cell Neurosci. 2022;16:1000538. doi: 10.3389/fncel.2022.1000538. eCollection 2022. PubMed PMID: 36263085; PubMed Central PMCID: PMC9574052.
  
• Winter, J., Meyer, M., Berger, I., Royer, M., …. Reber, S.O., Bosch, O.J., Bludau, A., Slattery, D.A., van den Burg, E.H., Neumann, I.D. and Jurek, B. (2021). Chronic oxytocin-driven alternative splicing of Crfr2α induces anxiety. Molecular Psychiatry, doi:10.1038/s41380-021-01141-x
  
• Jurek B., Neumann ID. (2018). The Oxytocin Receptor: From Intracellular Signaling to Behavior. Physiol Rev. 2018 Jul 1;98(3):1805-1908. doi: 10.1152/physrev.00031.2017. PMID: 29897293
  

Full list of publications can be found here: