Dr. Witold Konopka graduated at the Faculty of Biology and Environmental Protection at University of Silesia, and his Master Thesis was defended in the Department of Tumor Biology at Institute of Oncology in Gliwice. Then he joined the Nencki Institute for PhD studies. His PhD dissertation aimed for generation of the rat model with the local induction of gene expression. These studies resulted in two patent applications on new methods of animal transgenesis. For his post-doctoral training Dr. Witold Konopka moved to the German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ) in Heidelberg in Germany where he continued the work with genetic mouse models i.e. inducible Cre/loxP system. In these studies he investigated a role of microRNAs in the learning&memory processes and in the control of metabolism in mice.

In the Laboratory of Animal Models we will perform complex phenotypic studies on animal models, mainly transgenic mice and rats, but also other pharmacologically-based animal models. We will focus on three aspects: starting from (1) generation of animal model e.g., by local genetic modification by using viral vectors as a gene carrier, next (2) molecular, histological and metabolic and finally (3) behavioral characterization.