Dr Odette Leiter is a postdoctoral research fellow in the research group of Dr Tara Walker, investigating systemic brain rejuvenation. She was awarded a PhD in Neuroscience in 2018 by the Technische Universität Dresden in Germany. Her research focus lies on the regulation of adult hippocampal neurogenesis by physical exercise, a process critically involved in learning and memory.
To support her research at the Queensland Brain Institute, Dr Odette Leiter has received two postdoctoral fellowships, a postdoctoral fellowship from the German Academic Exchange Service, followed by a Walter Benjamin Fellowship awarded by the German Research Foundation, allowing her to investigate the role of platelets in mediating neurogenesis-related learning and memory, and the capacity of platelet-released factors to restore cognitive function in ageing. More recently, Dr Leiter has been awarded a Discovery Early Career Researcher Award (DECRA) to investigate the precise mechanisms through which platelets interact with adult hippocampal neural stem cells following exercise.
Journal Article: Platelet-derived exerkine CXCL4/platelet factor 4 rejuvenates hippocampal neurogenesis and restores cognitive function in aged mice
Leiter, Odette, Brici, David, Fletcher, Stephen J., Yong, Xuan Ling Hilary, Widagdo, Jocelyn, Matigian, Nicholas, Schroer, Adam B., Bieri, Gregor, Blackmore, Daniel G., Bartlett, Perry F., Anggono, Victor, Villeda, Saul A. and Walker, Tara L. (2023). Platelet-derived exerkine CXCL4/platelet factor 4 rejuvenates hippocampal neurogenesis and restores cognitive function in aged mice. Nature Communications, 14 (1) 4375, 1-20. doi: 10.1038/s41467-023-39873-9
Leiter, Odette, Zhuo, Zhan, Rust, Ruslan, Wasielewska, Joanna M., Grönnert, Lisa, Kowal, Susann, Overall, Rupert W., Adusumilli, Vijay S., Blackmore, Daniel G., Southon, Adam, Ganio, Katherine, McDevitt, Christopher A., Rund, Nicole, Brici, David, Mudiyan, Imesh Aththanayake, Sykes, Alexander M., Rünker, Annette E., Zocher, Sara, Ayton, Scott, Bush, Ashley I., Bartlett, Perry F., Hou, Sheng-Tao, Kempermann, Gerd and Walker, Tara L. (2023). Erratum: Selenium mediates exercise-induced adult neurogenesis and reverses learning deficits induced by hippocampal injury and aging (Cell Metabolism (2022) 34(3) (408–423.e8), (S1550413122000055), (10.1016/j.cmet.2022.01.005)). Cell Metabolism, 35 (6), 1085-1085. doi: 10.1016/j.cmet.2023.04.019
Journal Article: Selenium mediates exercise-induced adult neurogenesis and reverses learning deficits induced by hippocampal injury and aging
Leiter, Odette, Zhuo, Zhan, Rust, Ruslan, Wasielewska, Joanna M., Grönnert, Lisa, Kowal, Susann, Overall, Rupert W., Adusumilli, Vijay S., Blackmore, Daniel G., Southon, Adam, Ganio, Katherine, McDevitt, Christopher A., Rund, Nicole, Brici, David, Aththanayake Mudiyan, Imesh , Sykes, Alexander M., Rünker, Annette E., Zocher, Sara, Ayton, Scott, Bush, Ashley I., Bartlett, Perry F., Hou, Sheng-Tao, Kempermann, Gerd and Walker, Tara L. (2022). Selenium mediates exercise-induced adult neurogenesis and reverses learning deficits induced by hippocampal injury and aging. Cell Metabolism, 34 (3), 408-423.e8. doi: 10.1016/j.cmet.2022.01.005
Understanding how platelets mediate new neuron formation in the adult brain
(2024–2027) ARC Discovery Early Career Researcher Award
(2020–2025) The Donald & Joan Wilson Foundation Ltd
Leiter, Odette, Brici, David, Fletcher, Stephen J., Yong, Xuan Ling Hilary, Widagdo, Jocelyn, Matigian, Nicholas, Schroer, Adam B., Bieri, Gregor, Blackmore, Daniel G., Bartlett, Perry F., Anggono, Victor, Villeda, Saul A. and Walker, Tara L. (2023). Platelet-derived exerkine CXCL4/platelet factor 4 rejuvenates hippocampal neurogenesis and restores cognitive function in aged mice. Nature Communications, 14 (1) 4375, 1-20. doi: 10.1038/s41467-023-39873-9
Leiter, Odette, Zhuo, Zhan, Rust, Ruslan, Wasielewska, Joanna M., Grönnert, Lisa, Kowal, Susann, Overall, Rupert W., Adusumilli, Vijay S., Blackmore, Daniel G., Southon, Adam, Ganio, Katherine, McDevitt, Christopher A., Rund, Nicole, Brici, David, Mudiyan, Imesh Aththanayake, Sykes, Alexander M., Rünker, Annette E., Zocher, Sara, Ayton, Scott, Bush, Ashley I., Bartlett, Perry F., Hou, Sheng-Tao, Kempermann, Gerd and Walker, Tara L. (2023). Erratum: Selenium mediates exercise-induced adult neurogenesis and reverses learning deficits induced by hippocampal injury and aging (Cell Metabolism (2022) 34(3) (408–423.e8), (S1550413122000055), (10.1016/j.cmet.2022.01.005)). Cell Metabolism, 35 (6), 1085-1085. doi: 10.1016/j.cmet.2023.04.019
Leiter, Odette, Zhuo, Zhan, Rust, Ruslan, Wasielewska, Joanna M., Grönnert, Lisa, Kowal, Susann, Overall, Rupert W., Adusumilli, Vijay S., Blackmore, Daniel G., Southon, Adam, Ganio, Katherine, McDevitt, Christopher A., Rund, Nicole, Brici, David, Aththanayake Mudiyan, Imesh , Sykes, Alexander M., Rünker, Annette E., Zocher, Sara, Ayton, Scott, Bush, Ashley I., Bartlett, Perry F., Hou, Sheng-Tao, Kempermann, Gerd and Walker, Tara L. (2022). Selenium mediates exercise-induced adult neurogenesis and reverses learning deficits induced by hippocampal injury and aging. Cell Metabolism, 34 (3), 408-423.e8. doi: 10.1016/j.cmet.2022.01.005
Blackmore, Daniel G., Steyn, Frederik J., Carlisle, Alison, O’Keeffe, Imogen, Vien, King-Year, Zhou, Xiaoqing, Leiter, Odette, Jhaveri, Dhanisha, Vukovic, Jana, Waters, Michael J. and Bartlett, Perry F. (2021). An exercise ‘sweet spot’ reverses cognitive deficits of ageing by growth hormone-induced neurogenesis. iScience, 24 (11) 103275, 1-25. doi: 10.1016/j.isci.2021.103275
L-lactate exerts a pro-proliferative effect on adult hippocampal precursor cells in vitro
Pötzsch, Alexandra, Zocher, Sara, Bernas, Stefanie N., Leiter, Odette, Rünker, Annette and Kempermann, Gerd (2021). L-lactate exerts a pro-proliferative effect on adult hippocampal precursor cells in vitro. iScience, 24 (2) 102126, 1-16. doi: 10.1016/j.isci.2021.102126
Platelets in Neurodegenerative Conditions—Friend or Foe?
Leiter, Odette and Walker, Tara L. (2020). Platelets in Neurodegenerative Conditions—Friend or Foe?. Frontiers in Immunology, 11 747, 747. doi: 10.3389/fimmu.2020.00747
Platelets: the missing link between the blood and brain?
Leiter, Odette and Walker, Tara L. (2019). Platelets: the missing link between the blood and brain?. Progress in Neurobiology, 183 101695, 101695. doi: 10.1016/j.pneurobio.2019.101695
Leiter, Odette, Bernas, Stefanie N., Seidemann, Suse, Overall, Rupert W., Horenburg, Cindy, Kowal, Susann, Kempermann, Gerd and Walker, Tara L. (2019). The systemic exercise-released chemokine lymphotactin/XCL1 modulates in vitro adult hippocampal precursor cell proliferation and neuronal differentiation. Scientific Reports, 9 (1) 11831, 11831. doi: 10.1038/s41598-019-48360-5
The antidepressant effect of testosterone: an effect of neuroplasticity?
Walther, Andreas, Wasielewska, Joanna Marta and Leiter, Odette (2019). The antidepressant effect of testosterone: an effect of neuroplasticity?. Neurology, Psychiatry and Brain Research, 32, 104-110. doi: 10.1016/j.npbr.2019.05.004
Leiter, Odette, Seidemann, Suse, Overall, Rupert W., Ramasz, Beáta, Rund, Nicole, Schallenberg, Sonja, Grinenko, Tatyana, Wielockx, Ben, Kempermann, Gerd and Walker, Tara L. (2019). Exercise-induced activated platelets increase adult hippocampal precursor proliferation and promote neuronal differentiation. Stem Cell Reports, 12 (4), 667-679. doi: 10.1016/j.stemcr.2019.02.009
Isolation, culture and differentiation of adult hippocampal precursor cells
Bernas, Stefanie, Leiter, Odette, Walker, Tara and Kempermann, Gerd (2017). Isolation, culture and differentiation of adult hippocampal precursor cells. Bio-protocol, 7 (21). doi: 10.21769/bioprotoc.2603
A common language: how neuroimmunological cross talk regulates adult hippocampal neurogenesis
Leiter, Odette, Kempermann, Gerd and Walker, Tara L. (2016). A common language: how neuroimmunological cross talk regulates adult hippocampal neurogenesis. Stem Cells International, 2016 1681590, 1-13. doi: 10.1155/2016/1681590
Delayed and transient increase of adult hippocampal neurogenesis by physical exercise in DBA/2 mice
Overall, Rupert W., Walker, Tara L., Leiter, Odette, Lenke, Sina, Ruhwald, Susann and Kempermann, Gerd (2013). Delayed and transient increase of adult hippocampal neurogenesis by physical exercise in DBA/2 mice. PLoS One, 8 (12) e83797, e83797. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0083797
Understanding how platelets mediate new neuron formation in the adult brain
(2024–2027) ARC Discovery Early Career Researcher Award
(2020–2025) The Donald & Joan Wilson Foundation Ltd