Vanda Balint, Research Assistant in IMGGE, has defended her PhD thesis entitled "The role of SOX2 and SOX9 genes and mir-21 on phenotypical characteristics of astrocytes derived from pluripotent NT2/D1 cells" at the Faculty of Biology, University of Belgrade. The thesis was done in the Human Molecular Genetics Group under supervision of Dr. Andrijana Lazić. 

With this research, Vanda Balint contributed to the understanding of the molecular mechanisms of differentiation and functional specialization of astrocytes, cells that play a key role in the development and maintenance of the nervous system. 

The following two publications resulted from this doctoral dissertation:

Balint V, Ninkovic DS, Anastasov N, Lazic S, Kovacevic-Grujicic N, Stevanovic M, Lazic A. Inhibition of miR-21 Promotes Cellular Senescence in NT2-Derived Astrocytes. Biochemistry (Mosc). 2021;86(11):1434-1445.

Balint V, Peric M, Dacic S, Stanisavljevic Ninkovic D, Marjanovic J, Popovic J, Stevanovic M, Lazic A. The Role of SOX2 and SOX9 Transcription Factors in the Reactivation-Related Functional Properties of NT2/D1-Derived Astrocytes. Biomedicines. 2024 Apr 3;12(4):796.