Doctoral thesis, Department of Biochemical Pharmacology, Medical School, University of Innsbruck, Austria
1999 - 2001
Postdoctoral research fellow, Department of Biochemical Pharmacology, Medical School, University of Innsbruck, Austria
2001 - 2007
University Assistant, Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, LFU, Innsbruck, Austria
Visiting Scientist, at the University of Tübingen, Germany and the University of Padova, Italy
2007 - 2008
Assistant Professor, Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, LFU, Innsbruck, Austria
2008
Habilitation (Cell biology)
2009
Associate Professor, Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, LFU, Innsbruck, Austria
2011 - 2014
Full Professor for "Molecular Sensory Physiology and Pharmacology", Center for Physiology and Pharmacology, Medical University Vienna, Austria
March 2015
Head of "Molecular Sensory Physiology and Pharmacology" Group and Associate Professor, Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, LFU, Innsbruck, Austria
Teaching Experience
Pharmacy students
General pharmacology, Cellular physiology and pathophysiology, Biology for Pharmacists, Seminars and practical course in pharmacogenetics
Medical students
Sensory neurophysiology
Graduate Programs Innsbruck
University Innsbruck “Pharmaceutical Sciences”, Medical University Innsbruck “Molecular Cell Biology and Oncology” (MCBO)
Graduate Programs Vienna (Supervisor)
Medical University Vienna “Molecular Signal Transduction” (MolSignTans) and “Neuroscience” at the Brain Research Center
Scientific Awards
2002
Scientific Award of the City of Innsbruck
2003
Dr. Otto-Seibert Scientific Award (University of Innsbruck)
2009
Heribert-Konzett Award (Austrian Pharmacological Society)
2011
Otto-Löwi Award (Austrian Neuroscience association)
Co-applicant SFB-F44: “Cell signalling in chronic CNS disorders”
2014-2017
FWF P26881: “Cav1.4 L-Type Calcium Channels in Retinal Function- Lessons from Channelopathies”
2017-2019
FWF P29359: “L-Type Calcium Channels in Rod Bipolar Cells”
2016-2019
Innovative Training Network funded by the European Commission's Horizon 2020 programme: “switchBoard - In the Eye of the Observer: Visual Processing at the Heart of the Retina”
2018-2022
FWF: CavX PhD programm – Calcium channels in excitable cells
2020-2022
FWF P32747: “Pharmaco-therapeutic potential of Cav1.4 L-type Ca2+ channels”
Selected publications
Original papers and reviews
1: Zanetti L, Kilicarslan I, Netzer M, Babai N, Seitter H, Koschak A. Function of cone and cone-related pathways in Cav1.4 IT mice. Sci Rep. 2021 Feb 1;11(1):2732. doi: 10.1038/s41598-021-82210-7. PMID: 33526839.
2: Kaehler K, Seitter H, Sandbichler AM, Tschugg B, Obermair GJ, Stefanova N, Koschak A. Assessment of the Retina of Plp-α-Syn Mice as a Model for Studying Synuclein-Dependent Diseases. Invest Ophthalmol Vis Sci. 2020 Jun 3;61(6):12. doi: 10.1167/iovs.61.6.12. PMID: 32503050.
3: Pangrsic T, Singer JH, Koschak A. Voltage-Gated Calcium Channels: Key Players in Sensory Coding in the Retina and the Inner Ear. Physiol Rev. 2018 Oct 1;98(4):2063-2096. doi: 10.1152/physrev.00030.2017. PMID: 30067155.
4: Zamponi GW, Striessnig J, Koschak A, Dolphin AC. The Physiology, Pathology, and Pharmacology of Voltage-Gated Calcium Channels and Their Future Therapeutic Potential. Pharmacol Rev. 2015 Oct;67(4):821-70. doi: 10.1124/pr.114.009654. PMID: 26362469.
5: Knoflach D, Schicker K, Glösmann M, Koschak A. Gain-of-function nature of Cav1.4 L-type calcium channels alters firing properties of mouse retinal ganglion cells. Channels (Austin). 2015;9(5):298-306. doi: 10.1080/19336950.2015.1078040. PMID: 26274509.
6: Burtscher V, Schicker K, Novikova E, Pöhn B, Stockner T, Kugler C, Singh A, Zeitz C, Lancelot ME, Audo I, Leroy BP, Freissmuth M, Herzig S, Matthes J, Koschak A. Spectrum of Cav1.4 dysfunction in congenital stationary night blindness type 2. Biochim Biophys Acta. 2014 Aug;1838(8):2053-65. doi: 10.1016/j.bbamem.2014.04.023. Epub 2014 May 4. PMID: 24796500.
7: Knoflach D, Kerov V, Sartori SB, Obermair GJ, Schmuckermair C, Liu X, Sothilingam V, Garcia Garrido M, Baker SA, Glösmann M, Schicker K, Seeliger M, Lee A, Koschak A. Cav1.4 IT mouse as model for vision impairment in human congenital stationary night blindness type 2. Channels (Austin). 2013 Nov- Dec;7(6):503-13. doi: 10.4161/chan.26368. Epub 2013 Sep 19. PMID: 24051672.
8: Baig SM, Koschak A, Lieb A, Gebhart M, Dafinger C, Nürnberg G, Ali A, Ahmad I, Sinnegger-Brauns MJ, Brandt N, Engel J, Mangoni ME, Farooq M, Khan HU, Nürnberg P, Striessnig J, Bolz HJ. Loss of Cav1.3 (CACNA1D) function in a human channelopathy with bradycardia and congenital deafness. Nat Neurosci. 2011 Jan;14(1):77-84. doi: 10.1038/nn.2694. PMID: 21131953.
9: Singh A, Hamedinger D, Hoda JC, Gebhart M, Koschak A, Romanin C, Striessnig J. C-terminal modulator controls Ca2+-dependent gating of Ca(v)1.4 L-type Ca2+ channels. Nat Neurosci. 2006 Sep;9(9):1108-16. doi: 10.1038/nn1751.PMID: 16921373.
10: Koschak A, Reimer D, Huber I, Grabner M, Glossmann H, Engel J, Striessnig J. alpha 1D (Cav1.3) subunits can form l-type Ca2+ channels activating at negative voltages. J Biol Chem. 2001 Jun 22;276(25):22100-6. doi: 10.1074/jbc.M101469200. PMID: 11285265.
Book
“Pathologies of Calcium Channels” Editors: Weiss, Norbert; Koschak, Alexandra (2014). ISBN 978-3-642-40282-1 (Springer).
