Funded Projects

We will comprehensively define the gene network associated with mitochondrial dysfunction in Parkinson's disease using a cutting-edge technology, CRISPR, to understand how these nerve cells die in PD and how we can reverse the cell death to treat the disease.

We propose a new magnetic sensor that is sensitive to picoTesla-scale fields, a localized magnetic stimulator with small form-factor, and a seamless integration of both systems for applications in experimental and clinical neuroscience.

Maternal infection is linked to increased risk of neurodevelopmental disorders such as autism and schizophrenia. This proposal examines how virus-associated cytokines, specifically interferons, affect human neurons modeled in brain organoids or studied directly in fetal brain samples.

Inflammation is a hallmark of brain aging, yet the source of inflammation in the old brain — and how to eliminate it — is unknown. This team aims to provide insight on how inflammation affects the aging brain that could potentially lead to the generation of new therapies to promote brain resilience.

Exercise improves cognition and protects against age-associated neurodegenerative diseases, but further research is needed to understand exactly how this occurs. This project aims to pave the way for therapeutics that can capture the benefits of exercise for promoting brain resilience.

This project aims to identify how mutant peripheral immune cells that invade the brain might actually reduce Alzheimer’s disease risk. The research will explore how to mimic these cells’ resilience-promoting effects to design new Alzheimer’s therapies.

This team will investigate whether a decline in intestinal immune cell metabolism drives age-related inflammation and cognitive decline. By replacing aged intestinal macrophages with metabolically healthy ones, they hope to develop a novel approach to enhance cognitive resilience.

This project will explore whether amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and frontotemporal dementia (FTD) result from immune cells attacking altered neurons. The team aims to pioneer the use of engineered immune cells as therapies for neurodegenerative disorders.

This team aims to define how and why protein production breaks down in aging cells, leading to disease. This research may lead to new diagnostic and therapeutic approaches against neurodegenerative diseases and potentially aging itself.