The Dawson lab

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The Dawson Lab investigates neuronal cell death and survival in Parkinson’s disease (PD), stroke, and related disorders.

We discovered Parthanatos, a regulated cell death pathway critical in ischemic injury and PD. This mechanism involves PARP activation, mitochondrial release of apoptosis-inducing factor (AIF), and recruitment of MIF nuclease, which executes DNA cleavage. Our team identified the first MIF nuclease inhibitor, showing robust neuroprotection in multiple PD models.

The lab has also made pioneering contributions to PD biology. We revealed that parkin is a ubiquitin E3 ligase inactivated by mutations, nitrosylation, or c-Abl phosphorylation, and we identified its key substrates (PARIS/ZNF746, AIMP2, NLRP3). These discoveries drove the development of parkin activators and c-Abl inhibitors, now in clinical trials. We further showed that DJ-1 is a peroxidase protecting mitochondria, and that LRRK2 mutations enhance kinase activity linked to neurodegeneration, leading to the first protective LRRK2 kinase inhibitors. We also identified LAG3 as the receptor for α-synuclein transmission and helped develop NLY01, a GLP-1 receptor agonist currently in clinical testing.

Our current research focuses on:

  • Cell-to-cell transmission of α-synuclein

  • Poly(ADP-ribose) and Parthanatos signaling

  • MIF nuclease in PD, Alzheimer’s, and stroke

  • Adaptive and innate immunity in neurodegeneration

  • cGAS–STING and NLRP3 inflammasome pathways

  • Microglia and neurotoxic astrocytes

  • ZNF746 and related transcriptional regulators of survival

  • Neuronal resilience mechanisms

  • Cryo-EM structural studies of MIF, Thorase, and ZNF746

  • Pathologic α-synuclein strains and mechanisms of toxicity

Together, our discoveries provide fundamental insights into neurodegeneration and open new avenues for disease-modifying therapies.

Our science

POSTDOCTORAL FELLOWS

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    Milton Roy, PhD

    POSTDOCTORAL FELLOW

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    Jie Yuan, PhD

    POSTDOCTORAL FELLOW

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    Marie Merci Nyiramana, PhD

    POSTDOCTORAL FELLOW

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    Manisha Kumari, PhD

    POSTDOCTORAL FELLOW

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    Liu Yang, PhD

    POSTDOCTORAL FELLOW

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    Longfei Li, PhD

    POSTDOCTORAL FELLOW

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    Meilian Liu, PhD

    POSTDOCTORAL FELLOW

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    Seohyun Kim, PhD

    POSTDOCTORAL FELLOW

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    JiYang Song, PhD

    POSTDOCTORAL FELLOW

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    Heejin Jo, MD (D.K.M.) PhD

    POSTDOCTORAL FELLOW

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    Xiaoli Rong, MD, PhD

    POSTDOCTORAL FELLOW

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    Akash Roy, PhD

    POSTDOCTORAL FELLOW

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    Jaejin Song, PhD

    POSTDOCTORAL FELLOW

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    Jisu Shin, PhD

    POSTDOCTORAL FELLOW

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    YuRee Choi, PhD

    POSTDOCTORAL FELLOW

  • Hairong Tang, PhD

    POSTDOCTORAL FELLOW

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    Kenta Shiina, MD, PHD

    POSTDOCTORAL FELLOW

RESEARCH ASSOCIATES

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    Bong Gu Kang, PhD

    RESEARCH ASSOCIATE

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    Hu Wang, PhD

    RESEARCH ASSOCIATE

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    Mohamad Aasif Dar, PhD

    RESEARCH ASSOCIATE

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    Gilbert Chen, MA

    MEDICAL ILLUSTRATOR

LABORATORY STAFF

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    Tri T. Quang, PhD

    LABORATORY MANAGER

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    Fatih Akkentli, MS

    SR. RESEARCH SPECIALIST

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    Rong Chen, PhD

    SR. RESEARCH SPECIALIST

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    Andrew Yancura

    RESEARCH SPECIALIST II

GRADUATE STUDENTS

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    Jackson Mace

    PhD CANDIDATE
    CELLULAR & MOLECULAR MEDICINE

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    Lauren Guttman

    PhD CANDIDATE
    PHARMACOLOGY & MOLECULAR SCIENCES

  • Yuze Guo

    MSE CANDIDATE
    BIOMEDICAL ENGINEERING

ADMINISTRATIVE STAFF

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    Nikia Whorley

    ADMINISTRATIVE MANAGER

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    Jennifer Roshek

    SR ADMINISTRATIVE COORDINATOR

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    Monica Helmbrecht

    SR GRANTS & CONTRACTS ANALYST