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Neurobiology of Disease

The Neurobiology of Disease Ph.D. program at Mayo is a transdepartmental training program that unites approximately 60 basic neuroscientists and clinician-scientists as faculty. Members of our training faculty have wide-ranging expertise and truly multidisciplinary research interests.

A sample of the ongoing research in our program includes:

  • advanced techniques to non-invasively visualize the central nervous system
  • antiviral immunity in the central nervous system
  • application of novel bioscaffolding materials to spinal cord repair and regeneration
  • biophysical properties of amyloid fibrils in Alzheimer disease
  • calcium pump defects in hereditary deafness
  • cell biology of neuron function in the enteric nervous system
  • drug development in schizophrenia and depression
  • dysfunctional neuronal lipid storage and processing in Niemann Pick type C disease
  • dysregulation of small GTPases and axonal trafficking in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis
  • dysregulation of Sonic hedgehog signaling in CNS tumor formation
  • genetic basis of demyelination and remyelination in multiple sclerosis
  • genetic suppression of neuronal hyperexcitabilty and epilepsy
  • high-resolution nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy of neural systems
  • immune-mediated axonal injury in the demyelinated CNS
  • immunogenetics of experimental autoimmune encephalitis
  • inflammatory basis of seizure induction during viral encephalitis
  • magnetic resonance imaging and spectroscopy in small animal models of neural injury
  • mechanisms of respiratory control
  • mechanisms underlying axon guidance and regeneration
  • mitochondrial dysfunction in Freidreich ataxia
  • modulation of adenosine transporters to control alcohol addiction
  • molecular mechanisms of paraneoplastic autoimmunity against CNS antigens
  • molecular mechanisms of sleep dysregulation
  • neurogenetics of brain tumors
  • neurogenetics of movement disorders
  • neuropathologic basis of neurodegenerative diseases such as Parkinson disease
  • neurotransmitter receptor structure:function analysis
  • neurotrophin-mediated modulation of neuromuscular transmission
  • noninvasive imaging of the CNS via magnetic resonance elastography
  • novel imaging tools for the detection of plaques in Alzheimer disease
  • pharmacogenetics of neurotransmitter modulating drugs
  • proteolytic cascades in multiple sclerosis and spinal cord injury pathogenesis and repair
  • rational design of cocaine-hydrolyzing cholinesterases
  • receptor trafficking and internalization in neurons
  • small molecule library screening for Alzheimer disease drug leads
  • therapeutic strategies to promote remyelination in multiple sclerosis
  • ART176544