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Andrew West, PhD
Andrew West, PhD
Principal Investigator
Principal Investigator
Andrew West, PhD, is a tenured professor in the Department of Pharmacology and Cancer Biology at Duke University with secondary appointments in Neurology and Neurobiology. Dr. West received his graduate and post-doctoral training at the Mayo Clinic, University of California, Los Angeles and Johns Hopkins Udall Centers of Parkinson's Disease Research Excellence. Dr. West studies novel pathways and targets in neurodegenerative diseases with the goal of translating discoveries to successful neuroprotective treatment strategies in the clinic.
Tuyana Malankhanova, PhD
Tuyana Malankhanova, PhD
Postdoctoral Fellow
Postdoctoral Fellow
Tuyana is a classically trained cell biologist who is working on developing a better understanding of LRRK2 signaling in macrophages. If you have questions about iPSCs, GTPases, or Rock Climbing, she is the one to go and see!
Beilei Lei, MD, PhD
Beilei Lei, MD, PhD
Postdoctoral Fellow
Postdoctoral Fellow
Beilei has extensive expertise in utilizing animal and cellular models to study brain health. Her diverse research spans evaluating therapeutic interventions for acute brain injuries to mapping the complex gut-brain circuits driving PD pathology.
Weiping Wang, PhD
Weiping Wang, PhD
Postdoctoral Fellow
Postdoctoral Fellow
Weiping is a molecular neuroscientist investigating how lysosomal stress impacts LRRK2 pathways that drive neurodegeneration. She is an expert in designing high-sensitivity kinase assays and tackling deep-dive data analysis for complex biochemical mechanisms.
Kiwoon Sung, PhD
Kiwoon Sung, PhD
Postdoctoral Fellow
Postdoctoral Fellow
Kiwoon specializes in developing advanced assays and targeted protein degradation strategies using in vitro models to combat neurodegenerative diseases. His research focuses on decoding alpha-synuclein conformational diversity and validating novel biomarkers to evaluate therapeutic targets in Parkinson's disease.
Elizabeth Viverette
Elizabeth Viverette
Pharmacology Graduate student
Pharmacology Graduate student
Elizabeth joins our team with substantia expertise in protein structure and CryoEM methods. She will be working on a better understanding of nanoplastic exposures on neurodegeneration diseases, mechanisms and risks.
Johann Valera-Vega
Johann Valera-Vega
Toxicology Graduate Student
Toxicology Graduate Student
Johann investigates the intersections between environmental toxicology and neurodegenerative disorders through cellular and structural models to evaluate how environmental pollutants, such as PFAS chemicals, influence alpha-synuclein pathology and neurophysiology to influence Parkinson's disease progression.
Sunny Wang
Sunny Wang
Post-Baccalaureate Fellow
Post-Baccalaureate Fellow
Sunny utilizes in vivo mouse models alongside biochemical techniques to investigate the underlying mechanisms of neurodegeneration. He brings valuable expertise to the lab through his precision in handling, dosing, and analyzing experimental murine models to better understand the progression and cellular drivers of PD.
Our amazing undergraduate researchers!
Suraj Chatoth
Anna Drozman
Sadhana Tanksali
Steven Mao
Jaxsen Scott
Fiona Xu
Leyla Urmanova
Shihyun Kim
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