Graduate Program in Cell & Developmental Biology

Graduate Program in Cell & Developmental Biology

  • Kara, Eleanna

    • Eleanna Kara
    • Eleanna Kara
    • Assistant Professor
    • Department: Department of Neurology
    • Program(s): Cell and Developmental Biology Graduate Program
    • Rotating Faculty
    • Rutgers University
    • 683 Hoes Lane West, Room 188
    • Piscataway, NJ 08854
    • Key Words: Neurodegeneration, Parkinson’s disease, Alzheimer’s disease, tissue culture, neuropathology, gene expression, genetics, cell biology.
    • Lab Site URL

    The mission of the lab is to follow a network-based approach to understand the pathogenesis of neurodegenerative diseases, with the ultimate aim being to utilize this strategy to develop combination treatments. This strategy distinguishes our lab from a decades-long tradition in the field of zeroing in on specific genes and focusing on the development of monotherapies for the treatment of neurodegenerative diseases. Simultaneously, the lab aspires to remain at the cutting edge in terms of cellular and molecular biology techniques and to advance the neurodegeneration field by developing innovative tools and technologies that we will share with the research community.

    We will be pursuing the following research questions, building on our proven expertise in high throughput screens, genomics, neuropathology and development of genetically encoded fluorescent tools.

    • Follow up studies on the genes identified through our recently published high throughput screen on a-synuclein propagation to identify their mechanism of action.

    • Study the role of and genetic networks underlying selective vulnerability in the pathogenesis of neurodegenerative diseases.

    • Elucidate the pathways that lead to the formation of a-synuclein inclusions.

    • Development of novel genetically encoded tools to study specific disease mechanisms.

    There is emphasis on understanding genetic networks in every project, consistently with the overall mission of the lab; therefore, all projects incorporate one or more of high throughput screens or -omics at either the discovery phase or to dissect the function and interactors of a specific target.

     We are currently using mammalian cell lines (including stable cell lines), induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSc) and human brain tissue. In the future, and as our research program advances, we will expand our toolkit to also include mouse work.

    We are mainly interested in Parkinson’s disease, but we also have projects on Alzheimer’s disease and Multiple System Atrophy.

    Techniques: Standard cell and molecular biology techniques, flow cytometry, microscopy (standard imaging and FRET, FLIM, FRAP), iPSc, high throughput genetic and chemical screens, single cell and spatial transcriptomics, proteomics, lipidomics, genomics, optogenetics, histology.

    Publications

     

  • Kaur, Tejbeer

    • Tejbeer Kaur
    • Tejbeer Kaur
    • Assistant Professor
    • Department: Department of Otolaryngology
    • Program(s): Cell and Developmental Biology Graduate Program
    • Rotating Faculty
    • Phone: 1.7322357311
    • Rutgers University
    • Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson Medical School
    • Brain Health Institute
    • Piscataway, NJ 08854
    • Key Words: Auditory system, Neuroimmunology of hearing and hearing loss, Neurodegeneration, Ototoxicity, Macrophages

    In the Kaur Lab, the research broadly aims to understand the complex biology and interactions of immune cells and their effector molecules with the sensory cells of the inner ear and how these interactions influence hearing, hearing loss and sensory cell development, degeneration, repair

  • Kiledjian, Megerditch (Mike)

    • Megerditch (Mike) Kiledjian
    • Megerditch (Mike) Kiledjian
    • Professor
    • Department: Dept Chair, Department of Cell Biology & Neuroscience
    • Phone: 1.8484453306
    • Chair of Department
    • Rutgers University
    • Nelson Biology Labs, Room B211
    • Piscataway, NJ 08854
    • Key Words: RNA Decay in the regulation of Gene Expression and Genetic Disorders
    • Lab Site URL
  • Kim, Isaac

    • Isaac Kim
    • Isaac Kim
    • Professor
    • Department: Department of Surgery/Division of Urology
    • Phone: 1.7322352043
    • Robert Wood Johnson Medical School
    • The Cancer Institute of New Jersey, Room 4535
    • 195 Little Albany Street
    • New Brunswick, N.J. 08901
    • Key Words: Roles of transforming growth factor- β and bone morphongenetic proteins in prostate cancer cells
  • Kim, Yong

    • Yong Kim
    • Yong Kim
    • Associate Professor
    • Department: Department of Neurosurgery
    • Phone: 1.7322356425
    • Robert Wood Johnson Medical School, N101
    • Staged Research Bldg
    • 661 Hoes Lane West
    • Piscataway, NJ 08854
    • Key Words: Brain injury, Depression, Antidepressants, Alzheimer’s disease, Molecular and cellular basis of comorbidities, neuroinflammation
    • Lab Site URL
  • Kim, Yoon-Seong

    • Yoon-Seong Kim
    • Yoon-Seong Kim
    • Associate Professor
    • Department: Department of Neurology
    • Program(s): Cell and Developmental Biology Graduate Program
    • Phone: 1.732236499
    • Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson Medical School
    • Institute for Neurological Therapeutics
    • School of Public Health, 683 Hoes Lane
    • Piscataway, NJ 08854
    • Key Words: Oxidative stress-mediated neuronal death mechanism underlying Parkinson’s disease and Alzheimer disease
    • Lab Site URL
  • Kohn, Joachim B

    • Joachim B. Kohn
    • Joachim B. Kohn
    • Board of Governors Professor
    • Department: Department of Chemistry
    • Phone: 1.8484450488
    • Rutgers University
    • Wright Laboratories
    • 610 Taylor Rd
    • Piscataway, NJ 08854-0939
    • Key Words: Biocompatibility of medical implant materials, artificial biopolymers
    • Lab Site URL
    • News Items: Rutgers Receives $4 Million as New Hub
  • Kong, Tony Ah-Ng

    • Ah-Ng Tony Kong
    • Ah-Ng Tony Kong
    • Distinguished Professor
    • Department: Department of Pharmaceutics
    • Phone: 1.8484456369
    • Director of Graduate Program in Pharmaceutical Science
    • Glaxo Professor of Pharmaceutics
    • Rutgers University
    • Ernest Mario School of Pharmacy, Room 228
    • Piscataway, NJ 08854
    • Key Words: Mitochondrial metabolism, epigenetics/epigenomics; NRF2-mediated redox signaling; Cancer preventive dietary phytochemicals; pharmacokinetics (PK)/pharmacodynamics (PD)
  • Kreimer, Anat

    • Anat Kreimer
    • Anat Kreimer
    • Assistant Professor
    • Department: Department of Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
    • Robert Wood Johnson Medical School
    • CABM
    • 679 Hoes Lane
    • Piscataway, NJ 08854
    • Key Words: Computational Biology, Gene regulation, Functional genomics, Neural development, Human variation
  • Kwan, Kelvin

  • Lam, Eric

  • Langer, Jerome A

    • Jerome A. Langer
    • Jerome A. Langer
    • Associate Professor
    • Department: Department of Pharmacology
    • Phone: 1.7322355224
    • Robert Wood Johnson Medical School
    • Research Tower, Rm 729
    • Piscataway, NJ 08854
    • Key Words: Structure and function of interferons and interferon receptors; development of Type I IFN antagonists; role of IFNs in autoimmune diseases such as lupus
  • Laskin, Debra L

    • Debra L. Laskin
    • Debra L. Laskin
    • Distinguished Professor
    • Department: Department of Toxicology
    • Phone: 1.8484455862
    • Roy A Bowers Endowed Chair
    • Ernest Mario School of Pharmacy
    • Busch Campus
    • Piscataway, NJ 08854
    • Key Words: Immunology, macrophages, nitric oxide, inflammation
  • Li, Shaohua

    • Shaohua Li
    • Shaohua Li
    • Associate Professor
    • Department: Department of Surgery
    • Phone: 1.7322356164
    • Robert Wood Johnson Medical School
    • Medical Education Building, Room 687
    • 125 Patterson Street
    • New Brunswick, NJ 08854
    • Key Words: Regulation of insulin secretion and action by vesicle trafficking in obesity and type 2 diabetes, PTEN regulation of epithelial-mesenchymal transition and cancer stem cells.
  • Libutti, Steven K

  • Liu, Alice Y.-C.

    • Alice Y.-C. Liu
    • Alice Y.-C. Liu
    • Professor
    • Department: Department of Cell Biology & Neuroscience
    • Phone: 1.8484452730
    • Rutgers University
    • Nelson Labs Room B303
    • Piscataway, NJ 08854
    • Key Words: Harnessing HSF1 for protein mis-folding diseases
  • Liu, Fang

    • Fang Liu
    • Fang Liu
    • Associate Professor
    • Department: Department of Chemical Biology
    • Phone: 1.8484459783
    • Rutgers University
    • CABM
    • 679 Hoes Lane
    • Piscataway, NJ 08854
    • Key Words: Signal transduction and gene regulation, growth and differentiation control
  • Liu, Tina

    • Tina Lui
    • Tina Liu
    • Assistant Professor
    • Department: Department of Molecular Biology and Biochemistry
    • Program(s): Biochemistry Graduate Program, Cell and Developmental Biology Graduate Program, Microbiology and Molecular Genetics Graduate Program
    • Major Research Interest(s): Biochemistry
    • Rotating Faculty
    • Phone: 1.8484459863
    • Center for Advanced Biotechnology & Medicine
    • 679 Hoes Lane West, Room 304
    • Piscataway, NJ 08854
    • Key Words: Microbial defense pathways, CRISPR-Cas systems, nucleotide signaling, nucleic acid detection, diagnostics, biochemistry, molecular biology, biotechnology
    • Lab Site URL
  • Lyu, Yang

    • Yang Lyu
    • Yang Lyu
    • Assistant Professor
    • Department: Department of Molecular Biology & Biochemistry
    • Phone: 1.8484453979
    • Rutgers University
    • Nelson Lab, Room A307A
    • 604 Allison Road
    • Piscataway, NJ 08855-8082
    • Key Words: brain state, aging, neurodegeneration, homeostatic control
    • Lab Site URL
  • Manzini, M. Chiara

    • M. Chiara Manzini
    • M. Chiara Manzini
    • Associate Professor
    • Department: Department of Neuroscience & Cell Biology
    • Program(s): Biochemistry Graduate Program, Cell and Developmental Biology Graduate Program
    • Phone: 1.7322353245
    • Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson Medical School
    • The Child Health Institute of NJ, Room 3274
    • 89 French Street
    • New Brunswick, NJ 08901
    • Key Words: Autism spectrum disorders, intellectual disability, cognition, intracellular signaling, human genetics
    • Lab Site URL