Biography & Research:
Dr. Lazarov is a Professor of Neuroscience in the Department of Anatomy and Cell Biology at the University of Illinois at Chicago. Dr. Lazarov’s research focuses on the examination of molecular and cellular mechanisms of neurodegeneration in mouse models of familial Alzheimer’s disease (FAD) and in human tissue of individuals exhibiting mild cognitive impairments and Alzheimer’s disease. Her research focuses on the role of neurogenesis in hippocampal plasticity in aging- and Alzheimer’s disease-linked cognitive deterioration. Dr. Lazarov is a pioneer in the field of neurogenesis in neurodegenerative diseases. She was one the first to show that hippocampal neurogenesis is defective in FAD mice and may contribute to cognitive deficits characterizing the disease. She is also the first to suggest that neuronal vulnerability and dysfunction in Familial Alzheimer’s disease starts during brain development and is affected by impaired adult neurogenesis post-natally.