Zheng Wu, PhD

JAD profile

Affiliation(s): 

The Penn State University

Areas of Interest: 

Alzheimer's disease; neurodegeneration; neuroprotection; brain repair; environmental enrichment; neuronal morphology; Electrophysiology; pharmacological agents; animal models; animal behavioural testing.

Biography & Research: 

GABA (gamma-aminobutyric acid) is the principal inhibitory neurotransmitter in the brain and activate the GABAA receptors to exert its inhibitory function. It have been found that dysregulation in GABAergic system is involved in several neurological disorders, such as Epilepsy, Autism and Schizophrenia. Recently, we and others found that dysregulation of GABAergic system was involved in Alzheimer’s disease as well. The major goal of my study is to investigate the dysregulation of GABAergic transmission in neurologic disorders and develop an appropriate strategy to correct the dysregulation of GABAergic transmission for neurological disease treatment. In addition, the in vivo reprogramming (glia convert to functional neurons) for neurodegenerative disease therapy is another focus of my research. This is a novel technology developed by our Lab, via using the single transcriptional factor NeuoD1 to convert the reactive astrocyte into functional neurons in the mice brain. In vivo reprogramming is a powerful and novel strategy for neurodegenerative disease treatment, which is absolutely different with current therapeutic strategies.