Rocco Gogliotti

Rocco Gogliotti, PhD, is an Assistant Professor and Vice Chair of Molecular Pharmacology & Neuroscience at Loyola University Chicago’s Stritch School of Medicine. His research focuses on overcoming translational barriers in neuroscience drug discovery, particularly for autism and autism-associated disorders like Rett syndrome (RTT). He leads the Gogliotti Lab, which integrates pharmacology, genomics, and neuroscience to identify clinically relevant drug targets using human autopsy samples.

Key research areas include:

• Precision Medicine: Analyzing RTT patient subpopulations based on MeCP2 mutation effects on gene expression.
• Muscarinic Acetylcholine Receptors (mAChRs): Developing mAChR-targeted therapies for RTT and related neurodevelopmental disorders.
• Convergent Signaling Pathways: Investigating shared mechanisms between MeCP2-mutation-positive and -negative RTT cases.

Publications emphasize translational research, including preclinical validation of mAChR allosteric modulators and RNA sequencing-based target discovery. He received Loyola’s 2021 Junior Scientist of the Year Award for his contributions to neurotherapeutic innovation. The lab collaborates extensively with industry and academic partners to advance clinical trials for neurodevelopmental disorders.