معرفی
Alessandro Didonna serves as Assistant Professor in the Department of Anatomy & Cell Biology at East Carolina University's Brody School of Medicine. His research program bridges neuroimmunology and neurodegeneration, with primary appointment in the medical school and active collaborations across multiple institutions.
Dr. Didonna's research focuses on elucidating mechanisms of central nervous system autoimmunity, particularly in multiple sclerosis (MS) and its animal model EAE. His lab investigates how immune responses contribute to neurodegenerative processes in conditions once considered purely neurodegenerative, such as Alzheimer's and Parkinson's diseases. Current work examines inflammatory stress in protein misfolding and the role of peripheral/CNS immune cells in disease susceptibility. The lab employs in vivo neuroinflammation models, next-generation sequencing, mass spectrometry proteomics, and advanced genetic manipulation techniques in mice.
Recent publications (2022-2024) reveal critical insights into lipid metabolism dysregulation during neuroinflammation, hypothalamic transcriptome alterations, epigenetic control of ataxin-1, and sex-specific tau methylation patterns. These studies demonstrate the lab's focus on molecular mechanisms connecting immune dysfunction to neurodegeneration.
Dr. Didonna currently holds three major grants:
- Department of Defense: 'Multiple Sclerosis as a noncanonical tauopathy' (2022-2025)
- National Institutes of Health: 'Development of a conditional ataxin-1 knockout mouse line' (2023-2025)
- North Carolina State University: 'Exploring the interplay between phthalate exposure and autoimmune demyelination' (2024-2025)
He supervises five students (three graduate students, one medical student, two undergraduates) and maintains active collaborations with former institutions. The Didonna Lab provides comprehensive training in neuroimmunological techniques and fosters collaborative research environments through regular group meetings and interdisciplinary project integration.
