معرفی
Roles & Affiliations: Professor of Pharmacology & Toxicology at the University of Kansas School of Pharmacy. Director of the Zhao Lab and the 'Beyond the Lab' career development program. Previously held roles at the University of Southern California, including Research Assistant/Associate Professor and Director of Translational Research Laboratories.
Education: PhD in Pharmaceutical Sciences (Shenyang Pharmaceutical University, 1999), Postdoctoral Fellowship at the Beijing Institute of Pharmacology and Toxicology (2002), Research Scientist at USC (2006).
Research Interests: Focuses on neurodegenerative mechanisms in Alzheimer’s disease (sAD), particularly sex/gender influences and genetic factors (ApoE, clusterin). Explores brain metabolism, lipidomics, and glycometabolism to identify neuroprotective pathways. Uses rodent models, human iPSC-derived neurons, and omics technologies (proteomics, metabolomics).
Lab Activities: Investigates ApoE isoform effects on brain resilience, mitochondrial function, and clusterin regulation. Develops therapies targeting ApoE2-mediated mechanisms. Current projects include NIH-funded studies on lipidome reprogramming and ApoE4 interventions.
Grants & Awards: Continuous NIH funding. Recognized in media such as USC News, JAMA, and Nature Medicine. Patent holder for phytoestrogenic formulations (US 8552057, 8680140).
Teaching: Teaches pharmacology in Pharm.D. and graduate programs. Leads courses on nervous system pharmacology and research methods.
Labs/Teams: Zhao Lab conducts interdisciplinary research with collaborative networks in pharmacology, neuroscience, and biochemistry. Hosts graduate students, postdocs, and visiting researchers in translational neuroscience and drug discovery.
