Principle Investigator
Jianhua Zhang, PhD is Professor in the Department of Pathology. Dr. Zhang came to the US via a CUSPEA program, received her PhD with Dr. Joseph Sambrook at UT Southwestern studying molecular cloning and cellular retinoic acid binding protein structure/function relationships. Then she continued her interest in structure-activity relationships in protein function and worked with Dr. Rick Young in the Whitehead Institute on the genetics of RNA polymerase holoenzyme and coactivator functions. Realizing the potential of genetic manipulation of animal models to address interesting biological questions as a junior faculty at the Univ of Cincinnati, Dr. Zhang developed the expertise to create and characterize genetically engineered mouse models in the context of neuroscience research. These included (i) dopamine receptors, (ii) immediate early gene transcription factor c-fos, and (iii) DNA fragmentation factors in neuroplasticity and apoptosis. After moving to UAB, Dr. Zhang began her studies of the autophagy-lysosomal pathway which was then emerging as an important player in in neuronal function and survival. She is currently core director in Nathan Shock Center focusing on comparative biology of energetics in aging. She is also Chief Editor in Frontier in Aging, Metabolism and Redox Biology, a member in Women in Autophagy, and serves as VP Finance in Society of Redox Biology and Medicine.
Current Members
Post-docs and Researchers
Xiaosen Ouyang, MD (Researcher since 2010): Xiaosen is studying the role of autophagy regulation and neurodegeneration in mouse knock-out and knock-in models. She had 8 years of postdoc experience in pathology and oxidative stress field, and published 16 papers prior to joining the Zhang lab. She is essential for all lab management and assisting everybody in research techniques and has contributed as first or co-author in 27 research articles in the Zhang lab, and won a Pathology Trainee Research award for a poster presentation.
Josh Kramer (postdoc from 8/2022) has obtained his PhD in Biology of Aging on inflammatory damage response in the retina in USC. He will be studying the effect of O-GlcNAcylation on microglia function in the context of Alzheimer’s disease.
Alumni
2007-2012 Donna Crabtree (Integrative Biological Sciences, UAB) studied a mouse model of lysosomal deficiency in pathogenesis of Parkinson’s disease and validation of strategies to enhance lysosomal activities using adeno-associated virus and lenti-virus to attenuate neurodegeneration in α-synuclein and MPTP/MPP+ based cell and animal models. She hadtotal of 4 papers, 3 as first author. She gave several presentations in national conferences and university-wide retreats and research day symposiums, won 1) a UAB graduate research presentation third place prize in 2012, 2) Department of Pathology and 3) UAB graduate student travel awards to present in Experimental Biology conference in 2012, and defended her PhD thesis June 25, 2012. She started her postdoc position on pediatric cancer with Dr. Becher at Duke University in August 2012. In 2016 she took a position where she acts as the liaison for clinical trials at Duke, and recently became Associate Project Director at Allucent.
2008-2012 Lonnie Schneider (Integrative Biological Sciences, UAB) studied molecular and cellular mechanisms of general and selective macroautophagy in decreasing the accumulation of damaged proteins and organelles, in the contexts of Parkinson’s and Huntington’s disease using cell lines, primary neurons, and mouse models. He published total of 5 papers, 2 as first author. He gave well-received lectures in the Autophagy course for which I have been a course master. He won 1) a Department of Pathology and 2) a Center for Free Radical Biology travel award to present in Society for Free Radical Biology and Medicine conference in 2011. He defended his PhD thesis May 25, 2012, joined Dr. Manisha Patel (U of Colorado)’s laboratory as a postdoc working on epilepsy in June 2012, and joined Candace Floyd’s laboratory (UAB) for a second postdoc working on traumatic brain injury in July 2013. He became a tenure-track assistant professor in the School of Medicine, Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation Department at UAB in November 2016, and moved to Univ Utah 2017 as an Assistant Professor, now Facutly in Emory.
2010-2014 Samantha Giordano (Integrative Biological Sciences, UAB) worked on neurotoxin rotenone-induced mitochondrial dysfunctions and cell death; and the protective role of autophagy. In the Zhang lab, she has published total of 6 papers, 5 as first author. She received travel awards from 1) the Department of Pathology, 2) UAB graduate school, 3) Center for Free Radical Biology, and 4) Society for Free Radical Biology and Medicine, to present in Society for Free Radical Biology and Medicine conference in 2010, 2011, 2012, and 2013. She also won a Graduate School retreat poster presentation 2nd place award. She was also trained in giving lectures to graduate students, and reviewing manuscripts. She joined UAB Vascular Biology as a postdoc, and was awarded a T32 postdoctoral fellowship on hypertension in May 2014. She became a tenure track assistant professor in School of Health Professions, UAB in July 2017.
2011-2015 Matthew B Dodson (Cell, Molecular and Developmental Biology, UAB) is studying the signaling pathways between autophagy, oxidative stress and glycolytic activities. He won a Department of Pathology and a Center for Free Radical Biology travel awards to present in Society for Free Radical Biology and Medicine conference in 2011, 2012, and 2013. He received 1) a poster presentation award in Center for Aging conference at UAB, and 2) a young investigator award in Society for Free Radical Biology and Medicine conference in 2012. He has published total of 9 papers 4 as first author. He has also been trained in giving lectures to graduate students, and reviewing manuscripts. He was also recognized as the recipient of the Department of Cell, Developmental, and Integrative Biology Outstanding Student Award for 2015. He joined the University of Arizona Toxicology program as a postdoc, and was awarded a T32 postdoctoral fellowship in June 2015, and promoted as Research Assistant Professor 2021, and will be a tenure track faculty in Cincinnati 2024.
2013-2017 Matthew Redmann (Cell, Molecular and Developmental Biology, UAB) joined my lab 2013 to study effects of oxidative stress and antioxidants in regulation of autophagy in aging and degenerative diseases. He won 1) a Department of Pathology and 2) a Center for Free Radical Biology travel awards to present in Society for Free Radical Biology and Medicine conference in 2013 and 2014. He has published total of 12, 5 as first author. He defended his thesis January 2017 and then took a job as Head of Business Development and Senior Scientist in DiscoveryBioMed with Dr. Erik Schwiebert, and recently became the Medical Science Liaison at UCB.
Van was interested in using molecular biology and biochemistry to understand pathology of human diseases that affect multiple organs such as metabolic diseases. Van completed her Master’s and Bachelor’s degrees from Vietnam National University Ho Chi Minh City – University of Science and joined the University of Alabama at Birmingham’s Graduate Biomedical Sciences program in 2020. She has been in the lab for slightly over a year (2021-2022) and published 2 first author research articles. She is currently in school of medicine to pursue her PhD.
Toni Mueller, PhD (Researcher 03/2020-08/2022). She was a UAB SPIN student in Dr. Zhang lab, then obtained a PhD from UAB neuroscience with Dr. James Meador-Woodruff on glycosylation in Schizophrenia. In Zhang lab, she worked on stereological assessment of neurodegeneration, regulation and functional consequences of protein O-GlcNAcylation in human and mouse samples. She is currently working in Agilent.
2014-2017 Willayat Wani received his PhD June 2013 from Postgraduate Institute of Medical Education and Research (PGIMER), Chandigarh, India. He worked on cloning of an enantioselective lipase from Bacillus subtilis, role of PARP1 activation in organophophate-induced neuronal cell death and its protection by PJ34 (a PARP1 inhibitor) in PC12 cells, as well as role of microglial activation in organophosphate and aluminium-induced cell death in rat models and the effect of TEMPOL, Quercetin and MitoQ in neuroprotection. He has published 15 papers, 2 as first author in Neuropharmacology and Neuroscience. In Zhang lab, he has published 9 papers with as 3 first author. He then joined Dr. Joe Mazzulli’s lab in Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine Department of Neurology to work on iPSCs as a model of Parkinson’s disease.
Helen Collins (50% effort for ~9 months) had a PhD from University of Leicester in 2011, and a postdoc with Dr. Chatham 2012-2018. She has training in cardiovascular biology, calcium signaling and had 10 peer reviewed publications. She had multiple postdoctoral fellowships from American Diabetes Association, American Heart Association, and William Featheringill UAB comprehensive cardiovascular center, as well as a pilot grant from Nathan Shock Center. She was working on mitophagy in circadian regulation and heart disease. She is currently an Assistant Professor at the University of Louisville and recently obtained her first R01. Congratulations!!! Well Done!!!
Yecheng He (PhD, Visiting Scholar): Yecheng had a PhD from Nanjing University, and had experience in neurophysiology and published 4 peer reviewed manuscript (1 as first author). He worked in my laboratory for 1 year, focusing on α-synuclein fibril spread in mouse brains and toxicity, impact of lysosomal enhancement strategies on pathology. He is currently a lecturer in Suzhou Vocational Health College.
Mariame Selma Kane, PhD (postdoc jointly trained with Dr. Martin Young in Dept Medicine 03/2019-05/2022): Mariame had a PhD from University of Angers, France in 2016, then performed teaching and research in the same institute till August 2018. She has training in mitochondrial medicine, mitochondrial dynamics, mitophagy and published 2 first author and 7 co-authored peer reviewed publications and recently submitted 3 more first authored publications while she moved back to the US. She has been recruited to UAB and received T32 hypertension training grant. She is working on mitophagy in circadian regulation and heart disease. She won poster presentation second prize in Nathan Shock Center 2019 symposium and has a second author research article published. She is currently a research coordinator in Vista Pharmaceuticals.
Gerardo Hernandez-Moreno, BS UAB (Researcher): Gerardo worked for 1 year on mitophagy and mitochondrial function in circadian clock – O-GlcNAc – diabetes heard disease. He then graduated with a PhD in UAB Biomedical Engineering, and is currently working in SRI.
Jason Craver (Researcher): Jason worked for 1 year on autophagy and mitochondrial protein levels in a variety of cell culture, animal and human samples from the blood, liver, lung, heart, and brain. He co-authored a review article and is in other manuscripts in preparation. He has contributed as a co-author in 1 published review article, 1 research article, (1 more submitted) and also won a poster presentation award at the 2018 Pathology Trainee Research Day. He is now a medical student (Doctor of Osteopathy) in VCOM Auburn Campus Class of 2023.
Edie A Osuma, BS (Researcher 01/2020-01/2022) previously worked on planetarian bioenergetics in undergraduate research and published a first authored research article. She currently works on circadian regulation of mitophagy in the heart. She enjoys gardening and is currently in Baylor medical school.
Parker Jeffrey, BS (Researcher 09/2019-9/2021) has been working on using microscopy to study alpha-synuclein aggregation in a fibril model of Parkinson’s disease. He then joined a master program in UAB, and currently in UAB VA.
Banner image courtesy of Molecular Brain: doi: 10.1186/1756-6606-1-17
