Mitochondrial superoxide production in kainic acid-induced Hippocampal Damage. Li QY, Pedersen C, Day BJ and Patel M . Dependence of excitotoxic neurodegeneration on mitochondrial aconitase inactivation J. Neurochem . For a list of all publications since 1986, click here. The central goal of our research is to understand the mechanisms by which reactive species mediate neurodegeneration.
Research is focussed on two major areas.
The first is to identify the mechanisms by which superoxide radicals contribute to neuronal death associated with neuronal disorders such as seizures, stroke, Alzheimer's and Parkinson's disease. The second is to develop pharmacological strategies to scavenge reactive species with catalytic antioxidants based on concepts such as catalytic properties, electrostatic charges, redox potentials and biological targets of oxidant injury. The following questions currently drive the research in our laboratory. We combine animal and tissue culture models to understand the cellular and molecular basis of neurodegeneration. We utilize biochemical, mass spectrometric and HPLC techniques to measure superoxide formation, oxidized lipids and oxidized DNA adducts in animal models of epilepsy and stroke.