A neuropathologist, Dr. Li uses mouse models to study the molecular mechanisms behind (and test therapeutic strategies for) neurodegenerative disorders such as Alzheimer’s disease, schizophrenia, and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS).Recently, his laboratory has developed a mouse model in which wild-type tau is converted to pathological tau in a neuritic plaque-dependent manner. His study offers novel mechanistic insight for the pathogenesis of Alzheimer's disease.In his work with the Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) Research Center, Dr. Li also is partnering with colleagues to create tau and TDP-43 transgenic mice. The goal is to better understand the genetic susceptibility to TBI, particularly chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE).Dr. Li earned his B.A. at Jilin University in China and received his Ph.D. from the Shanghai Institute of Biochemistry.