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1st appeared
14
November
2000
Gladstone Neuroscientist Appointed to Honored Professorship
Mucke, director of the Gladstone Institute of Neurological Disease at the UCSF-affiliated San Francisco General Hospital Medical Center, and UCSF professor of neurology, is a leader in the study of the molecular basis of neurodegenerative diseases, including Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s disease, and AIDS dementia. His current studies involve the development and analysis of mouse models of these diseases, which are providing new insights into how the diseases develop and new ways for testing drugs aimed at preventing and treating them. Joseph B. Martin, MD, PhD, is a distinguished neurologist and neuroscientist who was instrumental in propelling the basic and biomedical sciences at UCSF to international recognition and excellence. He served as the Chancellor of UCSF from 1993 to 1997 after his tenure as Dean of the UCSF School of Medicine from 1989–1993. Martin currently is Dean of the Harvard University Faculty of Medicine. "It is a great personal honor to know that Dr. Mucke, a brilliant scientist and my colleague and friend, will hold this chair. I wish to congratulate him on his accomplishments and couldn't be happier with the decision," says Martin. "Dr. Mucke represents the finest ideals of a clinician researcher," says Stephen L. Hauser, MD, UCSF Betty Anker Fife Professor of Neurology and chair of the UCSF Department of Neurology. "He has established an international reputation as one of the leading researchers in the field of Alzheimer’s disease and AIDS dementia, while shaping the Gladstone Laboratories into one of the premier institutes in the world for investigating the molecular neurobiology of degenerative diseases." "Moreover, Dr. Mucke has been pivotal in the development of new programs for research and education. He is a superb clinician, educator and role model, and his aspiration for excellence and work ethic garner steady praise from peers and students. He balances his enormous responsibilities with dignity and grace." Mucke was recruited to UCSF in 1996 by the Gladstone Institutes and the UCSF Department of Neurology to establish the Gladstone Molecular Neurobiology Program at San Francisco General Hospital Medical Center. The rapid progress made by this program resulted in the establishment of the Gladstone Institute of Neurological Disease, which Mucke has directed since its inauguration in 1998. Research at this Institute is directed at understanding the biological mechanisms of Alzheimer’s disease and other major diseases of the central nervous system. It is one of three institutes that make up the J. David Gladstone Institutes, a private biomedical research institution affiliated with UCSF. Mucke recently led a team that created the first mouse model genetically programmed to simulate motor deficits and brain alterations found in Parkinson’s disease and related disorders. Earlier this year, the researchers reported in the journal Science that mice bred to express a human protein called alpha-synuclein in the brain develop protein deposits in specific brain cells associated with Parkinson's disease, and also have impaired motor function. This mouse model will be useful in the development and testing of new drugs to treat Parkinson’s disease and related disorders. Parkinson’s disease results from the degeneration of specific brain cells that regulate the activity of other brain cells by releasing a chemical called dopamine. In another study, Mucke and his team showed that the natural brain protein apolipoprotein E3 (apoE3) prevents memory problems associated with Alzheimer’s disease. Links: Gladstone Institute of Neurological Disease Mouse Model Mimics Parkinson’s and Related Diseases Brain Protein Inhibits Alzheimer’s Memory Source: Jennifer O'Brien, News Services |
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Lennart
Mucke, who is internationally known for his studies of neurodegenerative
diseases, has been named the first Joseph B. Martin Distinguished Professor
of Neuroscience, a position established in honor of the former UCSF
Chancellor.