Chris Gamblin, PhD

Professor

The Gamblin laboratory studies the mechanisms that lead to the polymerization of the microtubule-associated protein tau. Tau is a protein that is important in neuronal function, but can misfold and aggregate into pathological structures that accumulate in neurodegenerative disorders such as Alzheimer's disease. The main approach of the Gamblin lab is to use a variety of small molecules to induce the aggregation of a wide array of biological variants of the tau protein to identify conditions to produce disease-relevant strains of tau in vitro for further characterization. We use these approaches to better understand the effects of modifications of tau found in disease on tau aggregation; to identify potential therapeutics to slow, stop, or reverse tau aggregation; and to identify other biological factors that may influence tau aggregation in disease.

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