EDITORIAL-DETAILS (JNND)
Dongming Cai
Assistant Professor
Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai
United States
Biography
Dr. Cai joined Mount Sinai in July 2010, where she continues to advance our understanding of the workings of the central nervous system and the processes involved in defining disease mechanisms. Prior to coming to Mount Sinai, Dr. Cai was trained by many prestigious basic research scientists. She obtained her PhD in Neuroscience in the laboratory of Dr. Marie Filbin at Hunter College of The City University of New York, where she studied the roles of cyclic AMP in blocking myelin-derived inhibitors of axonal regeneration in animal models of spinal cord injury. Subsequently, Dr. Cai completed postdoctoral training mentored by Nobel Laureate Dr. Paul Greengard at The Rockefeller University in New York where she conducted research on Alzheimer’s disease focusing on the regulation of βAPP processing and trafficking and the impact of these processes on neuronal function. Besides basic research training, Dr. Cai further obtained clinical expertise in neurology and expanded her exposure to translational research during residency training at Yale Neurology Department. Dr Cai has been remarkably productive in terms of scientific publications and awards. She was firstauthor on many papers of high profile journals including Neuron, Journal of Neuroscience, and Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. She successfully obtained research funds including from the NIH, Alzheimer’s Association and VA Medical System.
Research Interest
Dr Cai’s laboratory conducts research studies focusing on the pathogenesis of Alzheimer’s Disease. Our prior research studies have demonstrated the regulation of βAPP processing and trafficking by cytosolic factors, as well as their impacts on neuronal functions. The laboratory is currently studying the regulation of membrane lipid composition, metabolism and its effects on endocytosis of Alzheimer associated proteins and amyloid plaque formation. Using transgenic animal models, her research group investigates the molecular and cellular mechanisms underlying amyloid generation, with the goal of developing new diagnostic and therapeutic tools for Alzheimer's Disease.