Minh Dang Nguyen

What happens in our brains as we age? This is a critical question that drives the research of my laboratory at the University of Calgary since September 2005. The main goal of my research program is to understand the basic mechanisms governing brain aging and neurodegenerative disorders; the increased age being the main risk factor for neurodegeneration.

To tackle these two problems, we use a very basic molecular cell biology approach to study the neuronal cytoskeleton (the internal scaffolding that provides structure for the cell, as well as transports materials and sends signals to other parts of the cell) and its associated signaling proteins. Mutations or alterations in the neuronal cytoskeleton can lead to premature aging and neurodegenerative disorders such as Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s disease and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. This work sometimes leads us to revisit the physiological functions of these molecules such as during neuronal development, maturation, plasticity and investigate their potential to promote repair (for further details, see Philosophy of Research).

Research Areas: 

Molecular Biology and Disease

Cell Signalling and Structure

Bev Clair, Research Administrator