Lab of Autophagy and Diseases

Accumulation of various types of abnormal/unwanted intracellular substances is one of the main causes of the development of various neurological disorders. Autophagy is a fundamental intracellular process for clearance of unwanted or damaged materials accumulated in the cell. One of our group’s main interests is to identify the relationship between autophagy and diseases at the molecular level. We are also interested in diagnosis of autophagy-related neurodegenerative diseases including Alzheimer's disease (AD) and Parkinson's disease (PD). Although AD is the most common neurodegenerative disease, there are still no drugs available to treat or prevent AD effectively. PD is the second most common neurodegenerative disorder, and symptoms of PD begins to appear only after a loss of significant numbers of nerve cells at the affected brain region. Therefore, it is critical to start the appropriate medical intervention at the early stage of AD or PD.

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We are especially interested in selective autophagy that regulates the degradation of specific proteins or intracellular organelles. More precisely, we aim to suggest new approaches for the treatment of neurodegenerative diseases by gaining a better understanding of the detailed mechanisms of various types of selective autophagy, and investigating their relationships with the pathogenic mechanisms of these diseases. In addition, we aim to identify various types of novel biomarker for early diagnosis of neurodegenerative diseases lacking therapies, such as AD and PD, and to develop diagnostic techniques using these biomarkers. The ultimate objective of our research is to establish clinically applicable, practical treatment strategies for autophagy-related diseases.