Dual Diagnosis

Biography

Particular focuses are in molecular neuroscience and its relationship to gene activities during brain repair. My area of achievements include the first demonstration of somatic gene mutation in the brain after cerebral ischemia and I was awarded two R01 (NS034810 and NS045845) and two awards from American Heart Association. These awards lead to the development of brain probes with a potential to view gene action in live brains (R21NS057556). We have participated in at least three workshops sponsored by the NIH I have developed a novel technique for magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) of gene transcripts in living subjects. This technique permits targeting, imaging, labeling and manipulation of intracellular gene transcript in live brains. As such, it represents an area of research that is poised to become the next frontier of MRI. The hospital has filed four patent applications based on our important inventions. The invention involves making a nanoparticle of less than 30 nanometers in diameter, and is composed of short nucleic acid (siDNA or siRNA) with sequence targeting specific messenger RNA (the target) and an MR contrast agent (tracer). We have demonstrated that short DNA with proper sequence will target mRNA at low dose for non-invasive imaging using MRI; regulate protein expression at high dose for gene knockdown in the brain. We now have brain probes for angiogenesis, gliosis, and gender difference in gene activities of live brains. High resolution MR imaging of intracellular RNA for cell typing holds promises to translate molecular biology into live subjects for real time, longitudinal in vivo imaging. This design should have potential for pre-clinical and perhaps clinical applications, once it is validated for application in living brains of higher species than mice.

Research Interest

Addiction, Neuroscience