Junghee Lee, PhD
Assistant Professor, Neurology
Biography
Dr. Junghee Lee is Assistant Professor of Neurology at Boston University (BU) Chobanian & Avedisian School of Medicine and Principal Investigator at BU Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center (ADRC). As a postdoctoral fellow in the Department of Neurology at Harvard Medical School and Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Dr. Lee carried out intensive research projects related to oxidative stress and neuronal gene regulation using cell lines, primary cortical neurons, and astrocytes from rodent animal models of various neurodegenerative disorders. As a junior faculty at Boston University, she established translational studies that focus on in vivo mechanisms and therapeutic applications in animal models of neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer’s Disease (AD), Huntington’s disease (HD), and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). Dr. Lee joined VA Bedford as a research scientist in 2003 and moved to VA Boston Healthcare System in 2008 where she has been managing an active research laboratory as the PI of NIH R01 grant. Dr. Lee’s research lab, Laboratory for Neuronal Injury and Inflammation has established various advanced skills and resources for studying cellular and molecular neurodegenerative mechanisms including neuronal gene regulation and epigenetic modifications in pre-existing cell lines and animal models of neurodegeneration as well as in human postmortem brains and spinal cords.
Research Interests:
Epigenetic mechanisms of neurodegeneration in HD, ALS, and AD: Epigenetic mechanisms are associated with the pathogenesis of neurodegenerative disorders. The identification of new epigenetic mechanisms and markers will lead to the development of novel therapeutics for the treatment of neurodegenerative disorders. Epigenetics is one of Dr. Lee’s major research interests. Her lab has investigated the association of epigenetic mechanisms with HD, ALS, and AD. Her previous and recent findings provide fundamental components that can be translated into epigenetic therapy to treat neurodegenerative disorders. In addition, she found that deregulation of SIRT3, a mitochondrial histone deacetylase, is linked to mitochondrial dysfunction in AD via mitochondrial p53 and mitochondrial transcription-dependent manner.
Education
- Kangwon National University, PhD
- Kangwon National University, MS
- Kangwon National University, BS
Publications
- Published on 10/1/2023
Heo JY, Park AH, Lee MJ, Ryu MJ, Kim YK, Jang YS, Kim SJ, Shin SY, Son HJ, Stein TD, Huh YH, Chung SK, Choi SY, Kim JM, Hwang O, Shong M, Hyeon SJ, Lee J, Ryu H, Kim D, Kweon GR. Correction: Crif1 deficiency in dopamine neurons triggers early-onset parkinsonism. Mol Psychiatry. 2023 Oct; 28(10):4485. PMID: 37783789.
Read at: PubMed - Published on 9/14/2023
Jung JW, Kim H, Park J, Woo J, Jeon E, Lee G, Park M, Kim S, Seo H, Cheon S, Dan K, Lee J, Ryu H, Han D. In-depth proteome analysis of brain tissue from Ewsr1 knockout mouse by multiplexed isobaric tandem mass tag labeling. Sci Rep. 2023 Sep 14; 13(1):15261. PMID: 37709831.
Read at: PubMed - Published on 8/30/2023
Heo JY, Park AH, Lee MJ, Ryu MJ, Kim YK, Jang YS, Kim SJ, Shin SY, Son HJ, Stein TD, Huh YH, Chung SK, Choi SY, Kim JM, Hwang O, Shong M, Hyeon SJ, Lee J, Ryu H, Kim D, Kweon GR. Crif1 deficiency in dopamine neurons triggers early-onset parkinsonism. Mol Psychiatry. 2023 Oct; 28(10):4474-4484. PMID: 37648779.
Read at: PubMed - Published on 3/13/2023
Lim S, Shin S, Sung Y, Lee HE, Kim KH, Song JY, Lee GH, Aziz H, Lukianenko N, Kang DM, Boesen N, Jeong H, Abdildinova A, Lee J, Yu BY, Lim SM, Lee JS, Ryu H, Pae AN, Kim YK. Levosimendan inhibits disulfide tau oligomerization and ameliorates tau pathology in TauP301L-BiFC mice. Exp Mol Med. 2023 Mar; 55(3):612-627. PMID: 36914856.
Read at: PubMed - Published on 12/20/2022
Choi SH, Yousefian-Jazi A, Hyeon SJ, Nguyen PTT, Chu J, Kim S, Kim S, Ryu HL, Kowall NW, Ryu H, Lee J. Modulation of histone H3K4 dimethylation by spermidine ameliorates motor neuron survival and neuropathology in a mouse model of ALS. J Biomed Sci. 2022 Dec 20; 29(1):106. PMID: 36536341.
Read at: PubMed - Published on 7/20/2022
Lee HN, Hyeon SJ, Kim H, Sim KM, Kim Y, Ju J, Lee J, Wang Y, Ryu H, Seong J. Decreased FAK activity and focal adhesion dynamics impair proper neurite formation of medium spiny neurons in Huntington's disease. Acta Neuropathol. 2022 Sep; 144(3):521-536. PMID: 35857122.
Read at: PubMed - Published on 7/15/2022
Lee J, Kim S, Kim YH, Park U, Lee J, McKee AC, Kim KH, Ryu H, Lee J. Non-Targeted Metabolomics Approach Revealed Significant Changes in Metabolic Pathways in Patients with Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy. Biomedicines. 2022 Jul 15; 10(7). PMID: 35885023.
Read at: PubMed - Published on 6/22/2022
Ju YH, Bhalla M, Hyeon SJ, Oh JE, Yoo S, Chae U, Kwon J, Koh W, Lim J, Park YM, Lee J, Cho IJ, Lee H, Ryu H, Lee CJ. Astrocytic urea cycle detoxifies Aß-derived ammonia while impairing memory in Alzheimer's disease. Cell Metab. 2022 Aug 02; 34(8):1104-1120.e8. PMID: 35738259.
Read at: PubMed - Published on 11/19/2021
Kim C, Yousefian-Jazi A, Choi SH, Chang I, Lee J, Ryu H. Non-Cell Autonomous and Epigenetic Mechanisms of Huntington's Disease. Int J Mol Sci. 2021 Nov 19; 22(22). PMID: 34830381.
Read at: PubMed - Published on 10/8/2021
Prasad R, Jung H, Tan A, Song Y, Moon S, Shaker MR, Sun W, Lee J, Ryu H, Lim HK, Jho EH. Hypermethylation of Mest promoter causes aberrant Wnt signaling in patients with Alzheimer's disease. Sci Rep. 2021 10 08; 11(1):20075. PMID: 34625606.
Read at: PubMed
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