Bowman, Aaron B., Department of Neurology

Aaron Bowman
Department of Neurology
465 21st Avenue South, 6133A MRB3
615-322-2651 (office)
615-322-0486 (fax)
aaron.bowman@vanderbilt.edu

The long-term objective of my lab is to understand how environmental and genetic factors interact to cause neuropathology. Despite burgeoning knowledge of genetic and environmental factors that hasten neurological disease, there is a dearth of information about the gene-environment interface that sets the stage for neuronal vulnerability. The research program of the lab seeks to explore the basis of selective neuropathology by focusing on a neurodegenerative disease, Huntington disease (HD), caused by a single gene defect and leveraging environmental influences sharing common modes of neurotoxicity or neuropathology. We have discovered that metals and metal exposure significantly modulate HD neuropathology.  By exploring the basis of this gene-environment interaction we seek to elucidate pathophysiological processes capable of influencing disease progression. This research will provide mechanistic detail for how genetic and environmental factors intersect to modulate neuronal activity and survival.