Ken Nakamura, MD, PhD

Senior Investigator

Gladstone Institutes

Host(s): Emanuele Barca (Faculty)

About Ken Nakamura

Ken Nakamura’s lab studies mitochondria, the “power centers” inside each cell that convert nutrients into ATP, a form of energy the cell can use. The lab has two broad, intertwined objectives. The first is to understand how mitochondria and energy metabolism normally support the function of healthy brain neurons. The second is to understand how disruptions in mitochondrial function, metabolism, and neural activity contribute to neurodegenerative diseases, especially Parkinson’s disease, Alzheimer’s disease, and mitochondrial disorders, and to use these insights to develop new therapeutic approaches that boost energy levels in vulnerable cells.

Tuesdays@10 is a signature Zuckerman Institute initiative that aims to expose researchers at all levels to high-quality science and stimulate scientific discourse. The speakers featured in this series represent various fields and techniques in neuroscience, and include invited guests of the Columbia Neuroscience Seminars, the Zuckerman Institute's Local Circuits Affiliates Program, and other special seminar series through a combined, collaborative effort of one or more of the following: Columbia's Zuckerman Institute, the Center for Precision Psychiatry, the Center for Theoretical Neuroscience, the Department of Neuroscience, the Doctoral Program in Neurobiology and Behavior and the Columbia Translational Neuroscience Initiative, and with support from the Kavli Institute for Brain Science. 

More information and a full schedule can be found here.