Dan Lee Lab

I attended Lincoln University, PA in 1995 and graduated with a BS degree in chemistry. During this time, my grandfather also named Daniel Lee MD and also graduated from Lincoln University was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease. I later pursued a PhD degree in Pharmaceutical Sciences/ Neuropharmacology at Florida A&M University College of Pharmacy & Pharmaceutical Science in 1999 to study Parkinson’s disease with Donald E. Palm, PhD. At this time my grandfather was later diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease, or some form of dementia. I then pursued postdoctoral training in Alzheimer’s disease at University of South Florida College of Medicine with Dave Morgan, PhD and Marcia Gordon, PhD in 2005. Herein, I would study the role of aging and neuroinflammation and the impact on models of amyloid and tau deposition. This ultimately led to studying the role of arginine metabolism and polyamine biology during Alzheimer’s disease and proteinopathies. In 2010, I joined the newly formed USF College of Pharmacy as an Assistant professor and founding faculty member and promoted to Associated Professor in 2017. In 2018, I was appointed the William N. Sanders Endowed Chair in Geriatric Pharmacotherapy and Director of Neurogenerative Sciences in USF College of Pharmacy. In August of 2019, I was recruited and joined the University of Kentucky College of Medicine Sanders-Brown Center on Aging in the Department of Neuroscience.

Our lab collectively studies various models of proteinopathies including tauopathies, synucleinopathies, Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias. We also study the role of inflammation during these diseases. We have identified interactions between arginine metabolism (free and protein modification) and polyamine biology during tauopathies. Our group has studied how brain metabolism and impaired nutrient sensing, specifically arginine metabolism and arginine-sensing pathways impact proteinopathy disorders. We have uncovered a unique arginine conversion to citrulline (citrullination; citR) within tau and have created several new tools to understand how this post-translational modification impacts animal models and human tauopathies. Our lab employs cell culture models, genetically engineered mouse models, bioinformatics, adeno-associated viral gene therapy, small animal pharmacology, animal behavior, and drug discovery programs. This multidisciplinary approach positions the lab toward the discovery of novel mechanisms and therapeutics that treat neurodegenerative diseases associated with polyamine biology, arginine metabolism nutrient sensing, and citrullination during proteinopathies.