Dr. Chen-Plotkin’s research focuses on understanding the mechanisms of neurodegenerative diseases to intervene in disease processes. Her lab uses unbiased genomic- or proteomic-scale screens in human-derived materials to generate leads, which are applied to relevant systems, including neuronal culture and in vivo animal models. This combination of computational methods and bench-based manipulative experiments aims to aid in the development of targets for therapeutics for neurological disorders such as Parkinson’s disease and Lewy body diseases (LBD). Her project aims to investigate the contribution of host characteristics, reflected by biomarker signatures, to cognitive heterogeneity in LBD. Her lab will also examine the contribution of “proteinopathy” characteristics – reflected by species of alpha-synuclein detected by two conformation-selective antibodies – to cognitive heterogeneity.