New Paper Published: Shared Genetic Architecture Between Early-Onset Alzheimerโ€™s and Lipid Traits

We are pleased to highlight a recent publication by Ray et al. (2025) that investigates local genetic covariance between early-onset Alzheimerโ€™s disease (EOAD) and blood lipid traits. We in the Kizil Lab are proud to have contributed to this collaboration, which deepens our understanding of how lipid biology intersects with neurodegenerative risk. ๐Ÿ‘‰ Read the …

Our preprint about new insights from human brains into APOEโ€‘ฮต4 in vascular pathology and Alzheimerโ€™s disease risk is out

We are happy to announce a new preprint from the Kizil Lab, led by first author Elanur Yilmaz, titled โ€œSingleโ€‘nucleus multiomics in brains from Hispanic individuals reveal APOEโ€‘ฮต4โ€‘driven disruption of focal adhesion signaling in the presence of cerebrovascular pathology.โ€ In this study, our team analyzed 413,175 single nuclei from 52 postmortem brains with high cerebrovascular …

New preprint investigating the pathology mechanisms of Fibronectin at the blood-brain barrier is out

We are excited to share a new preprint from the Kizil Lab titled "APOEโ€‘ฮต4โ€‘induced Fibronectin at the bloodโ€‘brain barrier is a conserved pathological mediator of disrupted astrocyteโ€“endothelia interaction in Alzheimerโ€™s disease." In this study, we uncover a previously unknown mechanism by which the APOEโ€‘ฮต4 alleleโ€”one of the strongest genetic risk factors for Alzheimerโ€™s diseaseโ€”disrupts brain …

Our study about ABCA7-dependent genetic risk in Alzheimer’s disease is published

We are excited to share our new study on the role of the ABCA7 gene in brain resilience against Alzheimerโ€™s. Published in Cell Genomics, we found that ABCA7 is crucial for maintaining synaptic health by regulating neuropeptide Y (NPY), a key molecule for brain communication and repair. Loss of ABCA7 reduces NPY, weakening the brain's …

Collaborative Study on Molecular Insights into Blood-Brain Barrier Dysfunction in Alzheimer’s Disease Published

We are thrilled to announce our participation in a groundbreaking study in collaboration with Mayo Clinic, now published in Nature Communications. This research looks into the intricate role of blood-brain barrier disruptions in Alzheimerโ€™s disease, leveraging the remarkable capabilities of zebrafish models in combination with vast antemortem and postmortem human brain datasets. The blood-brain barrier …

We found a genetic variant that protects against Alzheimerโ€™s disease

We discovered a genetic variant that reduces the odds of developing Alzheimerโ€™s disease by up to 70% and may be protecting hundreds of thousands of people from the disease. The discovery of the protective variant, which appears to allow toxic forms of amyloid out of the brain and through theโ€ฏblood-brain barrier, supports emerging evidence that …

More neurons, less Alzheimer’s: from zebrafish to mammals

A molecular mechanism that zebrafish brain uses to regenerate neurons after neurodegeneration can help us to cope with Alzheimer's, our recent study shows. Induced neurogenesis could be a therapy option for ameliorating Alzheimer's disease pathology. Our recent publication in Nature Partner Journal Regenerative Medicine addresses whether we can use neurogenesis as a means to counteract …

We discovered new potent multitarget lead compounds for synaptoprotection in Alzheimerโ€™s disease

Happy to announce our publication in Journal of Medicinal Chemistry: Discovery of Potent Cholinesterase Inhibition-Based Multi-Target-Directed Lead Compounds for Synaptoprotection in Alzheimerโ€™s Disease (click to open the link on the publisher's site) Graphical abstract Abstract: Drug development efforts that focused on single targets failed to provide effective treatment for Alzheimerโ€™s disease (AD). Therefore, we designed …

Zebrafish is not far from humans when it comes to how the brain is affected by Alzheimer’s disease

Our recent publication about comprehensive comparison of the single cell/nucleus transcriptomics profiles of human Alzheimer's brains and zebrafish Alzheimer's model is out. We found remarkable similarities and biologically meaningful differences. To compare transcriptomics data in zebrafish model of AD and Alzheimer's patients (in entorhinal cortex, superior frontal gyrus, dorsolateral prefrontal cortex), we first reliably integrated …

Missing Link Between Alzheimerโ€™s and Vascular Disease Found?

Meeri Kim's article in the Columbia University Irving Medical Center Newsroom on our recent collaborative study with Dr. Annie Lee, Dr. Badri Vardarajan and Dr. Richard Mayeux. For more than 20 years, scientists have known that people with hypertension, diabetes, high cholesterol, or obesity have a higher likelihood of developing Alzheimerโ€™s disease. The conditions can …