Cure Alzheimer's Fund Cure Alzheimer's Fund

Na Zhao, M.D., Ph.D.

Assistant Professor, Mayo Clinic Jacksonville

Dr. Na Zhao is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Neuroscience at Mayo Clinic Jacksonville. Dr. Zhao’s research team is dedicated to studying the biological and pathological functions of APOE and TREM2 in the context of aging and the pathogenesis of various neurodegenerative disorders, particularly Alzheimer’s disease and Lewy body dementia. Her laboratory utilizes transgenic mouse models and human induced pluripotent stem cell (iPSC)-derived models to investigate the roles of APOE, APOE receptors (such as LRP1), and TREM2 in brain lipid metabolism, signal transduction, synaptic plasticity, and the pathogenesis of amyloid-β, tau, and α-synuclein. Dr. Zhao and her team are passionately committed to innovative translational medicine, striving to make significant contributions toward the advancement of targeted therapies for Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias.

Twitter account: @ZhaoNaa

To learn more, visit the Zhao Lab website.

Related Research:

Elucidating the Protective Effects of APOE2 in the Presence of APOE4 Gene Allele in Animal Models Na Zhao Yingxue Ren 2023-11-02

Funded Research

These projects were made possible from Cure Alzheimer's Fund support.

Project Description Researchers Funding
Elucidating the Protective Effects of APOE2 in the Presence of APOE4 Gene Allele in Animal Models 2023, 2025

$402,500

Selected Publications

These published papers resulted from Cure Alzheimer’s Fund support.

Chen, K., Li, F., Zhang, S., Chen, Y., Ikezu, T. C., Li, Z., Martens, Y. A., Qiao, W., Meneses, A., Zhu, Y., Xhafkollari, G., Bu, G., & Zhao, N. Enhancing TREM2 expression activates microglia and modestly mitigates tau pathology and neurodegeneration, Journal of Neuroinflammation, March 23, 2025, Read More

Li, Z., Martens, Y. A., Ren, Y., Jin, Y., Sekiya, H., ... Petersen, R. C., Kanekiyo, T., … Bu, G., & Zhao, N. APOE genotype determines cell-type-specific pathological landscape of Alzheimer’s disease, Neuron, March 11, 2025, Read More

10. Kloske, C. M., Belloy, M. E., Blue, E. E., Bowman, G. R., … Gate, D., … , Iadecola, C., Johnson, L. A., Kanekiyo, T., … Lamb, B.T., … Marcora, E., … Morganti, J. M., … Ramachandran, K. V., … Tsai, L. H., … Ulrich, J. D., van der Kant, R., … Wellington, C. L., … Zhao, N., Bu, G., Goate, A. M., Holtzman, D. M. Advancements in APOE and dementia research: Highlights from the 2023 AAIC Advancements: APOE conference, Alzheimer's & Dementia, July 19, 2024, Read More

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