I am interested in the pathobiology of neurodegenerative diseases. Alzheimer's disease is the fifth-leading cause of death in the United States among those who are older than 65 and a leading cause of disability. My lab is focused on understanding mechanisms leading to neurodegeneration in other, less common tauopathies involving astrocytes, such as progressive supranuclear palsy (PSP) and corticobasal degeneration (CBD). More specifically, I am interested in the aggregation of proteins in astrocytes among other cellular aggregates, which can be seen in PSP and CBD. We also investigate the role of unfolded protein response and inflammation in these tauopathies.