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Our Ageing Brain and Body
Dr. Dena Dubal in conversation with Journalist David Freed
Dr. Dena Dubal, MD, PhD, is Professor of Neurology at UCSF and holds the David A. Coulter Endowed Chair in Aging and Neurodegenerative Disease. She earned her MD and PhD from the University of Kentucky College of Medicine and completed her medical internship, neurology residency, and chief residency at UCSF. Her laboratory investigates the molecular mechanisms of longevity, resilience, and neurodegenerative disease, asking how aging pathways can confer resilience to the brain and counter conditions like Alzheimer's and Parkinson's.
Dubal's team discovered that klotho, a longevity hormone named for a Greek fate, enhances cognition and protects against neurodegenerative decline in animal models, even when administered peripherally without crossing the blood-brain barrier. She also uncovered novel roles for the X chromosome in brain resilience, showing that a second X chromosome confers neural protection in aging and disease. Her work integrates genetic mouse models, cell culture, and studies of human populations, and has been published in leading journals such as Nature and Cell. She is the recipient of the Paul Beeson, Glenn, and Grass Awards.
