Research Advancing Kentucky: Protecting the brain
Researchers at the University of Kentucky play an important role in advancing the health, well-being and future of our Commonwealth.
Much of that work is done with support from the National Institutes of Health (NIH). That support allows our researchers to find answers to many of the critical health issues facing Kentuckians.
Luke Bradley, Ph.D., is supported by the National Institute of General Medical Sciences, the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke and the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences.
Bradley is a Chellgren Endowed Professor in the UK Lewis Honors College and acting chair of the Department of Neuroscience in the UK College of Medicine.
His research operates at the intersection of chemistry, biochemistry and neurobiology. Bradley focuses on the development of neuroprotective and restorative molecules with potential applications to treat Parkinson’s disease and other neurodegenerative disorders.
“My research is interdisciplinary and collaborative and requires working with different experts from basic sciences to patients. This also requires access to advanced core facilities, collaborative networks and funding support mechanisms,” said Bradley. “My neurotherapeutic research would not be as far along without collaborations across basic science and clinical departments. This was bolstered by UK’s participation in NIH programs such as our Centers of Biomedical Research Excellence and our Center for Clinical and Translational Science.”
NIH funding also supports two of Bradley’s training programs that focus on building a sustainable STEM workforce in Kentucky — the STEM Through Authentic Research and Training (START) Program and the UK Neuroscience Post-baccalaureate Research Education (UKNeu-PREP) Program.
Bradley and other members of the research community shared the importance of NIH-funded research at UK in this video series from Research Communications.
Learn more about each featured researcher.
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