Jian Feng PhD

Jian Feng

Jian Feng
PhD

Professor

Department of Physiology and Biophysics

Jacobs School of Medicine & Biomedical Sciences


Specialty/Research Focus

Apoptosis and cell death; Cytoskeleton and cell motility; Gene Expression; Molecular and Cellular Biology; Molecular genetics; Neurobiology; Neurodegenerative disorders; Neurology; Pathophysiology; Protein Folding; Signal Transduction; Toxicology; Transcription and Translation

Contact Information
955 Main Street, Room 3148
Buffalo, New York 14203
Phone: (716) 829-2345
Fax: 716-829-2699
jianfeng@buffalo.edu



Professional Summary:

My research is aimed at finding the cause and a cure for Parkinson’s disease.

Parkinson’s disease (PD) is defined by a characteristic set of locomotor symptoms (rest tremor, rigidity, bradykinesia and postural instability) that are believed to be caused by the selective loss of dopaminergic (DA) neurons in substantia nigra. The persistent difficulties in using animals to model this human disease suggest that human nigral dopaminergic neurons have certain vulnerabilities that are unique to our species.

One of our unique features is the large size of the human brain (1350 grams on average) relative to the body. A single nigral dopaminergic neuron in a rat brain (2 grams) has a massive axon arbor with a total length of 45 centimeters. Assuming that all mammalian species share a similar brain wiring plan, we can estimate (using the cube root of brain weight) that a single human nigral dopaminergic neuron may have an axon with gigantic arborization that totals 4 meters.

Another unique feature of our species is our strictly bipedal movement, which is affected by Parkinson’s disease, in contrast to the quadrupedal movement of almost all other mammalian species. The much more unstable bipedal movement may require more dopamine, which supports the neural computation necessary for movement.

The landmark discovery of human induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSC) made it possible to generate patient-specific human midbrain dopaminergic neurons to study Parkinson’s disease. A key problem for dopaminergic neurons is the duality of dopamine as a signal required for neural computation and a toxin as its oxidation produces free radicals. Our study using iPSC-derived midbrain dopaminergic neurons from PD patients with parkin mutations and normal subjects shows that parkin sustains this necessary duality by maintaining the precision of the signal while suppressing the toxicity. Mutations of parkin cause increased spontaneous release of dopamine and reduced dopamine uptake, thereby disrupting the precision of dopaminergic transmission. On the other hand, transcription of monoamine oxidase is greatly increased when parkin is mutated. This markedly increases dopamine oxidation and oxidative stress. These phenomena have not been seen in parkin knockout mice, suggesting the usefulness of parkin-deficient iPSC-derived midbrain DA neurons as a cellular model for Parkinson’s disease.

Currently, we are using iPS cells and induced DA neurons to expand our studies on parkin to idiopathic Parkinson’s disease. We are also utilizing the molecular targets identified in our studies to find small-molecule compounds that can mimic the beneficial functions of parkin. The availability of human midbrain DA neurons should significantly speed up the discovery of a cure for Parkinson’s disease.

Education and Training:

  • PhD, Biochemistry, University of Tennessee (1997)
  • BS, Biochemistry, Nanjing University (1990)

Employment:

  • Professor, Physiology and Biophysics, State University of New York at Buffalo Jacobs School of Medicine & Biomedical Sciences (2010-present)
  • Associate Professor, Physiology and Biophysics, State University of New York at Buffalo Jacobs School of Medicine & Biomedical Sciences (2005–2010)
  • Assistant Professor, Physiology and Biophysics, State University of New York at Buffalo Jacobs School of Medicine & Biomedical Sciences (2000–2005)
  • Postdoctoral Research Associate, Laboratory of Molecular and Cellular Neuroscience, Rockefeller University (1997–2000)

Awards and Honors:

  • State University of New York Chancellor’s Award for Excellence in Scholarship and Creative Activities (2021)
  • University at Buffalo Exceptional Scholars – Sustained Achievement Award (2017)

Grants and Sponsored Research:

  • June 2020–May 2025
    Molecular Segregation of Parkinson’s Disease by Patient-derived Neurons
    NINDS/NIH
    Role: Principal Investigator
    $2,244,925
  • April 2020–March 2022
    New Treatment Strategy for Alzheimer’s Disease
    NIA/NIH
    Role: Principal Investigator
    $438,625
  • September 2018–March 2022
    Functions of parkin in Parkinson’s disease
    NINDS/NIH
    Role: Principal Investigator
    $1,801,304
  • April 2018–March 2022
    Kinetic Barriers of Transdifferentiation
    Department of Veterans Affairs
    Role: Principal Investigator
    $833,012
  • March 2018–March 2022
    The Interaction of parkin and environmental toxins in Parkinson’s disease
    Department of Veterans Affairs
    Role: Principal Investigator
    $783,012
  • April 2017–March 2022
    A Novel Epigenetic Mechanism for Alzheimer's Disease
    NIH
    Role: Co-Investigator
    $1,993,750
  • April 2014–March 2018
    Kinetic Barriers of Transdifferentiation
    Department of Veterans Affairs
    Role: Principal Investigator
  • June 2014–May 2017
    Understand the Pathophysiology of Parkinson's Disease Using Genetically Modified iPS Cells
    NYSTEM
    Role: Principal Investigator
  • March 2013–February 2016
    Redefining Idiopathic Parkinson’s Disease through Induced Pluriopotent Stem Cells
    NYSTEM
    Role: Principal Investigator
  • January 2009–December 2013
    Cellular Functions of Parkin
    NIH/NINDS
    Role: Principal Investigator
    $1,733,595

Journal Articles:

See all (65 more)

Abstracts:


Service Activities:

  • I serve on the Finance and Investment Committee of the Society for Experimental Biology and Medicine and persuade the society to adopt index funds as investment strategy.; Member, Finance and Investment Committee (2017–2021)
  • Councilor, Society for Experimental Biology and Medicine I serve as a Councilor at the Society for Experimental Biology and Medicine for the term of 2015-2019.; Councilor (2015–2019)
  • I have served as the Associate Editor of Stem Cell Biology Section for the journal Experimental Biology and Medicine; Associate Editor, Stem Cell Biology (2012–2024)

School News:

In the Media:


Clinical Specialties:

Clinical Offices:

Insurance Accepted:



Contact Information

955 Main Street, Room 3148
Buffalo, New York 14203
Phone: (716) 829-2345
Fax: 716-829-2699
jianfeng@buffalo.edu