Jose F Abisambra,

Dr. Abisambra is Associate Director of Research Programs at the Evelyn F. and William L. McKnight Brain Institute, Associate Professor and Vice-Chair of Strategy for the Department of Neuroscience, and Deputy Director of the Brain Injury, Rehabilitation, and Neuroresilience Center (BRAIN) at the University of Florida’s College of Medicine. Dr. Abisambra earned his PhD in molecular medicine and completed his post-doctoral training at the University of South Florida.

The goal of Dr. Abisambra’s research program is to establish the molecular mechanisms linking the protein tau with cellular dysfunction, and especially, with RNA translation. His lab’s work established that pathological tau shifts ribosomal function into a maladaptive response. These events contribute to the pathogenesis of more than twenty tauopathies including Alzheimer’s disease, fronto-temporal dementia with tau inclusions, and chronic traumatic encephalopathy/traumatic brain injury (CTE/TBI), which are central to the focus of his research. This work will help define effective therapeutic targets for more than 26 million people worldwide suffering from tauopathies.