Wu Tsai Institute Inspiring Speaker Series

The Wu Tsai Institute's Inspiring Speaker Series presents:

Kang Shen

Professor of Biology; Director, Wu Tsai Neurosciences Institute, Stanford University

Shen is a neuronal cell biologist interested in development and maintenance of the nervous system.

Neurons are large, complex cells with an extraordinarily long lifespan and require specialized mechanisms to accommodate their unique needs for morphogenesis, intracellular trafficking, and long-term homeostasis. The scarcity of knowledge in neuronal cell biology leads to major gaps in linking genetic variations to behavioral deficits in neurodevelopmental and neurodegenerative disorders. The Shen Lab has established an in vivo system focusing on a systematic, mechanistic understanding of specialized neuronal cell biology using this highly polarized, highly arborized C. elegans neuron. Shen will present recent and largely unpublished results on several topics in neuronal cell biology, including microtubule organization, neuronal stress response, and Tau toxicity.