Huili Li, MMed

My academic research career began with a focus on pain research. After approximately a decade investigating the molecular and cellular mechanisms underlying pain in the spinal cord, I transitioned my research interests to developmental disorders, with a particular emphasis on neural tube defects (NTDs). My work in this field has combined developmental biology, molecular mechanisms, and human disease modeling to address the causes and prevention of NTDs. I developed human neural tube organoids as a model for studying human neurulation and demonstrated that multivitamin and mineral supplementation may provide greater protection against NTDs than folic acid alone. I have also investigated the epigenetic mechanisms through which folate deficiency disrupts the genome and increases disease-associated genetic variation, and identified appropriate levels of zinc and retinoic acid as potential protective factors for neural tube development.

My current research extends this work into neurodegenerative disease, focusing on hearing loss associated with Alzheimer’s disease and the molecular mechanisms that link auditory dysfunction to Alzheimer’s pathology. Through these studies, my overarching goal is to elucidate disease mechanisms and identify potential strategies for prevention and therapeutic intervention across developmental and neurodegenerative disorders.