Division of Research
Research Highlights
Troy Rohn
Biology professor
Dr. Troy Rohn collaborates with researchers at the University of California-Irvine on research to identify a possible drug target for the treatment of Alzheimer’s disease. Their latest findings have been accepted for publication in the Journal of Neuroscience, one of the top international journals in this field.
Dr. Rohn and his colleagues at UC-Irvine have developed a genetically modified Alzheimer’s mouse model that has been manipulated to produce a certain molecule that appears to block the disease process. In laboratory experiments, these mice show no evidence of Alzheimer’s disease and have shown behavioral improvements following memory tests.
While the sample size is small because of the amount of time and effort involved in developing this mouse model, the results are very encouraging. This research was recently funded by the American Health Assistance Foundation, and Dr. Rohn is one of 44 outstanding medical researchers nationwide currently supported by the foundation for Alzheimer’s disease research. Dr. Rohn also receives funding from the National Institutes of Health.
Dr. Rohn joined Boise State’s faculty in 2000. He received his Ph.D. in Pharmacology from the University of Washington in 1994 and earned a B.S. in physiology from the University of California-Davis in 1990. Dr. Rohn’s research interests include the role of apoptosis in neurodegenerative diseases.