David Dexter

Biography

B.Sc Pharmacology (Hons) Graduate in 1985 (University of Bradford), PhD in Neuro Pharmacology 1990 (University of London). Joined Department of Pharmacology, Charing Cross & Westminster Medical School (Now part of Imperial College) as a lecturer in 1994. Current position - Professor in Neuropharmacology, Deputy Head Division of Brain Sciences and Scientific Director of Parkinson's UK Tissue Bank. Parkinson’s disease (PD) is a common neurodegenerative movement disorder affecting 1 in 1000 of the general population and 1 in 100 of those aged over 60 years. The principle neuronal system that degenerates in PD is the nigrostriatal tract that uses dopamine as its neurotransmitter. Drug treatment mainly focuses on replacing the lost dopamine. Although there are several drugs on the market to treat PD these drugs are associated with long-term side effects and only treat the clinical symptoms of the disease and do not stop the remaining cells from dying. In order to develop better treatment for PD we firstly must understand how the cells are dying in the disease. For over 27 years we have been investigating what possible mechanisms could contribute to the degeneration. We have been instrumental in providing evidence that the mechanisms of neurodegeneration includes oxidative stress, altered iron metabolism, mitochondrial dysfunction and neuroinflammation. The research group has a principle focus of undestanding the disease mechanisms and developing novel neuroprotective strategies

Research Interest

Cell Biology