Kelly Lynn Stauch, PhD

Kelly L. Stauch, PhD, is an associate professor in the Department of Neurological sciences at the University of Nebraska Medical Center. She received her BS in agricultural biochemistry from Iowa State University in 2006 and earned her doctoral degree in biochemistry and molecular biology in 2012 from the University of Nebraska Medical Center. Dr. Stauch's work has focused on the consequences of mitochondrial dysfunction in the brain, in particular at the neuronal synapse, and how this contributes to the pathogenesis of Parkinson's disease, Alzheimer’s disease, and brain injury. She has helped characterize the Parkinson’s disease-relevant phenotypes in PINK1-PRKN/Parkin deficient animal models. Her recent studies highlight the relevance of PINK1-PRKN pathway disruption in modulating non-neuronal cells, including brain glia and peripheral immune cells. Current efforts aim at further dissecting the cell type-specific role of PINK1-PRKN in health and disease.