Michael K. Lee, PhD, obtained his BA from Macalester College (1985) and a PhD in neuroscience from the University of Virginia (1991). Following the completion of a postdoctoral fellowship with Dr. Don W. Cleveland at Johns Hopkins University (1991-1995), Dr. Lee became faculty at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine in 1995, where he established a research program in generating transgenic mouse models of neurodegenerative diseases, including Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s diseases; and using the models to understand disease mechanisms.

Dr. Lee moved to the University of Minnesota in 2009 as the Director of the Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases at the Institute for Translational Neuroscience. He is currently a professor of neuroscience. Dr. Lee’s lab is studying how alterations in cellular protein homeostasis contribute to neurodegeneration and targeting these pathways for novel therapies that can stop disease progression. The efforts of Dr. Lee’s research may lead to therapies that not only could provide symptomatic relief but also slow the disease progression.