Shi Du Yan, M.D., is the Associate Professor of the Department of Pathology, Surgery, and Taub Institute for Research on Alzheimer's disease and the Aging brain of Columbia University. Dr, Yan's research focuses on cellular mechanisms of neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer's disease and Parkinson's disease. Her group has identified an intracellular mitochondrial enzyme termed ABAD (Abeta binding alcohol dehydrogenase ), also known as L-3-hydroxyacyl-CoA dehydrogenase. They found that ABAD plays a cytoprotective role in MPTP (1-methy 1-4-phenyl-1,2,3,6-tetrahydropyridine)-induced Parkinson mouse model. The goal of this project is to determine the mechanisms through which ABAD exerts its beneficial effects in this model. The results from these studies will provide information as to whether enhancing ABAD is a potential target for treatment of Parkinson disease in future.