News

Members of the Duke Neurology Department contributed to seventeen peer-reviewed research studies published this August. Members of the lab of Nicole Calakos, MD, PhD, discovered that a medication created to treat patients with HIV may help people with dystonia. New translational research provided the most accurate atlas of the mouse model to date and answered questions about late-onset Alzheimer’s disease.

The American Academy of Neurology (AAN) has moved its annual meeting to a virtual setting this year, but its offerings of the latest education and scientific programming continue. This year, members of the Duke Neurology Department collaborated with their colleagues at Duke and with other academic institutions to advance our understanding of neuro-oncology, myasthenia gravis, ALS, and other fields and disciplines. 

Deborah Koltai, PhD, (Associate Professor in Psychiatry & Behavioral Sciences and Neurology, School of Medicine) and Jason Somarelli, PhD (Assistant Professor in Medicine, School of Medicine) are the winners of the 2021 Bass Connections Leadership Award.

Members of the Duke Neurology Department contributed to 21 new studies in peer-reviewed journals this March, advancing our ability to understand, treat, and prevent diseases and conditions from across the field of neurology. Brian Mac Grory, MB BCh, MRCP, and other members of our stroke and vascular neurology helped answer questions about the best way to treat patients who have a stroke in their sleep.

The final month of 2020 saw fifteen new publications written or co-written by members of the Duke Department of Neurology. Sneha Mantri, MD, MS, was a lead author of a new study examining factors contributing to burnout and moral injury among health-care workers at Duke. Our Neuromuscular Disease faculty wrote multiple studies advancing our understanding of myasthenia gravis, including how the COVID-19 pandemic is affecting people with this condition. Other articles answered questions about stroke, Parkinson’s, and other diseases.

Members of the Duke Neurology Department contributed to 14 new peer-reviewed studies this October, advancing our understanding of or ability to treat Parkinson’s disease, Alzheimer’s, stroke, and other conditions. Laurie Sanders, PhD, and Claudia Gonzalez Hunt, PhD, advanced our understanding of the links between mitochondrial DNA damage and Parkinson’s disease, providing a potential avenue for future therapies.

This September, members of the Duke Neurology Department contributed to 26 new studies, advancing our knowledge of neuroscience at the subcellular, national, and global levels. Ornit Chiba-Falek, PhD, and Laurie Sanders, PhD, lead studies that answered questions about the genetic origins of Parkinson’s disease and its connection to some forms of breast cancer.

More than 50 years after he first started studying it, Marvin Rozear, MD, still sees the brain with fascination and wonder. For this week’s “Spotlight” interview, the long-time member of the Duke Neurology Department, Vietnam veteran, and enthusiast of blues, scrabble, and sailing talks to us about how neurology has changed for the better and worse since his days as a resident. He also talks about the health needs of the veteran population he currently treats at the Durham VAMC, and offers advice for current neurology trainees.

Members of the Duke Department of Neurology contributed to nine studies in peer-reviewed journals published in December 2019. In the fields of neurodegeneration and neuromuscular disease, our faculty found potential new avenues for therapies for spinocerebellar ataxia type 7 (SCA7) and myasthenia gravis. Other studies by our faculty and housestaff answered important questions about how reductions in blood pressure affect outcomes for thrombectomy, outcomes for deep brain stimulation for patients with Parkinson’s, and other areas.

While E. Wayne Massey, MD, had an initial career path to become a preacher, his medical school projects and love for neuroscience aroused his interest in becoming a neurologist. He now utilizes his passion for teaching, in the classrooms of medical students and supervising neurologists in training. In this week’s “Faculty Spotlight” interview, Massey introduces us to his life outside of Duke, the risks of scuba diving, and the pros and scope of his work. As a neurologist with more than thirty years of work in his profession, Massey says that his greatest fear is not knowing enough.