[SPL-03] Semi-Plenary Lecture 03

[SPL-03-1] APOE4-associated cognitive impairment: the role of blood-brain barrier dysfunction

^○Berislav Zlokovic (Department of Physiology and Neuroscience, Zilkha Neurogenetic Institute, Keck School of Medicine, University of Southern California, USA)

Berislav Zlokovic, MD, PhD is the director of the Zilkha Neurogenetic Institute, Professor and Chair of the Department of Physiology & Neuroscience at the Keck School of Medicine, and Professor of Biology at Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences. Zlokovic studies the role of brain microcirculation, and blood-brain barrier (BBB) in health and disease. Using animal models and studying human brain he has pioneered the neurovascular concept of Alzheimer’s disease. He showed that BBB breakdown can accumulate before neuronal and synaptic loss leading to neurodegeneration, and is an early biomarker of human cognitive dysfunction. His findings contributed to Phase 2/3 trials for Alzheimer’s and stroke. According to Thomson Reuters/Clarivate Analytics Zlokovic in ranked in top one percent of the most-cited authors in the neurosciences and behavioral sciences for 18 consecutive years). He received the MetLife Award for Medical Research, the Potamkin Prize from the American Academy of Neurology, the MERIT Award from NIA, the Javits Award from NINDS, and 2019 USC Associates Award for Creativity in Research and Scholarship. Zlokovic is a member of the AAAS and the European Academy of Sciences. He co-founded ZZ Biotech, a biotechnology company dedicated to developing new treatments for stroke and CNS disorders.