Roger Knowles
Hall of Sciences 128; phone ext. 3561
rknowles at drew.edu
Dr. Knowles' personal website
Read About Dr. Knowles in the New York Times! (click here for pdf file) "Science called and he followed: Neurobiologist hopes to train Alzheimer's researchers at Drew"
Professional Biography
Professor Roger Knowles took an unusual route to becoming Drew’s neurobiologist and expert in Alzheimer’s disease (AD) research. After graduating from West Point in 1986 and majoring in Human Factors, a discipline that combined engineering and psychology, Roger served as a lieutenant specializing in air defense artillery in the United States Army. With the ending of the Cold War, Roger left the army and went to Harvard University where he earned a Ph.D. in Neuroscience in 1996 while doing research in the Center for Neurologic Diseases at Brigham and Women’s Hospital. His thesis explored how neurons develop their unique shape which enables them to communicate with thousands of other neurons. After completing his thesis, Roger received an NIH grant as a postdoctoral research fellow at the Alzheimer’s Research Center at Massachusetts General Hospital. During his two years as a research fellow, he studied the brains of patients who had AD, and he developed several lines of research exploring the molecular and cellular pathways that lead to the cognitive decline in AD patients. In 1998, Roger joined the Department of Biology at Drew University and spearheaded the drive to develop a Neuroscience major at Drew. Using equipment purchased through a NSF grant in 1999, Roger developed courses where students engage in cutting edge neuroscience research using live neurons and exploring brain disease mechanisms.
Research Interests
The three pathological hallmarks of Alzheimer’s Disease are extracellular senile plaques, intracellular neurofibrillary tangles, and a profound loss of neurons and functional neuronal connections. Recent evidence suggests that there is a connection between these pathologic events. However, the pathways that link the extracellular deposits and the intracellular
dystrophies are unclear. In our laboratory, students choose research projects that focus on trying to elucidate these pathways. Here are examples of the kind of projects in which students may participate:
1. Examine effect of senile plaque components on neuronal trafficking of organelles.
2. Measure changes in cytoskeleton stability of neurons due to stimulation from factors present in senile plaques.
3. Test neurotransmitter receptor efficiency in neuronal cultures treated with factors present in senile plaques.
4. Manipulate intracellular signaling cascades in neuronal cultures to test specific pathways being activated in senile plaques.
On the personal side...
Roger is married to Kelly Knowles, a pediatrician in private practice. They have two children, Abigail, born in 1996, and John born in 2003. Roger spends nearly all of his free time with his family and they take advantage of the many rich opportunities of living in northern New Jersey: from taking the train in to Manhattan to go to a Broadway play, to spending summer weekends on the New Jersey shore, to hiking through the forests of western New Jersey. As a die hard Red Sox fan, Roger enjoyed moving into Yankee country where he could root for his second favorite team: whichever team is playing the Yankees.
Publications Include:
Knowles, RB, Gomez-Isla, T, and Hyman, BT. (1998) Aß Associated Neuropil Changes: Correlation with Neuronal Loss and Dementia. Journal of Neuropathology and Experimental Neurology 57: 1122-1130.
Knowles, RB, Wyart, C, Buldyrev, SV, Cruz, L, Urbanc, B, Hasselmo, ME, Stanley, HE, and Hyman, BT. (1999) Plaque-Induced Neurite Abnormalities: Implications for Disruption of Neural Networks in Alzheimer's Disease. Proceedings National Academy of Science USA, 96:5274-5279.
Knowles, RB, Chin, J, Ruff, CT, and Hyman, BT. (1999) Demonstration by fluorescence energy transfer of a close association between activated MAP kinase and neurofibrillary tangles: Implications for MAP kinase activation in Alzheimer's disease. Journal of Neuropathology and Experimental Neurology 58: 1090-1098.
Xia, MQ, Bacskai, BJ, Knowles, RB, Qin, SX, and Hyman BT. (2000) Expression of the chemokine receptor CXCR3 on neurons and the elevated expression of its ligand IP-10 in reactive astrocytes: in vitro ERK1/2 activation and role in Alzheimer's disease. Journal of Neuroimmunology 108: 227-235.
Le, R, Urbanc, B, Knowles, RB, Hsiao-Ashe, K, Duff, K, Irizarry, MC, Stanley, HE, and Hyman, BT. (2001) Plaque induced abnormalities in neurite geometry in transgenic models of Alzheimer’s disease: Implications for neural system disruption. Journal of Neuropathology and Experimental Neurology 60: 753-758. |
Dr. Roger Knowles
Associate Professor of Biology
Director, Neurosciences Program
Biology Department Chair
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