faculty photo

Alice S. Chen-Plotkin, MD

Parker Family Professor of Neurology
Attending Neurologist, Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania
Founding Director, Molecular Integration in Neurological Diagnosis (MIND) Initiative
Department: Neurology

Contact information
Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania
150 Johnson Pavilion
Philadelphia, PA 19104
Office: 215-829-6500
Lab: 215-746-8191
Education:
AB (English)
Harvard-Radcliffe College, 1996.
MSc (Biology)
University of Oxford, 1998.
MD
Harvard Medical School, 2003.
Post-Graduate Training
Intern in Medicine, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, 2003-2004.
Resident in Neurology, Massachusetts General Hospital and Brigham and Women's Hospital, Partners Neurology, Harvard Medical School, 2004-2007.
Fellow in Movement Disorders, Pennsylvania Hospital, University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine, 2007-2008.
Postdoctoral Research in Neurodegenerative Disease, Center for Neurodegenerative Disease Research, University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine, 2007-2010.
Certifications
American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology (Neurology), 2008.
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Description of Research Expertise

The over-arching goal of our research is to better understand the mechanisms of neurodegenerative disease in order to intervene in these disease processes.

Our general approach is to use unbiased genomic- or proteomic-scale screens in human-derived materials to generate leads, which are then followed mechanistically in relevant systems including neuronal culture and in vivo animal models. The pace of technology development is allowing us to acquire more data, faster, than ever before, but this does not always translate into biological understanding. We believe that to unlock the true potential of leads generated in this way, computational methods must work hand-in-hand with bench-based manipulative experiments.

Description of Clinical Expertise

Movement disorders

Selected Publications

Diaz-Ortiz ME, Seo Y, Posavi M, Carceles Cordon M, Clark E, Jain N, Charan R, Gallagher MD, Unger TL, Amari N, Skrinak RT, Davila-Rivera R, Brody EM, Han N, Zack R, Van Deerlin VM, Tropea TF, Luk KC, Lee EB, Weintraub D, Chen-Plotkin AS.: GPNMB confers risk for Parkinson's disease through interaction with α-synuclein. Science 377: eabk0637, Aug 2022.

Shen J, Amari N, Zack R, Skrinak RT, Unger TL, Posavi M, Tropea TF, Xie SX, Van Deerlin VM, Dewey RB Jr, Weintraub D, Trojanowski JQ, Chen-Plotkin AS.: Plasma MIA, CRP, and Albumin Predict Cognitive Decline in Parkinson's Disease. Ann Neurol 92(2): 255-269, August 2022.

Weintraub D, Posavi M, Fontanillas P, Tropea TF, Mamikonyan E, Suh E, Trojanowski JQ, Cannon P, Van Deerlin VM; 23andMe Research Team, Chen-Plotkin AS.: Genetic prediction of impulse control disorders in Parkinson's disease. Ann Clin Transl Neurol 9(7): 936-949, July 2022.

Carceles-Cordon M, Weintraub D, Chen-Plotkin AS.: Cognitive heterogeneity in Parkinson's disease: A mechanistic view. Neuron 111: 1531-1546, May 2023.

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Last updated: 04/19/2024
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