Xu Chen, Ph.D.
​Principal Investigator
Bio
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Born into an academic family in southeast China, Xu developed a tremendous passion for science and art. She found biology, especially the nervous system, integrates the beauty of both. After graduate school, she decided to pursue a research career in neurodegenerative diseases, in particular, Alzheimer's disease and related dementia (ADRD). She aims to use interdisciplinary approaches to understand the disease from unique perspectives, and to uncover new therapeutic avenues.
Education
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Peking University, School of Life Sciences Jun 2006
B.S., Biology
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University of Wisconsin–Madison, Department of Genetics May 2012
Ph.D., Genetics
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Employment
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04/2012-07/2016 Postdoctoral Fellow, Gladstone Institutes of Neurological Disease, San Francisco, CA
08/2016-12/2018 Staff Scientist, Gladstone Institutes of Neurological Disease, San Francisco, CA
07/2017-10/2019 Visiting Scholar, Department of Neurosciences, University of California, San Diego, CA
01/2020- Assistant Professor, Department of Neurosciences, University of California, San Diego, CA
​Honors and Awards
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2002 Gold medalist, 13th International Biology Olympia
2005 The International Association for the Exchange of Students for Technical Experience Fellowship
2010 DeLill Nasser Award for Professional Development in Genetics, Genetic Society of America
2016 Awards for Excellence in Alzheimer’s Research, Alzheimer’s Association
2017 Postdoctoral Award for Scientific Excellence, Gladstone Institutes
​2016 Pathway to Independence Award (K99/R00), National Institute on Aging
2022. Stephen I. Katz Early-Stage Investigator Research Project Award, National Institute on Aging