The University of Kentucky College of Medicine is pleased to announce that Lance A. Johnson, PhD, has been selected to serve as chair of the UK College of Medicine Department of Neuroscience.
Dr. Johnson has faculty appointments in the departments of neuroscience and physiology, as well as the Sanders-Brown Center on Aging, where he leads an internationally recognized research program focused on the genetic and metabolic mechanisms underlying neurodegenerative disease, particularly Alzheimer’s disease.
Since joining UK in late 2016, Dr. Johnson’s work has advanced understanding of how genetic and metabolic factors influence brain aging and dementia. His laboratory studies how Apolipoprotein E (APOE), one of the strongest genetic risk factors for Alzheimer’s disease, influences brain metabolism, inflammation, and disease progression, with the goal of identifying new therapeutic approaches. His lab uses translational methods across cells, animals, and humans, and their studies have been published in journals such as Molecular Neurodegeneration, Cell Metabolism, PNAS, and Nature Neuroscience, as well as featured by Science Magazine and other outlets.
His highly collaborative work has been supported by multiple grants from the National Institutes of Health, the Cure Alzheimer’s Fund, and the Alzheimer’s Association. He currently serves as principal investigator on multiple foundation and federally funded projects examining the metabolic drivers of neurodegeneration. Finally, Dr. Johnson sits on the executive committee and serves as Director of the Metabolomics Core for the Center of Biomedical Research Excellence in Central Nervous System Metabolism.
In addition to his research accomplishments, Dr. Johnson is a dedicated educator and mentor. He has taught across multiple graduate and undergraduate courses, served as director of graduate studies in the department of physiology, and has mentored over 50 faculty, postdoctoral scholars, graduate, undergraduate and high school students during his time at UK. He has received several honors recognizing his contributions to mentorship, including the University of Kentucky Early-Career Mentoring in Research Award and the College of Medicine Exceptional Mentor Award.
Dr. Johnson completed his postdoctoral training in behavioral neuroscience at Oregon Health & Science University and earned his doctorate in molecular and cellular pathology from the University of North Carolina.
The College of Medicine extends deep gratitude to Luke Bradley, PhD, who has served as acting department chair since 2021, as well as to the search committee for their time and effort throughout the search process.
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