Honglian Shi

Honglian Shi received a Ph.D. in biophysics with a specialization in oxidative stress research and has been conducting research in the field of oxidative stress since his graduation. Oxidative stress results from the imbalance between free radical production and the antioxidant defense in cells. The stress has been implicated in the process of aging and the pathogeneses of more than sixty pathological conditions including neurodegenerative diseases, stroke, heart disease, cancers, and diabetes. He has broad interests in free radical metabolism and the mechanisms of free radicals in diseases and aging, aiming at understanding the interactions between free radicals and other cellular molecules and finding efficient and specific treatments. For example, cerebral ischemia has tremendous effect on free radical metabolism due to the changes in the levels and metabolism of oxygen and glucose. One of the ongoing projects is to understand the changes of free radical generation and small redox metabolites such as glutathione, their functions in regulating transcription factors, and their roles in cell death and survival in ischemic conditions in the brain. Another is to understand the mechanism of heavy metal induced-tissue injuries in the brain and carcinogenesis. This research is being pursued with multidisciplinary approaches including biochemistry, biophysics, neuroimaging, and molecular biology.