David D. Bushart

David D. Bushart studies spinocerebellar ataxias, a group of inherited disorders that damage neurons in the cerebellum (a brain region controlling balance and coordination). His work focuses on how malfunctioning ion channels (proteins that control electrical signaling in neurons) and altered neuron excitability contribute to cell degeneration, and he explores potential treatments including antisense oligonucleotide therapy (a gene-targeting drug approach) and channel-modulating drugs. Prospective students would engage with research spanning molecular neuroscience, stem cell models, and translational approaches to neurodegenerative movement disorders.

Publication output peaked between 2018-2020 with several papers per year but has slowed considerably since 2021, averaging about 1 publication per year over the last 5 years.

Generated by claude-sonnet-5 from public bibliographic data · Jul 20, 2026