Mohamed H. Farah, PhD
Highlights
Languages
- English
Gender
MaleJohns Hopkins Affiliations:
- Johns Hopkins School of Medicine Faculty
About Mohamed H. Farah
Primary Academic Title
Associate Professor of Neurology
Background
Dr. Mohamed H. Farah is an assistant professor in the department of neurology as well as the department of neuroscience at The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine in Baltimore, Maryland.
The Mohamed Farah Lab studies axonal regeneration in the peripheral nervous system. His team is currently engaged in systematically exploring genetic manipulations of BACE1 substrates in regard to accelerated axonal regeneration and rapid myelin debris removal seen in BACE1 KO mice.
Dr. Farah received his undergraduate degree in biochemistry from Virginia Tech in Blacksburg, Virginia. He earned his PhD in neuroscience from the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, Michigan. He completed a postdoctoral fellowship in the department of pathology at The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine. Dr. Farah joined the Johns Hopkins faculty in 2006.
Additional Academic Titles
Associate Professor of Neuroscience
Lab Website
Mohamed Farah Lab - Lab Website
The Mohamed Farah Lab studies axonal regeneration in the peripheral nervous system. We've found that genetic deletion and pharmacological inhibition of beta-amyloid cleaving enzyme (BACE1) markedly accelerate axonal regeneration in the injured peripheral nerves of mice. We postulate that accelerated nerve regeneration is due to blockade of BACE1 cleavage of two different BACE1 substrates. The two candidate substrates are the amyloid precursor protein (APP) in axons and tumor necrosis factor receptor 1 (TNFR1) on macrophages, which infiltrate injured nerves and clear the inhibitory myelin debris. In the coming years, we will systematically explore genetic manipulations of these two substrates in regard to accelerated axonal regeneration and rapid myelin debris removal seen in BACE1 KO mice. We also study axonal sprouting and regeneration in motor neuron disease models.
Selected Publications
Morrison BM , Tsingalia A, Vidensky S, Lee Y, Jin L, Farah MH, Lengacher S, Pellerin L, Magistretti PJ, Rothstein JD. Deficiency in monocarboxylate transporter 1 (MCT1) in mice delays regeneration of peripheral nerves following sciatic nerve crush. Exp Neurol . Exp Neurol. 2015 Jan;263:325-38.
Liu L, Fissel JA, Tasnim A, Borzan J, Gocke A, Calabresi, PA, Farah MH. Increased TNFR1 expression and signaling in injured peripheral nerves of mice with reduced BACE1 activity. Neurobiology of Disease. In press doi: 10.1016/j.nbd.2016.04.002
Tasnim A , Rammelkamp Z, Slusher AB, Krystyna Wozniak C, Slusher BS, Farah MH. Paclitaxel Causes Degeneration of both Central and Peripheral Axon Branches of Dorsal Root Ganglia in Mice. Accepted April 5, 2016 in MBC Neuroscience
Dali C í, Barton NW, Farah MH, Moldovan M, Månsson. J, Nair N, Dunø M, Risom L, Cao H, Pan L, Sellos-Moura M, Corse AM, and Krarup, C. Sulfatide levels correlate with severity of neuropathy in metachromatic leukodystrophy. Ann Clin Transl Neurol. 2015 May;2(5):518-33.
Tallon C, Russell KA, Sakhalkar S, Andrapallayal A, Farah MH. Length-dependent axo-terminal degeneration at the neuromuscular synapses of type II muscle in SOD1 mice. Neuroscience. 2016 Jan 15;312:179-89. doi: 10.1016/j.neuroscience.2015.11.018. Epub 2015 Nov 18.
Patents
Farah MH. Robust regeneration after peripheral nerve injury., 20130108645, 5/2/13
Honors
- The French Foundation Fellowship, John Douglas French Alzheimer's Foundation, 1/1/05
- National Research Service Award, NIH, 1/1/04
- Excellence in Basic Science Award, Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, 1/1/04
Memberships
- Society for Neuroscience