UAB Digital Commons (Univ. of Alabama at Birmingham)

University of Alabama at Birmingham

September 23, 2025
UAB earns elite Honor Roll status in Great Colleges program
UAB has earned national recognition among top employers in higher education through
the Great Colleges to Work For® program — receiving the prestigious Honor Roll
distinction for the first time, placing among the nation's top universities for employee
satisfaction. The university earned high marks in multiple categories, establishing UAB
as a benchmark for workplace excellence in higher education. See the full recognition
details. 🏆
Open enrollment: Oct. 17-Nov. 3
Stay tuned to the Reporter as UAB begins
rolling out information to provide benefit-
eligible employees time to review
upcoming changes and make informed
decisions. Open enrollment begins 7 a.m.
Oct. 17 and concludes 5 p.m. Nov. 3.
SUCCESS town hall recap
Leaders shared key accomplishments of
UAB's SUCCESS Initiative, including
increased fall 2025 enrollment driven by
enhanced scholarships and expanded
student support. Four new thematic groups
will implement 30 high-impact plans. Read a
recap or watch a video of the town hall.
Things to know
9 projects win 2025 Blazer Bridge Fund awards
The Harbert Institute for Innovation and Entrepreneurship is supporting development of
promising innovations from UAB inventors, including a novel cancer-targeting antibody,
an advanced bone regeneration matrix and an AI communication coaching app (the
team behind that last project is pictured above). The Blazer Bridge Fund has invested
$900,000 in 21 projects since launching in 2023. See the full list of winners online.
Donate blood this week
UAB has a critical need for blood products.
Make an appointment to donate in this
week’s blood drive in the North Pavilion
Red Cross Donor Room (NP 2390) and get
an e-gift card to Amazon.com and an
opportunity to receive UAB football tickets.
The drive will be held 9 a.m.-3 p.m. today
through Thursday.
Register now for Wellscreens
The 15-minute screenings are free to all
benefit-eligible employees. My Health
Rewards participants can earn up to $350
annually by completing healthy activities
and behaviors, including a Wellscreens visit.
Wellscreens visit dates start Oct. 2; see all
available dates and locations for
screenings and register here. 
♻ Recycle here
The UAB Recycling Center is open to UAB
employees, students and the general public
7-9 a.m. and 4-5:30 p.m. Monday and
Thursday. See a list of accepted items
(and where you can take items not accepted
at UAB Recycling).
Research & learning
Master calculations and coding with Copilot
Learn how to leverage Microsoft Copilot for calculations, spreadsheet formulas, and
basic coding in this session led by Microsoft Senior AI Workforce Specialist Kali Alford.
Designed for both technical and non-technical employees, this session will show you
how UAB's approved AI tools can streamline your data analysis tasks.
⏰ 11 a.m. Sept. 24 | 📍 virtual  | 🗓 Register online
Level up your presentation
skills
Learn evidence-based techniques to create
more engaging and effective presentations
in this interactive workshop.
⏰ 1:30 p.m. Sept. 23
📍 virtual
🗓 Register online
Create polished PDFs
Learn to organize content, add accessibility
features and incorporate charts and graphs
in this hands-on workshop. Bring your
device with Creative Cloud installed
(available at go.uab.edu/adobe).
⏰ 1 p.m. Sept. 24
📍 Sterne Library room 174
🗓 Register online
Save the date for these upcoming symposia
→ 2025 UAB Immunology Symposium, Oct. 23
→ AI and Technology in Global Health: Bridging Divides, Oct. 29 & 30
Teaching with Technology: PlayPosit
Learner Made Bulbs, 11 a.m. Sept. 25
Thriving in Your 20s: Essential Healthy
Habits for Young Adults, noon Sept. 25
Sharpening Your Clinical Research
Questions, 12:30 p.m. Sept. 25
Building a Survey Codebook:
Strategies for Organized Data
Management, 10 a.m. Sept. 26
Citizen Science for Health: Bridging
Communities and Research, 10 a.m.
Sept. 26
Mark your calendars
Score big savings with UAB Football's Family Four Pack
Bring the whole family to see the Blazers take on Army during Family Weekend at
Protective Stadium.
⏰ 11 a.m. Oct. 4 | 📍 Protective Stadium | 🗓 Buy tickets
National Solar Tour 2025
This annual festival at the UAB Solar House
features live music, food, art vendors, local
nonprofits and more.
⏰ 10 a.m.-2 p.m. Oct. 4
📍 UAB Solar House
🗓 Details online
NAS celebrates 125+
scholarship recipients
Celebrate the academic success of this
year's UAB National Alumni Society
scholarship recipients during a special
ceremony.
⏰ 6 p.m. Oct. 7
📍 Alumni House
🗓 Register online
One more thing
A tree nearly took his life. UAB helped him battle back.
Grayson Pope was fleeing a pop-up storm when a large tree collapsed on his golf cart.
He suffered hundreds of brain bleeds, brain stem damage and swelling on his brain. “So
many people at UAB played such a pivotal role in saving my son’s life,” said Jamie Pope,
Grayson’s mom. Learn what happened in this story and video.
More news online
Get campus news at uab.edu/reporter and uab.edu/news. Check the Campus Calendar
for more events on campus, and submit your own. If you have news you want to share,
use the Request Publicity form online.
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Direct questions about the eReporter to reporter@uab.edu.
Read UAB Reporter Request Publicity
Clinical Trials eReporter Archive
The eReporter is published by and for the UAB community as a service of the Office of Marketing and
Communications. It is an official communication of UAB, companion to the UAB Reporter news site and
the recommended alternative to mass e-mails.


September 23, 2025 eReporter

October 8, 2025 Blazer Weekly

November 14, 2025 eReporter

2025 Fall Expo Poster Presentation Service-Learninghttps://digitalcommons.library.uab.edu/sp-expo/1152/thumbnail.jp

Calderon-Wyant, Ysabel

Corvey, Kathryn

From Classroom to Community: ​PUH 495 Service-Learning and Park Activity Research ​

2025 Fall Expo Poster Presentation Health Sciences & Health Professionshttps://digitalcommons.library.uab.edu/sp-expo/1159/thumbnail.jp

Hiwalkar, Shreya

Judge, Noor

Chi, Seong In

Desai, Purva

Patel, Akhsar

Jun, Ho-Wok

Cheon, Kyounga

Rodent Model Development: A standard operating procedure (SOP)

2025 Fall Expo Poster Presentation Works in Progress - class projecthttps://digitalcommons.library.uab.edu/sp-expo/1163/thumbnail.jp

Martin, Sophia Elise

Dunklin, Alexander

Mind and Material: Mapping Areas of Mental Healthcare and Material Hardship​

December 5, 2025 eReporter

December 16, 2025 eReporter

2025 ASEM 620 Capstone Projecthttps://digitalcommons.library.uab.edu/asem/1011/thumbnail.jp

Keller, Mark D

Integrating a “World -Class” Safety System Into Diverse Teams

2025 Spring Expo Online Poster Presentation Health Sciences & Health Professionshttps://digitalcommons.library.uab.edu/sp-expo/1051/thumbnail.jp

Dahlen, Audrey M

Watson, Kimberly

Jackson, Madelyne

Sajdak, Geir

Niebuhr, Katherine

Simmons, Micah

Cowell, Rita

2
2
2
2o ----=
2
Introduction
Examining a Potential Therapeutic approach for Parkinson's Disease Using 
Over-expression of ATP6VoA1
 
Audrey M. Dahlen, Kimberly Watson, Madelyne Jackson, Geir Sajdak, Katherine Niebuhr, Micah Simmons, Rita Cowell 
Results
2
2
Department of Neurology, University of Alabama at Birmingham
Parkinson's disease (PD)  is the most common 
neurodegenerative movement disorder and 
is characterized by the loss of dopaminergic neurons 
in the substantia nigra 
pars compacta and aggregation of the α-
synuclein protein. Emerging evidence suggests 
that lysosomal function plays a vital role in the 
removal of α-synuclein aggregates through 
autophagy. Interestingly, we determined 
that ATP6V0A1 and ATP6V1A, subunits of the
v-ATPase transmembrane pump that are integral 
in maintaining lysosomal pH homeostasis and 
autophagy clearance, are risk factors for 
PD. However, we do not know the relationship 
between these genes' function and the 
development of synuclein pathology. It is possible 
that by enhancing autophagy and the clearance of 
protein aggregates, ATP6V1A and 
ATP6V0A1 could slow disease progression and 
could serve as a potential therapeutic target for 
treating Parkinson’s disease. Here, we show data 
implicating ATP6V1A and ATP6V0A1 in PD etiology 
and validate a number of tools to over-express both 
genes in a mouse model of synucleinopathy. 
Four wild-type mice and four CAG-RFP-EGFP-LC3 
mice were injected with AAV-ATP6V1A or 
unilaterally  with AAV-ATP6V0A1, respectively, into 
the substantia nigra to transduce dopaminergic 
neurons with ATP6V1A using a preformed fibril 
model or ATP6V0A1 using autofluorescence.4 weeks 
later, mice were perfused with saline and 
paraformaldehyde and brains were removed and 
frozen for sectioning on the sliding microtome. After 
sectioning, free floating immunofluorescence was 
performed on the tissue and stained with antibody 
for protein identification. A confocal microscope was 
used to view stained and autofluorescence tissue.
Our findings indicate that ATP6V1A is absent in 
dopaminergic neurons, despite the presence of 
protein aggregates, whereas non-dopaminergic 
neurons exhibit ATP6V1A expression. This suggests 
that the selective vulnerability of dopaminergic 
neurons in Parkinson’s disease may be influenced by 
impaired lysosomal function, potentially contributing 
to aggregate accumulation. However, other factors 
may also play a role, and further studies are needed 
to determine the exact mechanisms involved. We can 
confirm that the CAG-RFP-EGFP-LC3 model is the 
appropriate method moving forward in determining 
the effects of ATP6VoA1 modulation. 
Future studies will investigate further adjustments 
to the V-ATPase pump through modulation of gene 
expression in dopaminergic neurons can enhance 
lysosomal function, promote autophagy, and reduce 
protein aggregate accumulation. The tissue collected 
from CAG-RFP-EGFP-LC3 mice to assess the relative 
acidity of the lysosome.
Acknowledgments
Conclusions
Methods
Future Directions
Figure 2. Composite Immunohistochemistry Staining Showing 
NeuN, TH, ATP6V1A, and a-synuclein staining. 
Figure 1. Immunohistochemistry showing TH+ dopaminergic neurons 
(white), all neuron cell types (blue), ATP6V1A expression (green), and 
a-synuclein aggregate model (red) in the substantia nigra.  
Immunofluorescence of ATP6V1A Results
I thank the UAB Honors College and UAB Heersink 
Neurology for their support, as well as my mentor 
Rita Cowell and the Cowell lab members for their 
guidance. Figure  2. Model of  V-ATPase pump on Dopaminergic 
Neurons.
Immunofluorescence of ATP6VoA1 Results
Figure 1. A-Syn PFF Model, highlighting the injected PFF’s propagating 
to the Substantia Nigra.
Figure 3. Immunohistochemistry on CAG-RFP-EGFP-LC3 tissue 
showing autofluorescence. Red indicates a fully acidified vesicle 
and green indicates a poorly acidified vesicle 
Figure 4. Composite Immunohistochemistry on CAG-RFP-EGFP-LC3 
tissue showing yellow autophagosome due to green signal being 
partially quenched. As the autophagosome matures and fuses with 
the lysosome, the resulting autolysosome would become more red.


English

Examining a Potential Therapeutic approach for Parkinson\u27s Disease Using Over-expression of ATP6VoA1

Not a member yet

September 23, 2025 eReporter

October 8, 2025 Blazer Weekly

November 14, 2025 eReporter

From Classroom to Community: PUH 495 Service-Learning and Park Activity Research

Rodent Model Development: A standard operating procedure (SOP)

Mind and Material: Mapping Areas of Mental Healthcare and Material Hardship

December 5, 2025 eReporter

December 16, 2025 eReporter

Integrating a “World -Class” Safety System Into Diverse Teams

Examining a Potential Therapeutic approach for Parkinson\u27s Disease Using Over-expression of ATP6VoA1

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