Biography

Irving E. Vega obtained his undergraduate degree in Biology from the University of Puerto Rico-Mayaguez Campus. He continued his research training in the Department of Cell Biology and Neuroscience at the Graduate School of New Brunswick, Rutgers University, earning his PhD. Dr. Vega completed a postdoctoral fellowship in the Neuroscience Department at Mayo Clinic Jacksonville, where he developed his research career focusing on the pathobiology of Alzheimer’s disease.  Dr. Vega joined the faculty as an Associate Professor in the Department of Translational Neuroscience at Michigan State University College of Human Medicine campus in Grand Rapids, MI in 2014. Here, his research focuses on molecular and biochemical mechanisms that modulate the accumulation of pathological tau proteins in Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias. Dr. Vega is also working on ethnic disparities and the influence of ethnoracial factors on blood biomarkers in Alzheimer’s disease.

• Vega Lab
• Dr. Vega's Pub Med publications

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Education

Institution	Field of Study	Degree	Year
University of Puerto Rico-Mayagüez Campus	Biology	B.S.	1996
Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey	Cell Biology and Neuroscience	Ph.D.	2002

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Research Interests

Dr. Vega’s research is directed toward the understanding of how neurons respond to the presence of pathological tau in different brain regions that are susceptible or resistant to tau-mediated neurodegeneration.

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Technical Expertise

• Mass spectrometry-based Proteomics
• ELISA, Western Blot
• Liquid Chromatography
• Protein Purification and in vitro assays
• Immunohistochemistry
• Cloning and Site-directed mutagenesis
• Mouse model of tauopathy
• Cell culture

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