Executive Director, NextGen Precision Health Initiative
Professor of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, Neurology and Medical Pharmacology and Physiology, School of Medicine
NextGen Focus Area: Neuroscience (Biology of the Aging)
David Arnold’s research program is focused on translational neuromuscular physiology in the context of health, aging and disease. His lab leverages clinical and preclinical studies to understand mechanisms of biological aging of the nervous system as well as genetic, acquired and sporadic disorders of muscle and the motoneuron. Adding years to a person’s life is not Dr. Arnold’s primary goal. Instead, he is interested in mechanisms of decline of the nervous system and muscle during aging and understanding ways to improve resiliency of nervous system function across the lifespan.
Precision Health Impact:
Aging is one of the most important risk factors of disease.
- Understanding the mechanisms of age-related physiological decline and developing strategies to slow or reverse this impact.
- Maintaining or improving function across the lifespan (improving “health span”).
- Precision medicine interventions for genetic and sporadic forms of neurodegeneration.
Publications:
- Sheth KA, Iyer CC, Wier CG, Crum AE, Bratasz A, Kolb SJ, et al. Muscle strength and size are associated with motor unit connectivity in aged mice. Neurobiol Aging. 2018 Jul;67:128–36.
- Chugh D, Iyer CC, Wang X, Bobbili P, Rich MM, Arnold WD. Neuromuscular junction transmission failure is a late phenotype in aging mice. Neurobiol Aging. 2020 Feb;86:182–90.
- Arnold WD, Severyn S, Zhao S, Kline D, Linsenmayer M, Kelly K, et al. Persistent neuromuscular junction transmission defects in adults with spinal muscular atrophy treated with nusinersen. BMJ Neurology Open. 2021 Aug 1;3(2):e000164.
- Padilla CJ, Harrigan ME, Harris H, Schwab JM, Rutkove SB, Rich MM, et al. Profiling age-related muscle weakness and wasting: neuromuscular junction transmission as a driver of age-related physical decline. Geroscience. 2021 Jun;43(3):1265–81.
- Chugh D, Iyer CC, Bobbili P, Blatnik AJ, Kaspar BK, Meyer K, et al. Voluntary wheel running with and without follistatin overexpression improves NMJ transmission but not motor unit loss in late life of C57BL/6J mice. Neurobiol Aging. 2021 May;101:285–96.
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The Arnold Lab
Email: wdavidarnold@health.missouri.edu
Department website: https://www.muhealth.org/doctors/william-arnold-md