Research duo brings breakthrough research to Western

Dr. Xiao Zhen Zhou (left) and Dr. Kun Ping Lu recently joined Western's Schulich Medicine and Dentistry from Harvard University. (credit: Schulich Medicine and Dentistry) - Scientists Drs. Kun Ping Lu and Xiao Zhen Zhou are navigating a delicate balancing act. They are studying a stress response enzyme involved in a puzzling inverse relationship between cancer and Alzheimer's disease: People at risk for one disease are less likely to get the other. Now, the husband-and-wife team is bringing their research program to Schulich Medicine & Dentistry, making the move from Harvard University, to join the departments of biochemistry and pathology and laboratory medicine. "Our biggest goal is to translate our discoveries into clinical practice," said Lu. "The School is championing this development from basic science to the clinic, so we feel it's a perfect match." Lu and Zhou believe a particular enzyme, called Pin1, plays a role in both cancer and Alzheimer's disease - its overexpression is linked to the former, while its absence is associated with the latter.