
Giovanni Coppola, M.D.
Giovanni Coppola is an Associate Professor of Neurology, and Psychiatry & Biobehavioral Sciences. The overarching goal of his work is to advance the understanding of the genetic architecture of neuropsychiatric disorders. In order to do this, he has adopted a combination of genetic, genomic, and bioinformatics approaches.
In the field of genetics, Dr. Coppola is resequencing neurodegeneration-related genes in a large series of patients with neurodegenerative conditions, including Alzheimer’s Disease (AD), Frontotemporal Dementia (FTD), and Progressive Supranuclear Palsy (PSP), in collaboration with the UCSF Memory and Aging Center, the UCLA Easton Center for Alzheimer’s Research and other collaborating institutions. He is utilizing recent advances in sequencing technology to sequence whole-genome sequencing in patients where causative mutations have not yet been identified. He is also interested in the genetics of neuropsychiatric disorders, including bipolar disorder and Tourette’s Disorder.
In the field of genomics, Dr. Coppola is studying whole-genome expression and methylation data from peripheral blood samples from patients with neurodegenerative dementia. He uses peripheral gene expression data from patients with Friedreich’s ataxia and animal models to characterize the effect of compounds with therapeutic potential.
Dr. Coppola is also developing new methods of integrative analyses, using network-based methods to integrate multiple layers of information, including genetic, genomic, epigenetic, and neuroimaging data.
Learn more about Dr. Coppola’s work here.
Previous Chairs Include:
Michael Fanselow, Ph.D. (01/01/2012 – 06/30/2015)
Kelsey Martin, M.D., Ph.D. (10/01/2006 – 09/30/2011)