Didonna Lab

The Didonna Lab aims at understanding the mechanistic connection between aberrant immune responses and neurodegenerative processes in chronic human diseases.

[Didonna Lab @DidonnaLab]

Really excited to share our new work on the neuroprotective role of specific HLA alleles on Parkinson's disease that was published in Neurology N2 @GreenJournal @ECUBrodySOM
https://t.co/9CzgDvC7mF

[Didonna Lab @DidonnaLab]

I am thrilled to see our study finally out in @CommsMedicine we have defined the proteomic changes in peripheral immune cells at MS onset @ECUBrodySOM

https://t.co/aAOtxKAc0e

[East Carolina University Graduate School @ECUGradSchool]

ECU has received its first-ever NIH T32 training grant, a nearly $2.8 million investment supporting doctoral students through the new Basic Biomedical Sciences Research Training Program.
Learn more: https://t.co/8t40uDLkk4

[The Nobel Prize @NobelPrize]

BREAKING NEWS
The 2026 #NobelPrize in Physiology or Medicine has been awarded to Karl Deisseroth, Peter Hegemann and Georg Nagel “for their discoveries concerning light-gated ion channels and optogenetics.”

[ECU @EastCarolina]

A new collaboration is driving the next phase of discovery. 🔎

A research team at #ECU’s Brody School of Medicine has been awarded a $250,000 grant to study how chronic brain inflammation contributes to Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s diseases. 🔬

🔗: https://t.co/nKnSliFH1M

[Didonna Lab @DidonnaLab]

We are deeply grateful to the Brody family for funding this collaborative opportunity and for bringing us together as a new research team @ECUBrodySOM @res

https://t.co/dpxfojKhWK

[NYAS @NYASciences]

Check out the latest #NYASAnnals publication! Multiomics Profiling During Autoimmune Demyelination Highlights a Complex Regulatory Role for Ataxin‐1 in B Cells https://t.co/xgxUwao9zB

[Didonna Lab @DidonnaLab]

Check out our new paper published today in @NYASciences -- We employed a multiomics pipeline to define ataxin-1 activity in B cells @ECUResearch

https://t.co/E8f4i2OFFf

[ECU Brody School of Medicine @ECUBrodySOM]

Tomorrow leaders and officials and our construction partners gather for a topping out ceremony for the Brody Center for Medical Education. It's a reminder that we're not just expanding, we're investing. In our best and brightest. In better health outcomes in #ENC.

[ECU Brody School of Medicine @ECUBrodySOM]

Judge Jack Jenkins, youngest son of former ECU Chancellor Leo Jenkins, gave a Brody Auditorium lunchtime talk on his father’s leadership style. One tip that stood out — put in the work. Another, make the choice as leader you know is just and right in your heart.

[ECU Brody School of Medicine @ECUBrodySOM]

Congrats biomedical sciences grad students on your _18_ first-author publications (28 total) this academic year, and particularly award winners Savanna Williams, Drew Theobald, Kathryn Lorbacher and (not pictured) Connor Cribb.

[nature @Nature]

Nature research paper: Lineage and organ signals sequentially build organ intrinsic nervous systems
https://t.co/V87bLVLjsR

[Neurology Journal @GreenJournal]

Shared Epitope-Positive HLA Alleles Protect Against Alpha-Synuclein Pathology in a Model of Parkinson Disease https://t.co/fDGu0pB0Mz

#NeuroTwitter #ParkinsonDisease

[Didonna Lab @DidonnaLab]

Proud to see @EastCarolina recognized by the @cure345 Innovation Index as one of the top 303 U.S. institutions advancing biomedical innovation.

https://t.co/qT1jKu5f5q

[ECU @EastCarolina]

#ECU researchers are driving what’s next. ⏩

More than 60 scholars, innovators and creators were recently honored for their contributions to research, creative activity and innovation.

Learn more ⤵️ https://t.co/JzT0jd1XOk

[Didonna Lab @DidonnaLab]

I am truly grateful for receiving the Early Career Trendsetter Award. This achievement could have not been possible without the support of Brody, the Department of Anatomy & Cell Biology and all the dedicated people working in the lab.

[Joe Sabatino @jsabatino37]

Multiple molecular mimics in Epstein Barr Nuclear Antigen-1, and the pathogenesis of multiple sclerosis

https://t.co/YMTXOTBBvn

[ECU Brody School of Medicine @ECUBrodySOM]

Meet our 2026 Brody Brothers Endowment Research Grant recipients! These are primary investigators of deadly cancers, cellular metabolism, parasite-host dynamics and more. Thank you, Brody Family, for your _ongoing_ generous support of these researchers at @ECU.

[Didonna Lab @DidonnaLab]

Great teamwork for the traditional departmental door decoration contest that resulted in our first second place🎄

[Science Magazine @ScienceMagazine]

Some archaea—an ancient group of microorganisms—have an entirely novel genetic code, according to a new study in Science. Their genetic code reassigns a DNA “stop” signal to incorporate the rare amino acid pyrrolysine into their proteins.

The findings expand our understanding of how alternative genetic codes evolve and hint at new molecular tools for biotechnology applications. https://t.co/SNz70GImAi