Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center · PharmacologyCognitive Vitality Lab
John Joshua Lawrence · Lubbock, Texas
Research Focus
Dr. John Joshua Lawrence's lab focuses on understanding how oxidative stress and gene regulation affect learning and memory, particularly in the context of aging and Alzheimer’s disease. By examining the hippocampal dentate gyrus, a key brain region for these functions, the lab investigates how vitamin A supplementation and histone deacetylase inhibitors can potentially mitigate cognitive decline. Their interdisciplinary approach combines behavioral studies with advanced multi-omic analyses to identify new strategies for maintaining brain health.
Alzheimer's DiseaseOxidative StressVitamin AHippocampusGene RegulationNeurologyCognitionEpigeneticsHistone Deacetylase InhibitionAging
Research Aims
5AIM 01Investigate the effects of vitamin A supplementation on Alzheimer's-related learning deficits.
AIM 02Examine how HDAC inhibition can alleviate cognitive impairments in aging.
AIM 03Combine vitamin A supplementation and HDAC inhibitors to enhance gene transcription associated with learning.
AIM 04Determine the multi-omic signatures in the hippocampal dentate gyrus related to Alzheimer’s disease.
AIM 05Explore the potential for drug repurposing of FDA-approved HDAC inhibitors.
Skills the Lab Values
RNA sequencingMouse modelsBehavioral assaysCell cultureWestern blotMetabolomicsLipidomicsBioinformaticsTranscriptional analysisExperimental design
Output against the department
Publications105bottom 28% of dept.334th of 462
this lab
most publishedleast published
Citations2.0kbottom 13% of dept.401st of 462
this lab
most citedleast cited
Career totals from OpenAlex, compared against labs that share a department. A department spans everything from one paper to tens of thousands, so bar heights are on a log scale — otherwise the largest lab would flatten every other bar to a line.