4/27/2023 Bethan Owen
Moore will be studying the progression of microglia during the course of neurodegenerative diseases.
Written by Bethan Owen
Bioengineering undergraduate senior Hayden Moore received a NSF Graduate Research Fellowship for his proposal to study how microglia interact with other cell types during ALS and other neurodegenerative diseases.
“The goal is to be able to track the progression of what the microglia are doing during the course of a disease,” said Moore. “I chose ALS because that's the disease I was most familiar with, but this kind of work would be available for all neurodegenerative diseases.”
Microglia serve as a kind of immune system for the brain, and play a protective role in homeostasis and many neurodegenerative diseases. However, they can be aggressive in their defense, to the point that they may help the disease more than hinder it. Moore’s proposal will fill a current knowledge gap by researching when and h
ow the microglia become aggressive towards the host neurons of the brain.
Studying the less obvious elements of microglia’s abilities could open further doors to understanding how to manage different elements of a brain in the midst of disease.
“With this research, we could better understand how to test different gene knockdowns,” said Moore. “Maybe we shouldn't be just reaching the neurons where the cells are expressing toxic proteins; maybe we should try to stimulate other cells around them that can be helpful.”
Moore thanked his graduate advisor Alejandra Zeballos and Professor Thomas Gaj for making this fellowship a reality.
"We are all so proud of Hayden and are just thrilled that his hard work was rewarded with an NSF GRFP,” said Professor Gaj. “He has been an invaluable member of our team and I am so excited for him as he begins the next step of his journey."
Moore’s proposal is grounded in his established and rapidly developing background in bioengineering and developing gene therapies for neurodegenerative diseases, which he has cultivated even through a significant upheaval in his academic career.
“I joined the Gaj lab my freshman year in March 2020,” said Moore. “And we all know what happened that month. I was accepted into the lab on Monday, and lockdown started on Friday.”
For someone interested in studying drug delivery, COVID-19 presented an interesting research backdrop. “A lot of my research became way more important all of a sudden, especially with mRNA research,” said Moore. “It showed how important the work and the research is when it comes to trying to treat a disease on any level.”
With this passion for disease treatment and three years of experience in the Gaj lab to guide him, Moore is looking forward to continuing his research with the help of this prestigious fellowship.
“Everything I've done has been validated by this giant fellowship,” said Moore. “It's very exciting. And it gives me a bit of freedom, because funding is kind of what everything comes down to at the end of the day; if you can't fund a project, then there's no way for you to conduct it. But now no matter where I go to graduate school, I can bring my own funding.”
Moore has since accepted an offer of admission to the joint Biomedical Engineering Program at Georgia Tech and Emory University.