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Professor Min Li

Associate Dean (Teaching & Learning), School of Chinese Medicine
Professor, Teaching and Research Division
Director, Mr. & Mrs. Ko Chi Ming Centre for Parkinson's Disease Research

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Professor Min Li

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About

Professor Li Min obtained a Bachelor's degree from the Henan University of Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), China, in 1985; a Master's degree in Chinese Medicine at the Guangzhou University of Chinese Medicine, China, in 1988; and a PhD degree in Cardiology at the School of Medicine, Tokai University, Japan, in 2001. She is currently Associate Dean (Teaching & Learning) of the School of Chinese Medicine and Director of the Mr. and Mrs. Ko Chi Ming Centre for Parkinson's Disease Research. Her clinical specialty is in Chinese medicine treatment of neurodegenerative diseases, including Parkinson's disease, Alzheimer's disease and vascular dementia, as well as for cardio-cerebrovascular diseases.

 

Professor Li's long-term research interests are:

 

  • Neurodegenerative diseases including Parkinson's disease and Alzheimer's disease;
  • Chinese herbal medicine for the prevention and treatment of neurodegenerative diseases; and
  • Development of molecular targets for drug discovery from TCM for neurodegenerative diseases.

 

Professor Li's current research directions are:

 

  • Investigation of the efficacy and safety of TCM in the treatment of neurodegenerative diseases including Parkinson’s disease and Alzheimer’s disease based on randomised controlled clinical trials, as well as the interaction of TCM and Western medicine;
  • Understanding the neuroprotective effects and underlying mechanisms of TCM on neurodegenerative diseases including Parkinson’s disease and Alzheimer’s disease; and
  • Studying the protective effects and underlying mechanisms of TCM on vascular endothelial cells by in vitro and in vivo models.

 

Awarded Research Grants in recent 3 years:

 

  • Evaluating the anti-Alzheimer’s disease efficacy of Caudatin, isolated from Chinese medicine herb Qingyangshen, on AD mice model (HMRF 17182541, PI)
  • Neuroprotective Effect of Chinese medicine NeuroDefend in Improving Memory Dysfunction and Alleviating AD Pathology (GDSSIL 84-506/2019, PI)
  • Study of Chinese Medicine Protopine on Attenuating Tau Pathology in Alzheimer's Disease: The Roles of Histone Deacetylase 6 (GRF/HKBU12100618, PI)
  • New Drug Discovery for Aging-associated Neurodegenerative Disorders-Parkinson's Disease (RC-IRCs/17-18/03, PI)
  • Investigation of Anti-Alzheimer's activity of Protopine derivative for clearing Tau through modulation of HDAC6-Hsp90 interplay and for improving memory via stimulation of RAS-GRF1/ERK pathway (HMRF 15163481, PI)
  • Study of a novel TFEB activator on attenuating Tau pathology in Alzheimer’s disease (GRF/HKBU 12101417, PI)
  • 原阿片碱通過特異性抑制HDAC6用於治療阿爾茲海默病的實驗研究 (NSFC 81773926, PI)

 

Achievements

  • Distinguished Female Chinese Medicine Practitioner by the China Association of Chinese medicine, Beijing, China (2007)
  • Municipal Science and Technology Project Award from Shenzhen Virtual University Park, Shenzhen, China (2011)
  • HKBU Faculty/School/Academy of Visual Arts Performance Award for Outstanding Performance in Scholarly Work (2011-12)
  • HKBU President's Award for Outstanding Performance in Teaching (2012-13)
  • HKBU President's Award for Outstanding Performance in Team Teaching (2017-18)

 

    Research Outputs

    Ten Most Representative Publications

    • Song JX, Malampati S, Zeng Y, Durairajan SSK, Yang CB, Tong BC, Iyaswamy A, Shang WB, Sreenivasmurthy SG, Zhu Z, Cheung KH, Lu JH, Tang C, Xu N, Li M*. A small molecule transcription factor EB activator ameliorates beta-amyloid precursor protein and Tau pathology in Alzheimer's disease models. Aging Cell. 2020 Feb;19(2):e13069.doi: 10.1111/acel.13069.
    • Yang C, Zhu Z, Tong BC, Iyaswamy A, Xie WJ, Zhu Y, Sreenivasmurthy SG, Senthilkumar K, Cheung KH, Song JX, Zhang HJ, Li M*. A stress response p38 MAP kinase inhibitor SB202190 promoted TFEB/TFE3-dependent autophagy and lysosomal biogenesis independent of p38. Redox Biol. 2020 Jan 28:101445. doi: 10.1016/j.redox.2020.101445.
    • Ji F, Sreenivasmurthy SG, Wei J, Shao X, Luan H, Zhu L, Song J, Liu L, Li M*, Cai Z*. Study of BDE-47 induced Parkinson's disease-like metabolic changes in C57BL/6 mice by integrated metabolomic, lipidomic and proteomic analysis. J Hazard Mater. 2019 Oct 15;378:120738.  doi: 10.1016/j.jhazmat.2019.06.015.
    • Yang CB, Cai CZ, Song JX, Tan JQ, Iyaswamy A, Wu MY, Durairajan SSK, Chen LL, Yue ZY, Li M*, Lu JH*. NRBF2 is involved in the autophagic degradation process of APP-CTFs in Alzheimer disease models. Autophagy, 2017;13(12):2028-2040.  doi:10.1080/15548627.2017.1379633.
    • Chen LL, † Wang YB, † Song JX, † Deng WK, Lu JH, Ma LL, Yang CB, Li M*, Xue Y*. Phosphoproteome-based kinase activity profiling reveals the critical role of MAP2K2 and PLK1 in neuronal autophagy.  Autophagy, 2017;13(11):1969-1980.  doi:10.1080/15548627.2017.1371393.
    • Song JX, YR, Peluso I, Zeng Y, Yu X, Lu JH, Xu Z, Wang MZ, Liu LF, Huang YY, Chen LL, Durairajan SS, Zhang HJ, Zhou B, Zhang HQ, Lu A, Ballabio A, Medina D*, Guo Z*, Li M*. A Novel Curcumin Analog Binds to and Activates TFEB in Vitro and in Vivo Independent of MTOR Inhibition. Autophagy, 2016; 12(8):1372-89.doi: 10.1080/15548627.2016.1179404.
    • Lu JH, He L, Behrends C, Araki M, Araki K, Jun Wang Q, Catanzaro JM, Friedman SL, Zong WX, Fiel MI, Li M, Yue ZY*. NRBF2 Regulates Autophagy and Prevents Liver Injury Through Modulating Beclin Atg14L-Linked Phosphatidylinositol-3 Kinase III Activity. Nat. Commun. 2014; 5:3920.   doi: 10.1038/ncomms4920.
    • Song JX, Lu JH, Liu LF, Chen LL, Durairajan SS, Yue Z, Zhang HQ, Li M*. HMGB1 is involved in Autophagy Inhibition Caused by SNCA/alpha-synuclein Overexpression: a Process Modulated by the Natural Autophagy Inducer Corynoxine B. Autophagy. 2014;10(1):144-154. doi: 10.4161/auto.26751.
    • Lu JH, Tan JQ, Durairajan, Liu LF, Zhang ZH, Ma L, Shen HM, Chan HY*, Li M*. Isorhynchophylline, a Natural Alkaloid, Promotes the Degradation of Alpha-synuclein in Neuronal Cells via Inducing Autophagy. Autophagy. 2012; 8(1):98-108. doi: 10.4161/auto.8.1.18313. (Erratum in Autophagy. 2012; 8 (5):864-866.) 
    • Durairajan SSK, Liu LF, Lu JH, Chen LL, Yuan Q, Chung SK, Huang L, Li XS, Huang JD, Li M*. Berberine Ameliorates Beta-amyloid Pathology, Gliosis, and Cognitive Impairment in an Alzheimer's disease Transgenic Mouse Model. Neurobiol Aging. 2012; 33(12): 2903- 2919.  doi: 10.1016/j.neurobiolaging.2012.02.016.