Welcoming new assistant professor Dr. Jeff Dong

Dr. Dong will study how oxidative stress drives damage in the central nervous system and how we can mitigate it to treat neurodegenerative disease.

By Sarah Anderson, PhD

While exploring the UBC campus in 2007, first-year undergraduate student Dr. Jeff Dong found himself walking past the newly-constructed Life Sciences Institute. “I remember thinking, ‘What is this building? This building looks so cool. I want to work in this building,’” he said. 

Fortunately for Dr. Dong, the sleek edifice was home to the study of immunology, a discipline that had captured his interest in high school. Dr. Dong pursued a degree in microbiology and immunology and learned how rewarding research could be while working in the lab of former UBC professor Dr. Stephanie Borgland. “Discovering something new gave me a bit of a dopamine hit, which is funny because the Borgland lab studied what controls motivation and rewards in the brain,” he said. 

After gaining additional undergraduate research experience in virology and thriving in his upper-level immunology courses, Dr. Dong decided to stay at UBC to earn a PhD in microbiology and immunology. Under the mentorship of Dr. Pauline Johnson, he studied how a key protein on the surface of macrophages, a type of immune cell, interacts with the extracellular matrix molecule hyaluronan in the lung environment.

Dong went on to conduct postdoctoral research on the mechanisms of neuroinflammation and neurodegeneration in multiple sclerosis in the lab of Dr. Wee Yong at the University of Calgary. He then launched his career as an independent investigator in the field of neuroimmunology at the University of Saskatchewan.  

Dr. Dong’s research is aimed at uncovering the physiological role of oxidized phosphatidylcholines (OxPCs) — molecules he first encountered as a graduate student in Johnson’s lab — in the central nervous system in the context of neurogenerative disease. These molecules form when lipids within and on the surface of cells are attacked by unstable, highly reactive oxygen species and are known to accumulate in brain lesions in people with multiple sclerosis. 

Dr. Dong has found that OxPCs are not simply biomarkers of oxidative stress but play an active role in driving neurotoxicity. His work has also revealed that microglia, the brain’s front-line immune cells, are able to take up OxPCs and neutralize their harmful effects. However, aging appears to impair the microglia’s protective functions, which may contribute to the progression of multiple sclerosis with age. 

Dr. Dong is using mouse models to study how influences such as diet and exercise impact oxidative injury, revealing both risk factors and potential lifestyle interventions for neurodegenerative disease. He is also exploring therapeutic delivery of antibodies that can bind to and sequester OxPCs in the central nervous system.

As Dr. Dong returns to UBC’s Department of Microbiology and Immunology as an assistant professor, his dream of working in the Life Sciences Institute has been fulfilled in a way he never expected. “I’ve always looked back on my time in the department with great fondness, and being able to join the faculty is fantastic and full-circle in many ways. I’m very grateful,” he said. 

As he embarks on this next chapter, Dr. Dong is eager to collaborate with the department’s strong community of autoimmunity scientists and to explore fresh directions for his work, perhaps revisiting his research roots in the process. “My PhD studies focused on the lung, and I think there may be an intricate connection between what's happening in the respiratory system and in the central nervous system,” he said. For example, he is interested in investigating potential cross-talk between immune structures in the nasal cavity and the brain. 

Committed to paying forward the mentorship he has enjoyed throughout his career, Dr. Dong is also excited to support his students as they pursue new experiments, projects, and professional development opportunities at UBC. He said, “Ultimately, I hope to help my trainees achieve their goals, do some cool science, and work to improve the health of Canadians.”