Alexander Runko, Ph.D.

Dr. Alexander Runko joined the NINDS Extramural Research Program in 2008 as a Program Analyst in the Neurodegeneration Group.  He earned his bachelor’s degree in biochemistry from the State University of New York at Stony Brook.  As an undergraduate, he completed internships at the Brookhaven National Laboratory, conducting research under the Human Genome Project Initiative.  He received his Ph.D. at the University of Massachusetts Medical Center, where his graduate studies focused on characterizing the expression of novel genes during embryonic brain development using the zebrafish as a model organism.  His post-doctoral research at the NINDS primarily analyzed the genetic and molecular mechanisms responsible for the neurodegenerative disease Friedreich's ataxia, using the fruit fly Drosophila melanogaster as a model organism.  Prior to joining the NINDS, Dr. Runko was at Parexel International, serving as a consultant in drug development for the pharmaceutical industry.