Mission&Team

Giselle P. Lim, PhD

Previous Member Alzheimer's Research Group 1998-2008

Giselle was one of our best team leaders, particularly well-known for her seminal work on efficacy of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory agents in Transgenic Models of Alzheimer's. She published the first paper EVER using transgenic models to test drugs, in this cae ibuprofen. She also spent a large amount of time, training technicians to perform Westerns and ELISAs. Her enthusiatic spirit, steadfast energy and can-do attitude brought several projects to closure and and are highly cited. Some of her papers have been cited over 800 times!. Her work was one of the critical studies leading to the current clinical trial with curcumin in veterans at risk, that started May 2013. Giselle graduated from UC Irvine with a Bachelor’s of Science degree in Biology in 1989. She began working as a staff scientist in the histology clinic at the Beckman Laser Institute and Medical Clinic at UCI soon after graduating. In the fall of 1991, she enrolled in the Ph.D. program in the Dept of Cell and Neurology at the USC Keck School of Medicine, where she studied the expression of matrix metalloproteinases in Alzheimer’s disease and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) under the direction of Drs. Zoltan Tokes and Michael Cullen. After a year of postdoctoral training at USC, she joined Dr. Cole’s lab in 1998 and focused on evaluating the effects of anti-inflammatory and anti-oxidant components in transgenic mouse model for Alzheimer’s disease using biochemical assays. Her current projects focus on how essential fatty acids such as DHA can modulate the production of ßamyloid and its precursor, amyloid precursor protein in transgenic mice and neuroblastoma cells.

Extracurricular activities. Giselle used to participate in the Chinese New Year parade as a dragon, and going to the Griffith park carousel with her daughters Emily and Amanda,but now she lives in Orange County. She is known for huge parties with delicious Chinese food cooked by her father, an engineer, who in addition to engineering a secret spicy eggplant tofu & cabbage dishes, also in his spare time engineered the tables to hold the hundred of pounds of water inside our mouse and rat water maze tanks.

Selected peer-reviewed publications (in chronological order).
1. Curcumin structure-function, bioavailability, and efficacy in models of neuroinflammation and Alzheimer's disease. Begum AN, Jones MR, Lim GP, Morihara T, Kim P, Heath DD, Rock CL, Pruitt MA, Yang F, Hudspeth B, Hu S, Faull KF, Teter B, Cole GM, Frautschy SA. J Pharmacol Exp Ther. 2008 Jul;326(1):196-208. doi: 10.1124/jpet.108.137455. Epub 2008 Apr 16.

2. Cyclooxygenase-2 inhibition improves amyloid-beta-mediated suppression of memory and synaptic plasticity. Kotilinek LA, Westerman MA, Wang Q, Panizzon K, Lim GP, Simonyi A, Lesne S, Falinska A, Younkin LH, Younkin SG, Rowan M, Cleary J, Wallis RA, Sun GY, Cole G, Frautschy S, Anwyl R, Ashe KH. Brain. 2008 Mar;131(Pt 3):651-64. doi: 10.1093/brain/awn008.

3. Evidence of Abeta- and transgene-dependent defects in ERK-CREB signaling in Alzheimer's models. Ma QL, Harris-White ME, Ubeda OJ, Simmons M, Beech W, Lim GP, Teter B, Frautschy SA, Cole GM. J Neurochem. 2007 Nov;103(4):1594-607. Epub 2007 Aug 30.

4. Role of p21-activated kinase pathway defects in the cognitive deficits of Alzheimer disease. Zhao L, Ma QL, Calon F, Harris-White ME, Yang F, Lim GP, Morihara T, Ubeda OJ, Ambegaokar S, Hansen JE, Weisbart RH, Teter B, Frautschy SA, Cole GM. Nat Neurosci. 2006 Feb;9(2):234-42. Epub 2006 Jan 15.

5. Antibodies against beta-amyloid reduce Abeta oligomers, glycogen synthase kinase-3beta activation and tau phosphorylation in vivo and in vitro. Ma QL, Lim GP, Harris-White ME, Yang F, Ambegaokar SS, Ubeda OJ, Glabe CG, Teter B, Frautschy SA, Cole GM. J Neurosci Res. 2006 Feb 15;83(3):374-84. PMID: 16385556 Prevention of Alzheimer's disease:

6. Omega-3 fatty acid and phenolic anti-oxidant interventions. Cole GM, Lim GP, Yang F, Teter B, Begum A, Ma Q, Harris-White ME, Frautschy SA. Neurobiol Aging. 2005 Dec;26 Suppl 1:133-6. Epub 2005 Nov 2. Review.

7.Calon F, Lim GP, Morihara T, Yang F, Ubeda O, Salem N Jr, Frautschy SA, Cole GM. Dietary n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acid depletion activates caspases and decreases NMDA receptors in the brain of a transgenic mouse model of Alzheimer's disease. Eur J Neurosci. 2005 Aug;22(3):617-26.PMID: 16101743 [PubMed - in process]

8: Lim GP, Calon F, Morihara T, Yang F, Teter B, Ubeda O, Salem N Jr, Frautschy SA, Cole GM. A diet enriched with the omega-3 fatty acid docosahexaenoic acid reduces amyloid burden in an aged Alzheimer mouse model.J Neurosci. 2005 Mar 23;25(12):3032-40.PMID: 15788759 [PubMed - in process]
9: Morihara T, Teter B, Yang F, Lim GP, Boudinot S, Boudinot FD, Frautschy SA, Cole GM. Ibuprofen suppresses interleukin-1beta induction of pro-amyloidogenic alpha1-antichymotrypsin to ameliorate beta-amyloid (Abeta) pathology in Alzheimer's models.
Neuropsychopharmacology. 2005 Jun;30(6):1111-20. PMID: 15688088 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]
10: Cole GM, Morihara T, Lim GP, Yang F, Begum A, Frautschy SA. NSAID and Antioxidant Prevention of Alzheimer's Disease: Lessons from In Vitro and Animal Models.
Ann N Y Acad Sci. 2004 Dec;1035:68-84.PMID: 15681801 [PubMed - in process]
11: Zhao L, Teter B, Morihara T, Lim GP, Ambegaokar SS, Ubeda OJ, Frautschy SA, Cole GM. Insulin-degrading enzyme as a downstream target of insulin receptor signaling cascade: implications for Alzheimer's disease intervention.
J Neurosci. 2004 Dec 8;24(49):11120-6.PMID: 15590928 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]
12: Yang F, Lim GP, Begum AN, Ubeda OJ, Simmons MR, Ambegaokar SS, Chen PP, Kayed R, Glabe CG, Frautschy SA, Cole GM.Curcumin inhibits formation of amyloid beta oligomers and fibrils, binds plaques, and reduces amyloid in vivo.
J Biol Chem. 2005 Feb 18;280(7):5892-901. Epub 2004 Dec 7. PMID: 15590663 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]
13: Calon F, Lim GP, Yang F, Morihara T, Teter B, Ubeda O, Rostaing P, Triller A, Salem N Jr, Ashe KH, Frautschy SA, Cole GM. Docosahexaenoic acid protects from dendritic pathology in an Alzheimer's disease mouse model.
Neuron. 2004 Sep 2;43(5):633-45.PMID: 15339646 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]
14: Harris-White ME, Balverde Z, Lim GP, Kim P, Miller SA, Hammer H, Galasko D, Frautschy SA Role of LRP in TGFbeta2-mediated neuronal uptake of Abeta and effects on memory.
J Neurosci Res. 2004 Jul 15;77(2):217-28. PMID: 15211588 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]
15: Lim GP, Yang F, Chu T, Gahtan E, Ubeda O, Beech W, Overmier JB, Hsiao-Ashec K, Frautschy SA, Cole GM. Ibuprofen effects on Alzheimer pathology and open field activity in APPsw transgenic mice.Neurobiol Aging. 2001 Nov-Dec;22(6):983-91.PMID: 11755007 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]
16: Lim GP, Chu T, Yang F, Beech W, Frautschy SA, Cole GM. The curry spice curcumin reduces oxidative damage and amyloid pathology in an Alzheimer transgenic mouse. J Neurosci. 2001 Nov 1;21(21):8370-7.PMID: 11606625 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]
17: Lim GP, Yang F, Chu T, Chen P, Beech W, Teter B, Tran T, Ubeda O, Ashe KH, Frautschy SA, Cole GM. Ibuprofen suppresses plaque pathology and inflammation in a mouse model for Alzheimer's disease. J Neurosci. 2000 Aug 1;20(15):5709-14.PMID: 10908610 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]
18: Lim GP, Russell MJ, Cullen MJ, Tokes ZA. Matrix metalloproteinases in dog brains exhibiting Alzheimer-like characteristics.J Neurochem. 1997 Apr;68(4):1606-11.PMID: 9084432 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]
19: Backstrom JR, Lim GP, Cullen MJ, Tokes ZA. Matrix metalloproteinase-9 (MMP-9) is synthesized in neurons of the human hippocampus and is capable of degrading the amyloid-beta peptide (1-40). J Neurosci. 1996 Dec 15;16(24):7910-9.
PMID: 8987819 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]
20: Lim GP, Backstrom JR, Cullen MJ, Miller CA, Atkinson RD, Tokes ZA. Matrix metalloproteinases in the neocortex and spinal cord of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis patients. J Neurochem. 1996 Jul;67(1):251-9. PMID: 8666998 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]