Dr. AhmetHöke is Professor of Neurology and Neuroscience and Director of the DB Drachman Division of Neuromuscular Disorders in the Department of Neurology at Johns Hopkins University, School of Medicine. Dr. Höke received his medical degree from Hacettepe University in Ankara, Turkey and his Ph.D. in Neuroscience at Case Western Reserve University. He completed his neurology residency at The Johns Hopkins Hospital and neuromuscular fellowship at the University of Calgary, before returning to Johns Hopkins. He is the recipient of 2005 Derek Denny Brown Young Scholar Award from the American Neurological Association and Editor-in-Chief of Experimental Neurology.
His laboratory work is focused on basic biology of peripheral axons and Schwann cells and disorders affecting the peripheral nervous system. He uses in vitro and in vivo models of peripheral neuropathies (HIV-associated sensory neuropathy, diabetic neuropathy and toxic neuropathies) to study the mechanism of axonal damage and develop therapeutic targets for drug development. In addition, he has an additional research interest focusing on mechanisms of axonal degeneration and regeneration using in vitro and in vivo models. He researches novel chemicals to treat peripheral neuropathies and utilizes engineered stem cells as therapeutic gene delivery tools to promote axonal regeneration in chronically denervated nerves as seen in nerve injuries and many degenerating disorders of the peripheral nervous system such as amyotrophic lateral sclerosis and inherited neuropathies.