Dr. Dean Jones is a distinguished molecular biochemist and recognized leader in redox biology at Emory University School of Medicine. He currently serves as Professor of Medicine in the Division of Pulmonary, Allergy, and Critical Care while directing the Emory Clinical Biomarkers Laboratory and co-directing the Emory Center for Clinical and Molecular Nutrition. Dr. Jones earned his B.S. in Chemistry from the University of Illinois, Urbana in 1971 and completed his Ph.D. in Biochemistry from Oregon Health Sciences University in 1976. Following postdoctoral training in nutritional biochemistry at Cornell University and molecular toxicology at the Karolinska Institute, he joined Emory University as Assistant Professor of Biochemistry in 1979, establishing a research program that would become foundational in oxidative stress research.
Dr. Jones's seminal contributions have fundamentally reshaped understanding of redox mechanisms in human health and disease through his conceptual redefinition of oxidative stress. His groundbreaking 2006 paper 'Redefining oxidative stress,' which has garnered over 2,200 citations, established a new paradigm that continues to guide research across multiple disciplines. As director of the Emory Clinical Biomarkers Laboratory, he pioneered innovative applications of 1H-NMR spectroscopy and Fourier-transform mass spectrometry for high-throughput clinical metabolomic analyses of nutritional and environmental factors. His research has illuminated critical connections between thiol antioxidants, mitochondrial function, and environmental exposures, providing essential insights into disease pathogenesis across numerous conditions including neurodegenerative disorders and cancer.
Beyond his research contributions, Dr. Jones has exerted profound influence through leadership roles including service as Chair of the Alcohol and Toxicology Study Section for the National Institutes of Health and recognition through Emory University's prestigious Albert E. Levy Research Award. His laboratory currently directs multiple major research initiatives exploring the environmental exposome's role in Alzheimer's disease, cognitive decline, and prostate cancer pathogenesis through substantial NIH funding. With over 200 peer-reviewed publications and induction into Emory's MilliPub Club for highly cited work, his scholarly impact extends across biochemistry, toxicology, and precision medicine. Dr. Jones continues to advance the frontier of redox biology through his leadership in exposome medicine, investigating how lifetime environmental exposures interact with biological systems to influence health outcomes across the lifespan.
