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Professor Siddharthan Chandran
We are delighted to announce that Professor Siddharthan Chandran, a world-leading expert in neurodegenerative diseases, will become the new Director of the UK Dementia Research Institute (UK DRI) from 1 October 2023.
Professor Chandran is a clinician-scientist at the forefront of the emerging discipline of Regenerative Neurology. He is renowned for his pioneering work in motor neuron and neurodegenerative disease research—work that bridges the gap between the laboratory and the clinic. He is currently a Group Leader at the UK DRI at the University of Edinburgh where his lab uses patient derived pluripotent stem cells to study motor neurone disease (MND) and frontotemporal dementia.
“I am delighted to have the opportunity to lead the UK DRI whose ultimate aim is to transform the outlook for people at risk of or living with dementia and related neurodegenerative conditions. The UK DRI is the science discovery engine that underpins the entire UK dementia ecosystem. My vision is to grow the UK DRI into a world-leading beacon for innovation, discovery and translation for dementia.” Professor Chandran
Alongside his UK DRI research, he is Dean of Clinical Medicine, Director of Edinburgh Neuroscience, the Euan MacDonald Centre for Motor Neuron Disease Research and the Anne Rowling Regenerative Neurology Clinic at the University of Edinburgh. He is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh and the Academy of Medical Sciences.
Professor Chandran possesses impressive leadership skills, a thorough knowledge of the UK policy landscape, and an understanding of what is needed for science to thrive both in the UK and internationally. His own work is already transforming the lives of people affected by MND through the innovative MND-SMART clinical trial, dramatically speeding up the delivery of new treatments for the disease
Professor Chandran was selected as the new UK DRI Director after a comprehensive international search and in addition to leading the Institute, Professor Chandran will maintain an active research laboratory, continuing his critical work on understanding and preventing neurodegenerative diseases.
The UK DRI is delighted to welcome Professor Chandran into his new role – read the full story.
About the UK Dementia Research Institute
The national UK Dementia Research Institute (UK DRI) is the single biggest investment in dementia research in the UK. Established in 2017 by its founding funders, the Medical Research Council, Alzheimer’s Society and Alzheimer’s Research UK, the multi-million-pound Institute is hosted across six leading UK universities: University of Cambridge, Cardiff University, University of Edinburgh, Imperial College London and King’s College London, with its central hub and headquarters at UCL. The UK DRI works on ways to prevent, treat and care for people with all types of dementia, and ways to keep the brain healthy. www.ukdri.ac.uk
Dementia Researcher
