Frank Bradke receives the XI Remedios Caro Almela Prize for Research in Developmental Neurobiology 2023

24 de November de 2023

XI EDITION REMEDIOS CARO ALMELA PRIZE

• Professor Bradke's research uncovered the fundamental principles that guide the growth of nerve fibers, both during development and regeneration.

The Award Ceremony of the XI Remedios Caro Almela Premio Prize for Research in Developmental Neurobiology 2023 took place today, November 24, at the Institute for Neurosciences, a joint center of the University Miguel Hernández (UMH) of Elche and the Spanish National Research Council (CSIC). The Rector of the UMH, Juan José Ruiz, and the Director of the Institute for Neurosciences, Ángel Barco, presented the award to the researcher Frank Bradke, who leads the group 'Axon Growth and Regeneration' at the Germ an Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases (DZNE). 

In addition to the Rector of the UMH, the Director of the Remedios Caro Almela Chair of Neurobiology, Professor Richard G. M. Morris; the general director of Science and Research of the Generalitat Valenciana, Rafael Sebastián Aguilar; and the CSIC delegate in the Valencian Community, Juan Antonio Fuster Verdú, participated in the ceremony. Also attending were the Vice-rector for Planning and Social Responsibility, Domingo Orozco Beltrán, and the General Director of Research and Innovation of the Generalitat Valenciana, Mariola Penadés Fons.

The jury decided last July to award the prize to Professor Bradke for the innovative work that he has carried out on the definition of the central mechanisms of neuronal polarization, axon growth, and regeneration in the central nervous system. Before the ceremony, Frank Bradke gave the XI Caro Almela Lecture to present his scientific achievements.

Among his many discoveries, the researcher was a pioneer in demonstrating that microtubules play instructive roles during axon formation in a decentralized manner relative to the cell body. His fundamental research in the developing nervous system allowed the investigator to carry out pioneering work in the field of axonal regeneration in pathological states.

Bradke has been able to span distant fields of cell biology, developmental neurobiology, and regeneration, and has continued to innovate the field by answering some of the fundamental questions about how neurons polarize, connect, and build circuits in the mammalian nervous system.

Frank Bradke (1969, Berlin) studied Biochemistry, Anatomy, and Developmental Biology in Berlin and London, received his PhD in Biology from EMBL Heidelberg, and continued his postdoctoral studies at the University of California, San Francisco, and Stanford University. Currently, in addition to being Senior Research Group Leader at the DZNE, he is a Full Professor at the Rheinische Friedrich-Wilhelms-Universität Bonn (Germany).

Video: interview with Professor Frank Bradke

The Remedios Caro Almela Prize joins a long list of recognitions. He is an elected member of the European Molecular Biology Organization (EMBO) and the German National Academy of Sciences. In 2016 he received the highest prize for science in Germany, the Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz-Prize. In addition, it has the Roger de Spoelberch Prize (2018) and the Carl Zeiss Lecture (2021).

The objective of the Remedios Caro Almela Prize for Research in Developmental Neurobiology is to recognize the work of European researchers who have carried out particularly outstanding scientific work in this field and who are currently carrying out cutting-edge research in the development of the nervous system. The biennial award is organized by the Institute for Neuroscience UMH-CSIC and the University Miguel Hernandez de Elche in collaboration with the Martinez-Caro family and is endowed with €25,000

Photo: UMH Rector, Juan José Ruiz (right) and IN Director, Ángel Barco (left) presented the award to researcher Frank Bradke

Source: Instituto de Neurociencias UMH-CSIC (in.comunicacion@umh.es)