Medicine Nobel Laureate becomes a researcher in Berlin

Nobel laureate of medicine becomes guest researcher in Berlin

03/01/2014

Nobel Laureate in Medicine Thomas Südhof will be coming to the Berlin Charité for three years as a visiting researcher from autumn 2014. The renowned brain researcher from the US elite Stanford University will collaborate with Berlin neurobiologists in the future.

Nobel Laureate for Medicine researches in future in Berlin
The 2013 Nobel Laureate for Medicine, Thomas Südhof (58), will be visiting scientist from autumn 2014 for a period of three years („Visiting Fellow“) to Berlin. This was announced on Thursday by the Berlin Institute for Health Research (BIG) and the Charité Foundation. The professor of cell physiology at Stanford University in California will support a working group on the Charité campus and commute between Berlin and Stanford to coordinate his activities there. The renowned brain researcher had been researching the last 30 years with a brief interruption in the USA.

150,000 euros per year
From autumn, the Nobel laureate in Berlin will work closely with the Charité brain researcher Christian Rosenmund. The two scientists have known each other for 17 years and often exchanged views, especially while Rosenmund conducted research in the USA. For his commitment, the native Göttingen Südhof receives 150,000 euros per year. Both sides consider themselves an extension of the stay in the capital for another three years or even a permanent whereabouts of the top researcher open.

Exploring Genetic Foundations of Autism
Professor Christian Rosenmund explained what should be researched: „In our work, we want to find out how the contact points of the brain cells, the synapses, work. For Südhof, this is an interesting landscape of researchers, all working with synapses.“ "This task is to be connected with the topic of autism and the question of which genetic basis this developmental disorder has".

Big win for German health research
Südhof received the Nobel Prize for Medicine in December 2013 together with two US colleagues. Scientists explored human vesicle traffic, that is, intracellular transport. Disorders in this system can lead to diabetes or neurological diseases. Federal Research Minister Johanna Wanka commented positively on the appointment of the Nobel laureate: „Professor Südhof is a big gain for health research in Germany.“ And the BIG CEO Professor Ernst Rietschel said: „This encourages us at the BIG that it is attractive for such people to come to Berlin.“ Although Thomas Christian Südhof (born December 22, 1955 in Göttingen) is German -born but has the US citizenship. He previously worked as a biochemist researching synapses, the central interfaces of the human nervous system. (Ad)