Dr. Bart De Strooper is a preeminent neuroscientist and internationally recognized authority on neurodegenerative disorders, particularly Alzheimer's and Parkinson's disease research. He currently serves as Professor of Molecular Medicine at both KU Leuven and University College London while directing the VIB-KU Leuven Center for Brain and Disease Research and leading the UK Dementia Research Institute as its founding director. After earning his medical degree from KU Leuven in 1985 followed by a Master's in Biomedical Sciences in 1987, he completed his doctorate in 1991 and pursued postgraduate studies under Prof. Fred Van Leuven and Prof. Carlos Dotti at the European Molecular Biology Laboratory in Germany. His establishment of an independent research laboratory in 1999 at KU Leuven and VIB marked the beginning of a highly influential career dedicated to unraveling the molecular mechanisms underlying neurodegenerative conditions.
Dr. De Strooper's pioneering work on the role of presenilins in Alzheimer's disease, published in Nature in 1998 and 1999, fundamentally transformed the field's understanding of the disease's molecular basis and has each been cited more than 1,000 times, establishing him as a pivotal figure in neurodegenerative research. His laboratory's research has expanded to encompass the complex cellular phase of Alzheimer's disease, utilizing innovative approaches including single-cell genomics, transcriptomics, and spatial transcriptomics to reveal previously unknown mechanisms of neuronal death. Most recently, his team made a landmark discovery published in Science detailing how neurons initiate necroptosis when exposed to amyloid plaques and tau tangles, identifying the RNA gene MEG3 as a key player in this process. With more than 250 scientific publications and 14 patents to his name, his work bridges fundamental molecular biology with translational applications, including the development of brain-penetrating nanobodies for therapeutic interventions.
Beyond his direct research contributions, Dr. De Strooper has been instrumental in shaping the global landscape of dementia research through his leadership as founding director of the UK Dementia Research Institute since 2017, which has become a major hub for innovative neuroscience initiatives. His multidisciplinary research group, which has grown to include more than 40 scientists from diverse international backgrounds, serves as a model for collaborative research dedicated to solving one of medicine's most challenging problems. He has received numerous prestigious awards including the Potamkin Prize, the Alois Alzheimer Award, and the MetLife Foundation award for his transformative contributions to the field. Looking forward, Dr. De Strooper continues to pioneer novel approaches at the intersection of genetics, single-cell biology, and therapeutic development to create new pathways for potential treatments that could transform patient outcomes in neurodegenerative diseases.
