UK Dementia Research Institute appoints new Director

Professor Chandran - Credit: James Duncan Davidson Professor Siddharthan Chandran, a world-leading expert in neurodegenerative diseases, will become the new Director of the UK Dementia Research Institute (UK DRI), based at UCL, 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 neurone 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 and will move his laboratory to UCL's new world-leading centre for neuroscience on Grays Inn Road. 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 was recruited for the role following a comprehensive international search, and 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.