Neuroscientist Professor Michael Häusser has been named the new Director of the School of Biomedical Sciences and Chair Professor. His ambitions include building on the School’s strengths through collaborations and raising the profile of neuroscience in Hong Kong and the region. ‘HKUMed has a strong reputation in biomedical research and it is committed to advancing research in neuroscience. As a member of the Scientific Advisory Board of the School of Biomedical Sciences since 2015, I am very familiar with its strengths and potential. So the opportunity to join as the School’s new director and capitalise on this environment to build new strengths in neuroscience was particularly appealing to me,’ he said. Professor Häusser has worked and trained at the highest end of his field. He received his PhD in Physiological Sciences from the University of Oxford and did postdoctoral work at the MaxPlanck-Institute for Medical Research in Heidelberg, where he worked with Nobel Laureate Bert Sakmann. In 1997, he joined University College London, where he became Professor of Neuroscience and Wellcome Trust Principal Research Fellow. Over the years, he has made significant discoveries that deepen understanding of how single neurons contribute to computation in the mammalian brain – in particular, the role of dendrites in information processing. His work is both experimental and theoretical. Through his lab, he has adapted and developed ‘neurotechnologies’, such as combining two-photon imaging and two-photon optogenetics to study the function of neural circuits in the cerebellum and neocortex, alongside careful quantitative analysis and modelling. The work has earned strong recognition from his peers, who have elected him to such learned societies as the Royal Society and the Academia Europaea. In 2017, Professor Häusser helped to establish the International Brain Laboratory, a global collaboration of experimental and theoretical laboratories that are working together to understand the brain-wide mechanisms of decision-making. FEATURE + ‘HKUMed has a strong reputation in biomedical research and it is committed to advancing research in neuroscience. Strong multidisciplinary collaboration is vital for our scientific work, and I aim to leverage various opportunities and experience to enhance the research impact of the School.’ Professor Michael Häusser Building New Bridges 30
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