Salk Institute scientist Nicola Allen named Pew Scholar

June 11, 2015

Salk Institute scientist Nicola Allen named Pew Scholar

June 11, 2015

LA JOLLA–The Pew Charitable Trusts announced today that Salk Institute scientist 尼古拉·艾伦, an assistant professor in the 分子神经生物学实验室, is one of 22 researchers to be named a Pew Scholar in the Biomedical Sciences. Allen joins the ranks of more than 600 outstanding scientists who have been selected as Pew scholars in the 30 years since the program’s inception.

Allen investigates the role of brain cells called astrocytes. Astrocytes are the most abundant cells in the brain and, until recently, were thought to merely provide scaffolding for neurons. Now, however, researchers believe astrocytes actually play critical roles in regulating neuronal function. Allen studies how astrocytes control the formation and function of neuronal connections, and aims to use this knowledge to develop ways to repair damaged connections to improve cognition and memory. Allen is also investigating whether these properties of astrocytes may regulate the brain’s ability to learn new tasks.

Identifying the factors that astrocytes release in the brain is the first step to unraveling astrocytes’ potential therapeutic ability. Allen uses biochemical and molecular techniques to identify astrocyte factors, as well as to analyze the neuronal receptors and signaling pathways that these factors regulate. These findings will help researchers understand how astrocytes control neuronal development and function, and provide new insight into diseases like autism, epilepsy and Alzheimer’s disease.

Pew biomedical scholars gain entry into a robust community of researchers, including Pew’s Latin American fellows and Pew-Stewart Scholars for Cancer Research. All gather yearly to share their findings and spur new lines of inquiry that lead to partnerships and collaborations that can extend for years.

关于索尔克生物研究所：
索尔克生物研究所是世界顶尖的基础研究机构之一，其国际知名的教职人员在一个独特、协作和富有创造性的环境中，深入探究生命科学的基本问题。索尔克科学家们致力于发现和指导未来几代研究人员，通过研究神经科学、遗传学、细胞和植物生物学以及相关学科，在癌症、衰老、阿尔茨海默氏症、糖尿病和传染病的认识方面做出了开创性的贡献。.

教职员工的成就获得了无数荣誉，包括诺贝尔奖和美国国家科学院院士资格。该研究所由脊髓灰质炎疫苗先驱 Jonas Salk 医生于 1960 年创立，是一家独立的非营利组织和建筑地标。.

About Pew Charitable Trusts:
"(《世界人权宣言》) Pew Charitable Trusts is driven by the power of knowledge to solve today’s most challenging problems. We are an independent nonprofit organization—the sole beneficiary of seven individual trusts established between 1948 and 1979 by two sons and two daughters of Sun Oil Company founder Joseph N. Pew and his wife, Mary Anderson Pew.