Abdelhamid Benazzouz (President)
Biography:
Abdelhamid Benazzouz is a Neurophysiologist and expert in the field of Parkinson’s disease (PD) and DBS. He was first to develop subthalamic nucleus (STN)-DBS as a therapeutical approach for Parkinson’s disease in MPTP monkeys during his PhD thesis (1990-1993) and proposed its transfer to human patients. He joined as a Research Fellow at the Inserm unit of Prof. Alim-Louis Benabid in Grenoble, where he participated in the transfer of this approach to Parkinsonian patients. In parallel with his hospital activities, he led a research team investigating the functional mechanisms of STN-DBS in animal models. He was first to demonstrate that STN-DBS could improve PD motor symptoms by inhibiting the neuronal activity of STN and its efferent structures. In 1998, he obtained a permanent research position at Inserm. In 2001, he returned to the CNRS unit of Prof. Bernard Bioulac in Bordeaux, and was later promoted to the position of Research Director in 2005. He currently leads a team in the Institute of Neurodegenerative diseases and is a member of the National Scientific committee of CNRS (2012-2021). He has published more than 130 research papers in peer-reviewed journals with a global H-Index score of 60. He received the National Academy of Medicine award in 2003, the Academy of Science award in 2007, and Honors from the Ministry in charge of Moroccans Residing Abroad and the Ministry of Health of Morocco in 2018.
Homepage: https://www.bordeaux-neurocampus.fr/en/staff/abdelhamid-benazzouz/
Email: abdelhamid.benazzouz@u-bordeaux.fr
Yasin Temel (Vice-President)
Biography:
Yasin Temel (MD PhD) is a neurosurgeon who has been active in the field of DBS since 1999. After completing his medical studies at Maastricht University, he combined his neurosurgical residency with his PhD program. After visiting the lab of Abdelhamid Benazzouz in 2000, he proceeded to develop the first bilateral STN-DBS model in rodents. In later experiments, he was first to show the link between STN and the serotonergic system. In 2012, he was appointed Professor of Neurosurgery (at the age of 34). As of 2018, he is currently the Head of Department of the Academic Neurosurgical Center Limburg, The Netherlands (six hospitals and one University lab). His current research focuses on experimental and clinical studies of DBS. He has authored more than 250 papers (H-index = 50), mostly focusing on the mechanisms of action and neurotechnology.
Homepage: https://cris.maastrichtuniversity.nl/en/persons/yasin-temel
Email: y.temel@maastrichtuniversity.nl
Lee Wei Lim (Secretary)
Biography:
Lee Wei LIM is currently a faculty member in the Li Ka Shing Faculty of Medicine, the University of Hong Kong. After completing his MD, Master’s, and PhD degrees, Dr Lim spent several years as a research fellow at Maastricht University, University of Oxford, and Nanyang Technological University. His research is focused on translational neuroscience looking at existing cutting-edge neuromodulatory and neuropsychopharmacological treatments for neuropsychiatric and neurodegenerative disorders. His research also encompasses different interrelated methodologies including cellular/molecular techniques, electrophysiology, behavioral methods, and human cognitive study (tDCS/TENS), which together provide a multidisciplinary approach to understanding how neurostimulation interfaces with brain networks via controlling neuronal activity and the microcellular environment.
Homepage: https://www.drlimlab.com/
Email: drlimleewei@gmail.com
Elena Moro (Treasurer)
Biography:
Elena Moro is a professor of neurology at the Department of Psychiatry, Neurology and Neurological Rehabilitation of CHU Grenoble in France. She graduated in medicine at the University of Trieste, Italy, and completed her residency in neurology at Rome’s Catholic University. She then completed a fellowship in movement disorders in Grenoble, France. After receiving her PhD in neurosciences, she was appointed as the Medical Director of the surgical programme for movement disorders in the Division of Neurology at Toronto Western Hospital, Canada. In 2012, she moved to Grenoble, France, where she is currently Director of the Movement Disorders Center and Head of the Department of Psychiatry, Neurology, Neurological Rehabilitation and Forensic Medicine.
Her main research focuses on restoring brain function, particularly using DBS. To date, she has published more than 200 papers based on her clinical research in movement disorders. Prof. Moro has trained many medical students, PhD students, and neurology fellows. She is currently Secretary General of the European Academy of Neurology and Treasurer of the International Association of Parkinsonism and Related Disorders.
Homepage:
https://green.univ-grenoble-alpes.fr/fr/a-propos-de-green/direction/cv-de-elena-moro-directrice-adjointe-661656.kjsp
Email: emoro@chu-grenoble.fr
Paulo de Aguiar (Council Member)
Biography:
Paulo Henrique Pires de Aguiar (MD, PhD) graduated in medicine at São Paulo Medical School (1982-1988). He completed his residency training in neurosurgery at São Paulo Medical school (1988-1991) and a fellowship in Skull Base surgery at Nordstadt Krankenhaus, Hannover (1992-1993). He completed his PhD in Neuropathology at São Paulo Medical School (1994-1998) and then a postdoc fellow at the Pituitary center at Stanford University (2007-2008). He has published 137 papers on meningiomas, neuropathic pain, neurophysiology, and aneurysms. Since 2015, he has been working in the Laboratory of Functional Experimental Neurosurgery at Pontifical Catholic University of São Paulo studying the function of the nucleus accumbens and dystonia. He is currently a Professor of neurology and neurosurgery at Pontifical Catholic University of São Paulo and is responsible for the DBS program at Santa Paula Hospital – DASA.
Homepage: https://paulohenriquepiresdeaguiar.com.br/curriculo-biografia/
Email: phpaneurocir@gmail.com
Ersoy Kocabicak (Council Member)
Biography:
Ersoy Kocabicak started working in the Neurosurgery Department of Ondokuz Mayıs University as an assistant Professor in 2009. After completing his training in DBS at Maastricht University in 2011, he started performing DBS surgeries at Ondokuz Mayıs University Samsun in Turkey in the same year. He completed an external PhD program on DBS in Parkinson’s disease at Maastricht University in 2015. He was in charge of constructing and establishing the Neuromodulation Center at Ondokuz Mayıs University in Turkey, and he was appointed Head of the Center in 2017. The Center brings together for the first time disciplines in movement disorders, psychiatric diseases, and pain surgery. He has over 100 national and international publications and poster papers on DBS in movement disorders and psychiatric disorders. He is currently the functional group chairman of the Turkish Neurosurgical Society. He is a committee member of the functional section of the European association of Neurosurgical societies (EANS). He is also a board member (General Secretary) of the National Neuromodulation Research-Education Association.
Homepage: https://personel.omu.edu.tr/tr/ersoy.kocabicak
Email: ersoykocabicak@gmail.com
