DrKambiz Alavian, PhD, SFHEA, FLS, FRSB

Dr. Kambiz Alavian is a Reader in Neuroscience in the Department of Brain Sciences at Imperial College London. He is also an Associate Professor Adjunct of Medicine at Yale University School of Medicine. He received his PhD in Neuroscience from the University of Heidelberg and completed postdoctoral trainings at Harvard and Yale. He currently investigates mitochondrial bioenergetics and cell death and their implications in neurological disorders and cancer.

Mitochondria perform several critical functions including cellular energy production and initiation of cellular apoptosis. Resistance to mitochondrial cell death is one of the main features of cancer cells and mitochondrial dysfunction, including changes in the structural integrity of mitochondria, disruption of energy metabolism and abnormal calcium (Ca2 ) buffering, has been implicated in neurodegenerative disorders. The current scientific interests of Dr. Alavian’s group include the study of basic molecular mechanisms leading to such dysfunctions and translation of these findings to novel therapeutic approaches for neurodegenerative conditions and cancer.