Dr. Anthony J. Hannan leads the International Brain Initiative as Chair following Co-Chair role
The IBI is pleased to share that Dr. Anthony J. Hannan has assumed the role of Chair of the IBI Executive Committee. As the Chair, Dr. Hannan will continue to carry forward the ongoing efforts of the IBI for a border-free global science, scholarship, and innovation for the brain that are catalyzed by the critical engagement of large-scale brain initiatives and unprecedented opportunities for international collaboration.
In addition, the IBI extends its deepest gratitude to Dr. Judy Illes for her visionary leadership, strategic insight, and commitment to collaboration.
The IBI now looks forward to its continuing expansion under the capable leadership of Dr. Hannan, with Dr. Illes’ guidance in her role as the Active Past-Chair.
Please join us in congratulating Dr. Hannan on this appointment!
Biography:
Professor Anthony Hannan is Head of the Epigenetics and Neural Plasticity Group at the Florey Institute of Neuroscience and Mental Health, with research laboratories on the University of Melbourne campus. Professor Hannan received his undergraduate training and PhD in neuroscience from the University of Sydney. He was then awarded a Nuffield Medical Fellowship at the University of Oxford, where he subsequently held other research positions before returning to Australia on an NHMRC RD Wright Career Development Fellowship to establish a laboratory at the Florey Institute.
He subsequently won other fellowships and awards, including an ARC FT3 Future Fellowship, the British Council Eureka Prize, the International Society for Neurochemistry Young Lecturer Award, the Federation of European Biochemical Societies Anniversary Prize, and NHMRC Senior and Principal Research Fellowships. He is a member of the Brain and Mind Committee, Australian Academy of Science (AAS), Co-Chair of the Australian Brain Alliance (ABA), and served as Co-Chair of the International Brain Initiative since 2022.
Professor Hannan and colleagues provided the first demonstration in any genetic animal model that environmental stimulation can be therapeutic. This has led to new insights into gene-environment interactions in various brain disorders, including Huntington’s disease, dementia, autism, schizophrenia, depression and anxiety disorders.
His research team at the Florey Institute explore how genes and the environment combine via experience-dependent plasticity in the healthy and diseased brain. Their research includes models of specific neurological and psychiatric disorders that involve cognitive and affective dysfunction, investigated at behavioural, cellular and molecular levels so as to identify pathogenic mechanisms and novel therapeutic targets.