Three questions to Ádám Dénes, the third EMBO member of our institute

- Congratulations on the great recognition, dear Adam! So far there have been only 13 EMBO members from all over Hungary, and this year, with you, we have three new ones!**

What does this recognition mean to you? What do you know about the circumstances of your election?

- For me, membership is first and foremost a great honor and an opportunity to bring neuroimmunology research to the forefront of the leading European organization in molecular biology. I believe, that neuroimmunology can help cure many common neurological diseases, as immune-neurological interactions play an important role in almost all neurological diseases. EMBO has more than 2000 members in many fields of life sciences, including more than 90 Nobel Prize winners. I was nominated for EMBO membership by István Katona, for which I am very grateful. I don't know much about what happened after that, I just got a letter saying that I had been accepted. It is a great honor for me to represent not only Hungary but also our institute and neurosciences as the third representative after Tamás Freund and István Katona.

- What has been your relationship with EMBO so far, what has the organization meant to you?

- For me, it has always been about representing quality science, as well as being an organization that does a lot for the advancement of science by mobilizing targeted resources. For example, by supporting postdoctoral fellowships, collaborative projects, or conferences. I have personally experienced the value of the latter form of support. The Stroke-Immunology conference, which I started with my colleague Arthur Liesz several years ago, has already won two EMBO grants, and this has helped to raise the standard of the event.

- So the organization has already helped you. What can you do to help the organization? 

- I don't see the tasks ahead yet. If I can be useful as an expert in scientific committees or in the evaluation of proposals, I will do what I can. It is certainly gratifying that our work in studying brain inflammation and the physiological role of glial cells has attracted the attention of such a prestigious organization. I aim to enhance the reputation of KOKI in the field of neuroimmunology, which will remain a frontier for some time to come, and to catalyze collaborative opportunities that can build bridges between neuroscience and immunology. 

*EMBO PRESS RELEASE

Outstanding scientists elected to EMBO Membership

 In EMBO’s 60th anniversary year, 100 new Members and 20 Associate Members join the community

 120 scientists from across Europe and beyond have been elected to the EMBO Membership, an honor that celebrates research excellence and outstanding achievements in the life sciences.

 The new EMBO Members and Associate Members have been recognized for accomplishments that cover the spectrum of life science research, including work that has advanced understanding of how infectious disease spreads, the intricacies of ocean nutrient cycles, the mysteries of cellular signaling networks, the secrets of how plants survive in desert environments, and the links between the biology of our brains and our emotions.   

 EMBO Director Fiona Watt said: “The new EMBO Members and Associate Members have made immense contributions to fundamental life science research, and, in many cases, their work has paved the way for innovations that have improved lives and livelihoods around the world. As EMBO marks its 60^th anniversary, we celebrate the pivotal roles played by the EMBO Membership in strengthening international life science research and contributing to the EMBO Programmes and activities. I send my warmest congratulations to all those elected.”

 To celebrate EMBO's 60th anniversary, the EMBO Council invited the EMBO Membership to elect 100 new EMBO Members and 20 EMBO Associate Members this year. The newly elected Members and Associate Members reside in 37 countries/territories. The new EMBO Members are based in 24 Member States of the EMBC, the intergovernmental organization that funds the main EMBO Programmes and activities. The 20 new Associate Members reside in 13 different countries/territories, including EMBO’s global cooperation partners.

The first EMBO Members were elected in 1964 ­­– that initial group of 169 life scientists has now grown into a community of more than 2,100 EMBO Members and Associate Members. 92 Nobel laureates are among those who have previously been elected to the EMBO Membership.

EMBO Members guide the execution of the EMBO Programmes and activities, for example by evaluating funding applications, serving on EMBO Council and committees, and contributing to initiatives such as training, policy, outreach and mentorship. New members are nominated and elected by the existing EMBO Membership.

EMBO will formally welcome the new members at a meeting of the EMBO community between 29 October and 1 November 2024 in Heidelberg, Germany. An online directory listing all EMBO Members and Associate Members, their affiliations, and subject areas is available here.

Selected statistics
·         120 outstanding life scientists have been elected to the EMBO Membership, comprising 100 EMBO Members and 20 EMBO Associate Members.
·         The new EMBO Members and Associate Members reside in 37 different countries/territories.
·         49 of the 120 new Members and Associate Members are women (41%) and 71 are men (59%).

**The newly elected Hungarian EMBO members alongside Ádám Dénes:   László Csanády (SE, Department of Biochemistry) and László Nagy (Szeged, SZBK), but there is one other Hungarian, László Molnár, professor at St. John's College, Oxford, who went to Oxford in 1989 and continued his career thereafter obtaining his PhD.)