IBRO is delighted to welcome Prof. Anthony Hannan to the senior editorial board of Neuroscience! Prof. Hannan’s scientific excellence and alignment with IBRO’s mission make him a great addition to the team.
Professor Hannan received his undergraduate training and PhD from the University of Sydney, Australia. He was then awarded a Nuffield Medical Fellowship at the University of Oxford, UK, where he established behavioral and systems approaches to preclinical models of specific brain disorders, including Huntington’s disease. At the same institution, he subsequently held other research positions before returning to Australia to establish a laboratory at the Florey Institute. He has received various fellowships and awards and is currently Research Co-Lead of the Mental Health Mission, and head of the Epigenetics and Neural Plasticity Laboratory, at the Florey Institute of Neuroscience and Mental Health, University of Melbourne. He is currently Co-Chair of the International Brain Initiative (IBI) Executive, Co-Chair of the Australian Brain Alliance (ABA) Executive, and is a Fellow of the International Behavioral Neuroscience Society (IBNS).
In this short interview, Prof. Hannan talks about his research, and shares his vision and wishes for Neuroscience in the upcoming years:
What is your research about?
We have 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. Nowadays, my laboratory at the Florey Institute explores how genes and the environment combine via experience-dependent plasticity in the healthy and diseased brain. This research includes models of brain disorders which involve cognitive and affective dysfunction, investigated at behavioral, cellular and molecular levels so as to identify pathogenic mechanisms and novel therapeutic targets. This has recently incorporated gut microbiome studies and the microbiota-gut-brain axis. Furthermore, in recent years we have been exploring transgenerational epigenetic inheritance in response to paternal environmental exposures and experience, and subsequent impacts on offspring brain development, function and dysfunction.
What motivated you to become a Senior Editor of Neuroscience?
I have been associated with IBRO since receiving a travel fellowship to attend the World Congress of Neuroscience in 1999. I have not only attended subsequent IBRO World Congresses, but have also taught in IBRO Neuroscience Schools in various international locations. I was also on the Local Organising Committee of the IBRO World Congress in Melbourne, in 2007, having pitched the successful bid (with Professor George Paxinos and other Australian neuroscientists) in 2004.
“The Neuroscience journal is not only one of the oldest neuroscience journals, it also represents the wonderful work of IBRO, including the growth and enhancement of neuroscience, and its impacts, in every corner of the globe.” – Prof. Hannan
What is your vision as a Senior Editor of Neuroscience?
I aim to publish important neuroscience articles, from across the world, which lead not only to important fundamental knowledge, but also contribute to the eventual prevention and treatment of neurological and psychiatric disorders, as well as other impacts.
What are your wishes and expectations as a Senior Editor of Neuroscience?
Neuroscience, as a journal of IBRO, does not exist primarily for commercial reasons, but instead has noble goals regarding the enhancement of understanding of the brain and other neural systems, across species, in health and disease. Neuroscience can be the journal of choice to report novel and impactful discoveries of our international neuroscience community.
IBRO looks forward to continuing to collaborate with Prof. Hannan in the upcoming years and sends him the best wishes for an impactful mark on Neuroscience’s future.
About Neuroscience
Established in 1976, Neuroscience is the flagship journal of IBRO. The journal features papers describing the results of original research on any aspect of the scientific study of the nervous system. Papers of any length are considered for publication provided that they report significant, new, and carefully confirmed findings with full experimental details. Together with IBRO Neuroscience Reports, IBRO’s open access journal, Neuroscience plays a crucial role in supporting the organization’s global neuroscience activities, as proceeds from both journals support more than 90% of IBRO’s initiatives.