Viviana Gradinaru Explained

Viviana Gradinaru
Alma Mater:Stanford University (PhD)
California Institute of Technology (BS)
University of Bucharest
Workplaces:California Institute of Technology
Circuit Therapeutics
Birth Place:Vaslui, Romania
Doctoral Advisor:Karl Deisseroth
Thesis Title:Mechanisms of deep brain stimulation revealed by optogenetic deconstruction of diseased brain circuitry
Thesis Year:2010
Thesis Url:https://searchworks.stanford.edu/view/12303470
Awards:Vilcek Prize

Viviana Grădinaru (born 1981) is a Romanian-American neuroscientist who is a Professor of Neuroscience and Biological Engineering at the California Institute of Technology. She develops neurotechnologies including optogenetics CLARITY tissue clearing, and gene delivery vectors. She has been awarded the Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers and the National Institutes of Health Director's Pioneer Award. In 2019 she was a finalist for the Blavatnik Awards for Young Scientists. In 2020 she was awarded a Vilcek Prize for Creative Promise in Biomedical Science by the Vilcek Foundation.[1]

Early life and education

Gradinaru is a native of Vaslui, Romania,[2] and grew up with her grandparents in a small village.[3] As a native of Eastern Europe, Gradinaru was encouraged to study science from a young age, and took part in science olympiads. She has said that she benefitted from the many "brilliant women teaching and practicing science in my home country". Gradinaru eventually studied physics at the University of Bucharest. After two years, she moved to the California Institute of Technology and graduated in biology in 2005.[4] During her undergraduate studies, she became fascinated by neurodegeneration.[5] She moved to Stanford University for her doctoral studies, where she specialized in neuroscience performing research with Karl Deisseroth. During her PhD, she taught summer courses at Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory and trained researchers for the Stanford Optogenetics Innovation Laboratory.[6] She took part in ballroom dancing and competed in quickstep at an amateur level throughout graduate school.

Research and career

In collaboration with her colleagues at Stanford, Gradinaru founded Circuit Therapeutics, serving as the chief technology officer and creating optogenetic therapies to treat people with disorders of the nervous system.[7] [8] Gradinaru joined the faculty at the California Institute of Technology, as an Assistant Professor in 2012 and was promoted to full Professor in 2018.[9] Since 2013, she has served as the Principal Investigator of the CLARITY, Optogenetics and Vector Engineering Research (CLOVER) Center at the California Institute of Technology.[10]

Gradinaru has worked on the development of novel technologies for brain imaging, which she uses to understand sleep disorders and movement. These technologies include optogenetics and CLARITY. She developed viral vector screening methods to create gene delivery vehicles that can cross the blood–brain barrier.[11] Optogenetics make use of light and photosensitive proteins to manipulate the function of cells that live within heterogenous body tissue.

She looks to use her understanding of neuronal activity to establish the mechanism of action of deep brain stimulation (DBS). In particular, she has used optogenetics to study the brain circuitry involved with Parkinson's disease.[12] Using CLARITY, Gradinaru looks to create anatomical maps of intact brain networks and biological systems.[13] [14] In 2019, Gradinaru was part of a research team that demonstrated that zebrafish and mice need serotonin to sleep.[15]

Awards and honours

Publications

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Viviana Gradinaru. Vilcek Foundation. en-US. 3 February 2020.
  2. Web site: O vasluiancă de excepţie: Viviana Grădinaru, omul de ştiinţă care a revoluţionat cercetarea medicală, creând şoarecii transparenţi. adevarul.ro. 19 February 2015. 22 January 2020.
  3. Web site: Here Are the Women Shaping the Future of Science Blavatnik Awards for Young Scientists. blavatnikawards.org. 20 January 2020.
  4. Web site: Gradinaru Receives NIH Director's Award. www.caltech.edu. 2 October 2018 . en. 20 January 2020.
  5. Web site: The Innovators In Science Award Honorees Are Breaking New Ground In Neuroscience. Griswold. Ann. 2017. NYAS. 20 January 2020.
  6. Web site: Viviana Gradinaru. alleninstitute.org. 20 January 2020.
  7. Web site: Q&A with Dr. Viviana Gradinaru of @Caltech biology: Quickstep from start-up to academia. Elsevier. Elsevier Connect. en. 20 January 2020.
  8. Web site: Optogenética: controlar nuestro cerebro mediante luz. 22 April 2013. Blogthinkbig.com. es. 24 January 2020.
  9. Web site: Viviana Gradinaru: The Division of Biology and Biological Engineering. www.bbe.caltech.edu. en. 20 January 2020.
  10. Web site: Gradinaru . Viviana . January 20, 2020 . Home - Caltech CLOVER Center . August 6, 2023. www.clover.caltech.edu.
  11. Web site: Viviana Gradinaru, PhD The Vallee Foundation. www.thevalleefoundation.org. 20 January 2020.
  12. House. P.A.. January 2009. Optical Deconstruction of Parkinsonian Neural Circuitry. Yearbook of Neurology and Neurosurgery. 2009. 214–215. 10.1016/s0513-5117(09)79065-9. 0513-5117.
  13. Treweek. Jennifer B. Chan. Ken Y. Flytzanis. Nicholas C. Yang. Bin. Deverman. Benjamin E. Greenbaum. Alon. Lignell. Antti. Xiao. Cheng. Cai. Long. Ladinsky. Mark S. Bjorkman. Pamela J. 2015. Whole-body tissue stabilization and selective extractions via tissue-hydrogel hybrids for high-resolution intact circuit mapping and phenotyping. Nature Protocols. en. 10. 11. 1860–1896. 10.1038/nprot.2015.122. 1754-2189. 4917295. 26492141.
  14. Chung. Kwanghun. Wallace. Jenelle. Kim. Sung-Yon. Kalyanasundaram. Sandhiya. Andalman. Aaron S.. Davidson. Thomas J.. Mirzabekov. Julie J.. Zalocusky. Kelly A.. Mattis. Joanna. Denisin. Aleksandra K.. Pak. Sally. 2013. Structural and molecular interrogation of intact biological systems. Nature. en. 497. 7449. 332–337. 10.1038/nature12107. 23575631. 4092167. 2013Natur.497..332C. 1476-4687.
  15. Web site: Settling the debate on serotonin's role in sleep: The brain chemical is necessary to get enough sleep. ScienceDaily. en. 20 January 2020.
  16. Web site: Viviana Gradinaru, PhD. The Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson's Research Parkinson's Disease. en. 20 January 2020.
  17. Web site: Viviana Gradinaru, Ph.D.. Pew Trusts. 22 January 2020.
  18. Web site: Innovators in Science Award Honorees. www.takeda.com. en. 20 January 2020.
  19. Web site: Past Awardees: Symposium & Award Ceremony: Gill Center for Biomolecular Science: Indiana University Bloomington. Gill Center for Biomolecular Science. en-US. 20 January 2020.
  20. Web site: National Finalists Blavatnik Awards for Young Scientists. blavatnikawards.org. 20 January 2020.

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