Vaclav Ourednik

Vaclav Ourednik prepares stem cell cultures in the laboratory of Harvard University (2002).

Václav Ourednik (born June 27, 1960 in Prague ) is a Swiss natural scientist of Czech origin.

Scientific work

After studying micro and molecular biology at the University of Bern , he turned to neuroscience and received his doctorate in brain development from the University of Lausanne . With his wife and research assistant, Jitka Ourednik , he worked at Harvard University and ETH Zurich and published with her in the journals Science , Nature and Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS, USA). The scientific contributions deal with the development and regeneration of the central nervous system (CNS) and the development of therapeutic methods for injuries and degenerative diseases of the spinal cord and brain .

Vaclav Ourednik received the Pfizer Prize in Neuroscience for his work as a co-author of a publication in the journal Science on cortical plasticity, as well as the MJ Fox Foundation Award for his work in the field of neurodegeneration in Parkinson's disease . In 2005, the research couple was invited to present their research results and ideas at the Nobel Forum for Young Scientists at the Karolinska Institute in Stockholm .

Vaclav Ourednik with the Dobsonian telescope, Alpine Astrovillage, Lü, Val Müstair, Switzerland

In the International Year of Astronomy 2009 , the two naturalists founded the Alpine Astrovillage Lü-Stailas , a center for astrophotography and sky observation . It is located in the eastern Swiss Alps , in the UNESCO - Biosphere Val Müstair - Swiss National Park . Since then they have devoted themselves exclusively to their popular science and educational activities and to running their AAV center. For their work as native Czechs living abroad, Vaclav and Jitka Ourednik were twice nominated by the Czech embassy in Switzerland as candidates for the Gratias Agit Prize.

Altered sensory processing in the somatosensory cortex of the mouse mutant barrelless . In: Science , 1996, PMID 8596955
Neural stem cells display extensive tropism for pathology in adult brain: Evidence from intracranial gliomas . In: PNAS, 2000
Segregation of human neural stem cells in the developing primary forebrain . In: Science , 2001, PMID 11474066
Neural stem cells display an inherent mechanism for rescuing dysfunctional neurons . In: Nature Biotechnology , 2002, PMID 12379867
Behavioral improvement in a prime Parkinson's model is associated with multiple homeostatic effects of human neural stem cells . In: PNAS , 2007, PMC 1896134 (free full text).
Cross-talk between stem cells and the dysfunctional brain is facilitated by manipulating the niche: evidence from an adhesion molecule . In: Stem Cells , 2009, PMID 19785036
Communication via gap junctions underlies early functional and beneficial interactions between grafted neural stem cells and the host . In: PNAS, 2010