Cure Alzheimer’s Fund congratulates Dr. Thomas Südhof, M.D., a member of our Research Consortium, on winning the Lasker Basic Medical Research Award. The Lasker Award, one of the most respected prizes in medicine, recognizes scientists who have made major contributions to the elimination of some cause of disability or death.

Dr. Südhof, a professor at Stanford University School of Medicine, has been instrumental in developing our understanding of neurons. Thanks to him, the process by which neurons communicate with each other is now one of the best-understood phenomena in neuroscience. In Alzheimer’s disease, this process, called synaptic transmission, often goes awry. Dr. Südhof’s research has also been important in understanding other diseases, such as Parkinson’s.

Cure Alzheimer’s Fund Scientific Advisory Board member Dr. Robert Malenka says of Südhof, “I don’t know how he does it. Tom’s the scientific equivalent of a force of nature. He is the most productive scientist I’ve ever seen…Without him, we would be at least 10 years behind.”

The Lasker Award gives Dr. Südhof well-deserved commendation for his invaluable contributions to neuroscience.