Reinhard Jahn is a Professor, Group Leader, and Director at the Max Planck Institute for Biophysical Chemistry and the President of the University of Göttingen in Göttingen, Germany. Professor Jahn is a member of the German Academy of Sciences, the European Molecular Biology Organization and the National Academy of Sciences. Professor Jahn is renowned for his groundbreaking research on the structure and function of synaptic vesicles in neurons and the molecular mechanisms underlying exocytosis and membrane fusion. His work has been instrumental in elucidating SNARE-mediated fusion, including conformational transitions involved and their regulation by accessory synaptic proteins.

Xiaowei Zhuang is the David B. Arnold Professor of Science, an HHMI investigator, and the Director of the Center for Advanced Imaging at Harvard University. Professor Zhuang is a member of the U.S. National Academy of Sciences and the American Academy of Arts and Sciences She has been recognized with numerous prestigious awards, including the MacArthur Fellowship, the Pure Chemistry Award, the Max Delbrück Prize in Biological Physics and the National Academy of Sciences Award in Molecular Biology. Professor Zhuang and her team have pioneered the development of super-resolution and genome-scale imaging techniques transforming our understanding of biological systems and cellular organization including the discovery of new neuronal types and provided unprecedented insights into their organization and functions in the brain.

James Rothman is the Fergus F. Wallace Professor of Biomedical Sciences and Chair of the Department of Cell Biology at Yale School of Medicine. He concurrently holds professorships at Columbia University and University College London. Professor Rothman was awarded the 2013 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for his groundbreaking discoveries in vesicle trafficking. His identification of the SNARE complex was a transformative breakthrough in synapse biology, revealing the molecular machinery that drives synaptic vesicle exocytosis and neurotransmission. His work continues to shape our understanding of synaptic modulation, as many regulatory mechanisms target the SNARE complex, and mutations in SNARE-related genes underlie a spectrum of rare developmental disorders known as SNAREopathies.

Thomas Südhof is the Avram Goldstein Professor in the School of Medicine at Stanford University and an Investigator of the Howard Hughes Medical Institute. Professor Südhof was awarded the 2013 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for his pioneering discoveries on the molecular mechanisms that govern neurotransmitter release. Professor Südhof and his team identified key presynaptic proteins that organize the machinery required for rapid and precise synaptic transmission, elucidating how calcium influx is tightly coupled to vesicle fusions and neurotransmitter release. His ongoing research explores how synapses form and acquire their specific properties to assemble functional neural circuits, and how disruptions in these processes contribute to neurodegenerative and neuropsychiatric disorders.

Randy Schekman is a Professor of Cell Biology at the University of California, Berkeley, and a former Editor-in-Chief of Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences and eLife. Professor Schekman was awarded the 2013 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for his pioneering work on vesicle trafficking. Through an ingenious genetic screen, Professor Schekman and his team identified key genes that regulate the secretory pathway in yeast, revolutionizing the field of secretion. Many of these genes were later found to play essential riles in regulated neurotransmitter release at mammalian synapses, with mutations linked to human brain disorders. His work continues to shape our understanding of cellular communication and its implications for neurological disease.

Stephan Quake is the Lee Otterson Professor in the School of Engineering and a Professor of Bioengineering and Applied Physics at Stanford University. A distinguished member of the National Academy of Engineering, the National Academy of Sciences, and the Institute of Medicine. He has been recognized with numerous prestigious awards, including the Lemelson-MIT Prize for Innovation and NIH Director’s Pioneer Award. Professor Quake has pioneered advancements in DNA sequencing, enabling rapid human genome analysis, and developed microfluidic automation techniques that allow for the efficient isolation of individuals cells and decoding of their genetic information, transforming biomedical research and precision medicine.

Ardem Patapoutian is a Professor, HHMI investigator, and the Scripps Research Endowed Chair in Neurobiology at the Institute’s Dorris Neuroscience Center of The Scripps Research Institute in La Jolla, California.  Professor Patapoutian was awarded the 2021 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for groundbreaking discoveries uncovering the molecular mechanisms by which the body senses temperature and touch. Professor Patapoutian and his team identified the PIEZO1 and PIEZO2 ion channels, which convert mechanical stimuli into nerve impulses, fundamentally advancing our understanding of mechanotransduction. Beyond touch perception, Piezo 1 and Piezo2 channels play crucial roles in regulating blood pressure, respiration and bladder control, with broad implications for human health and disease.

Nieng Yan is a Professor in the School of Life Sciences at Tsinghua University and internationally recognized leader in structural biology. Professor Yan is an international member of the U.S. National Academy of sciences, and an honorary member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. In 2024, Professor Yan was awarded the prestigious L’Oreal-UNESCO for Women in Science International Award for her exceptional discovery in elucidating the atomic structures of membrane proteins that regulate ion and sugar transport across cell membranes. Her discoveries have profoundly advanced our understanding of cross-membrane transport mechanisms, transforming research on disorders including epilepsy and arrhythmia and guiding the development of treatments for pain syndromes.