Andrew Plested

Andrew Plested is a tenured Full Professor of Cellular Biophysics at Humboldt University of Berlin, leading his laboratory at Campus Nord in Berlin Mitte since 2023. His research integrates experimental, computational, and machine learning approaches to study ion channel dynamics and glutamate receptor function.

His educational trajectory includes:

• Physics studies at Imperial College London
• PhD on anaesthetic mechanisms supervised by Nick Franks and Bill Lieb
• Postdoctoral research on single ion channels with David Colquhoun and Lucia Sivilotti at UCL
• Glutamate receptor structure-function studies at NIH under Mark Mayer

Research focuses on the biophysical mechanisms of ion permeation and receptor activation, with emphasis on potassium channels and glutamate receptors. His work bridges molecular biophysics and neurological disorder mechanisms, utilizing advanced simulation techniques to decode cellular signaling pathways.

Key scientific recognition includes:

• ERC Consolidator Grant (2015) for glutamate receptor biophysics
• DFG Heisenberg Professorship (2017-2022)

Current externally funded projects drive his research agenda: the DFG-funded DynIon consortium (2021-2024) investigating ion channel transport dynamics, a machine learning-integrated glutamate receptor study (2020-2024), and NeuroCure Cluster of Excellence (2019-2025) targeting neurological/psychiatric disorders. These initiatives secure substantial grant support through 2025.

His laboratory at Campus Nord operates as an interdisciplinary hub combining electrophysiology, structural biology, and computational modeling to advance understanding of cellular signaling mechanisms in health and disease.