Dimitri De Bundel

Dimitri De Bundel serves as Senior Lecturer at Vrije Universiteit Brussel's Faculty of Medicine and Pharmacy, where he leads research in the Experimental Pharmacology group. His work integrates behavioural, neurochemical, and electrophysiological methodologies to develop precision pharmacology interventions targeting memory and mood dysfunction in neurological and psychiatric disorders.

His academic foundation includes a Pharmacy degree (summa cum laude, 2004) and PhD in Pharmaceutical Sciences (2009), both from VUB. Postdoctoral training followed at Karolinska Institutet (Sweden, 2009-2011) and Institut Génomique Fonctionelle (France, 2011-2014).

Research focuses on seizure mechanisms, anticonvulsant development, ghrelin receptor function, and insulin's role in spatial memory. Current investigations explore psilocybin for Alzheimer's disease, ADHD medication safety during pregnancy, and noradrenergic modulation of contextual memory through hippocampal astrocyte receptors.

Recent publications reveal strong interdisciplinary trends in CNS drug innovation, particularly photopharmacology applications for epilepsy and Alzheimer's disease, alongside advanced metabolomics techniques for brain tissue analysis.

Scientific recognition includes:

• Hugo d'Haenen Award (2015) for contributions to biological psychiatry and serotonin research
• Les Grandes Avancées en Biologie-Santé du Pôle RABELAIS (2017)

De Bundel actively mentors graduate students and secures major research funding, currently leading projects including ANI409 (psilocybin for Alzheimer's), FWOSB173 (ADHD medication outcomes), and FWOTM1217 (noradrenergic memory modulation). His collaborative work spans 33 projects including HERC66 (3D-CELLMAP) and OZR4299 (bilateral PhD cooperation).

As a core member of VUB's Experimental Pharmacology group, he employs microdialysis, chemogenetics, and electrophysiology to study brain function while developing novel therapeutics for neurological disorders through precision targeting of neural circuits.