Jay Gopalakrishnan

Professor Jay Gopalakrishnan serves as a Professor at the Institute of Human Genetics within the Faculty of Medicine at Friedrich Schiller University Jena, based at University Hospital Jena. His research bridges developmental neurobiology and genetic disease modeling through innovative organoid technologies.

His primary research interests include:

• Primary cilia dynamics in neural progenitor maintenance
• Centrosome maturation mechanisms during brain development
• 3D organoid modeling of childhood retinal dystrophies
• Tissue organization principles in ciliary function

Professor Gopalakrishnan currently leads multiple German Research Foundation (DFG) initiatives including the ongoing project 'Dynamics of primary cilia in determining neural progenitor cell maintenance during brain development' and serves as speaker for the DFG Research Unit FOR 5547. His completed projects demonstrate consistent funding in ciliopathy research and organoid development.

As principal investigator of active DFG grants, he supervises a research group focused on neural development mechanisms. His work leverages University Hospital Jena's clinical-academic infrastructure to translate basic ciliary biology into disease models, particularly for inherited retinal disorders using brain-organoid systems with ocular structures.