Richard Festenstein

Professor Richard Festenstein is a Clinical Professor of Molecular Medicine at Imperial College London's Department of Brain Sciences within the Faculty of Medicine. He holds affiliations with the London Institute of Medical Sciences, Centre for Paediatrics and Child Health, and the Innovative Imaging Across Scales Network. His research focuses on epigenetic mechanisms governing gene expression during development and disease, particularly in neurogenetic disorders like Friedreich's ataxia. He collaborates with the National Hospital for Neurology and Neurosurgery and leads studies on epigenetic therapeutic interventions.

His work demonstrates how DNA packaging proteins and chromatin structure influence gene silencing, revealing triplet repeat expansions in Friedreich's ataxia trigger heterochromatin-mediated silencing of the Frataxin gene. Preclinical and clinical studies under his direction showed nicotinamide's potential to reverse this silencing, advancing into human trials. Recent innovations include wearable motion-capture systems combined with machine learning to track disease progression in neurodegenerative conditions.

Research activities span neurosciences, genetics, and clinical applications, with cross-disciplinary projects integrating bioengineering and computational methods. Current efforts focus on long-term efficacy of epigenetic therapies and developing objective metrics for disease monitoring.