معرفی
Sila Ultanir serves as a Senior Group Leader at The Francis Crick Institute, where she leads research on kinase signaling mechanisms regulating nervous system development, function, and maintenance. Her work targets disease-relevant kinases including CDKL5, mTOR, TNIK, and the NDR family to uncover molecular pathways underlying neurological disorders and identify biomarkers for targeted therapies.
Her primary research spans Neuroscience, Cell Biology, Developmental Biology, and Molecular Signaling, with specific focus on kinase-driven processes in neuronal development, synaptogenesis, and epilepsy. The lab employs chemical genetics, mass spectrometry, and multi-omics approaches on mouse models to map kinase substrates and signaling cascades, revealing novel mechanisms such as mTORC1's role in neurodevelopmental disorders and NDR1/2's critical function in neuronal maintenance.
Ultanir maintains extensive collaborations with Gabriele Lignani (UCL Institute of Neurology), Joseph Bateman, Juan Burrone, and Jernej Ule (King's College London), Tim Benke (University of Colorado), Florencia Iacaruso, Max Gutierrez, and Alison Axtman (Francis Crick Institute/UNC). These partnerships integrate expertise in neurology, dementia research, and chemical biology to advance translational applications.
While no specific awards are documented in the source material, her high-impact publications in journals like Neuron, Nature Communications, and Life Science Alliance demonstrate significant contributions to kinase signaling research. The lab actively trains researchers through hands-on neuroscience and proteomics methodologies.
Details regarding graduate student mentorship and grant funding remain unspecified, but the Ultanir lab continues pioneering work on kinase pathways with implications for treating epilepsy, neurodegeneration, and neurodevelopmental disorders through ongoing investigations of phosphorylation dynamics and disease mechanisms.
