Dr Nady Braidy has been awarded the Dean's Rising Star Award for “significant contributions to research” at the Dean’s Awards on 28 November.
Dr Braidy is a junior post-doctoral fellow in the Centre for Healthy Brain Ageing (CHEBA) collaborating with A/Prof Guillemin at SOMS.
His main focus has been on the study of small molecules that slow the pace of ageing and mechanisms for neurotoxicity. During his PhD, he identified a new mechanism of quinolinic acid toxicity in human astrocytes and neurons and showed that naturally occurring phytochemicals can protect against excitotoxicity in human brain cells. His work was the first to link NAD+ levels with ageing and recently identifying resveratrol as an activator of the NAD+ synthetic enzyme, NMNAT1 that is producing positive results in clinical trials. He has challenged the historical view that NAD+ (the co-substrate of sirtuins) is simply a housekeeping molecule. Recent research elucidated the molecular mechanism of SIRT1 activation by polyphenols, and identified a mutation in human in SIRT1 in dementia patients. For his work, he was awarded the competitive Viertel Fellowship by Alzheimer’s Australia. Recently, Nady obtained a NHMRC early career fellowship (2013-2015) to continue his work on sirtuins.
According to Scientia Professor Perminder Sachdev, Nady is an extremely diligent and industrious individual. While doing his PhD, he completed a Masters of Pharmacy, a Diploma of Innovation Management and a Graduate Certificate in Research Management, while at the same time completing his PhD ahead of time and publishing a string of papers. All this energy will now be channelled into his chosen are of dementia-related research, and I anticipate that he will be one of our most productive post-doctoral fellows.
One aspect of Nady’s work has been his innovative approach and his willingness to tackle challenges. His PhD work has already produced a patentable discovery, and his research ability was recognised by the Dean of Medicine during his PhD, whereas customarily such recognition comes after completion.
Professor Sachdev states that Nady "shows all the promise of a future leader in his field of neurosciences and ageing."
