Inaugural Professorial Lecture –Professor Stephanie Hughes

Keeping it in the family: the search for a cure for childhood Batten disease
About Professor Stephanie Hughes Research:
Stephanie is a molecular neurobiologist who has focused her career on understanding Batten disease, a group of cruel childhood brain diseases.
Stephanie was one of the early gene therapists in New Zealand, establishing a multi-user gene vector facility at Otago that was later funded by the Brain Research New Zealand.
Her greatest achievement has been seeing gene therapy for one form of Batten disease move into clinical trials; this therapy was originally developed in the Hughes laboratory.
In recent years, her group has extended research into multiple genetic forms of Batten disease, using human neurons and astrocytes to understand disease processes and test new therapeutics.
Her work has been funded by the Health Research Council, Marsden, Neurological Foundation and Cure Kids.
Stephanie is the Director of the Brain Health Research Centre, previous Deputy Director of the Genetics Teaching Programme and serves on several international Batten disease scientific advisory boards.

This lecture will be followed with light refreshments, tea, coffee and juice.