Eric Kandel

Eric Kandel
Bengt Oberger · CC BY-SA 4.0 · source
Name	Eric Kandel
Caption	Kandel in 2016
Birth date	7 November 1929
Birth place	Vienna, Austria
Nationality	American
Fields	Psychiatry, Neuroscience, Neurobiology
Workplaces	Columbia University, Harvard Medical School, National Institutes of Health, New York University
Alma mater	Harvard University, New York University School of Medicine
Known for	Physiology of memory storage in neurons, Aplysia research
Prizes	Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine (2000), National Medal of Science (1988), Wolf Prize in Medicine (1999), Albert Lasker Award for Basic Medical Research (1983)

Eric Kandel. He is an Austrian-born American neuropsychiatrist and professor renowned for his groundbreaking research on the physiological basis of memory storage in neurons. His pioneering work using the sea slug Aplysia californica as a model organism elucidated fundamental cellular and molecular mechanisms of learning and memory. For these discoveries, he was jointly awarded the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 2000 with Arvid Carlsson and Paul Greengard.

Early life and education

Born in Vienna to a Jewish family, he fled Austria following the Nazi Anschluss in 1939 and immigrated to the United States. He initially pursued an interest in history and literature at Harvard University, but his fascination with the mind and psychoanalysis led him to medicine. He earned his medical degree from the New York University School of Medicine, where he was influenced by the neurologist Harry Grundfest. His research training began at the National Institutes of Health in the laboratory of Wade Marshall, solidifying his commitment to a biological approach to brain function.

Research on memory storage

Kandel's seminal research strategy involved studying the relatively simple nervous system of the marine gastropod Aplysia. This organism possesses large, easily identifiable neurons and simple reflexes that can be modified by learning. His work demonstrated that short-term memory involves functional changes in the strength of existing synaptic connections, mediated by neurotransmitters like serotonin and the second messenger cyclic AMP. His team further showed that long-term memory requires the synthesis of new proteins and the growth of new synaptic connections, linking gene expression to lasting behavioral change. This research provided a unified cellular framework for understanding learning from invertebrates to mammals.

Awards and honors

His contributions have been recognized with numerous prestigious awards. He received the Albert Lasker Award for Basic Medical Research in 1983 and the National Medal of Science in 1988. In 1999, he was awarded the Wolf Prize in Medicine. The pinnacle of recognition came in 2000 when he shared the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine. He is also a member of the United States National Academy of Sciences, the Institute of Medicine, and a fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. He has received honorary degrees from institutions like Harvard University and the University of Vienna.

Major publications

Kandel is the author of several influential scientific and literary works. His authoritative textbook, Principles of Neural Science, co-edited with James H. Schwartz and Thomas M. Jessell, is a cornerstone of neuroscience education. For a general audience, he wrote In Search of Memory: The Emergence of a New Science of Mind, a memoir that intertwines his personal history with the history of neuroscience, which won the Los Angeles Times Book Prize. His other notable books include The Age of Insight: The Quest to Understand the Unconscious in Art, Mind, and Brain, from Vienna 1900 to the Present and Reductionism in Art and Brain Science: Bridging the Two Cultures.

Legacy and influence

Kandel's work fundamentally transformed psychiatry and neuroscience by providing a rigorous biological foundation for understanding cognitive processes. He helped establish neurobiology as a distinct and vital discipline, bridging psychology, cell biology, and molecular genetics. His advocacy for the biological basis of mind has influenced generations of researchers at institutions like Columbia University's Kavli Institute for Brain Science and the Mortimer B. Zuckerman Mind Brain Behavior Institute. His ongoing exploration of the neural underpinnings of art and creativity continues to foster dialogue between science and the humanities.

Category:American neuroscientists Category:Nobel laureates in Physiology or Medicine Category:Columbia University faculty