Stephen "Steve" Dunnett DSc FMedSci

FLSW The Learned Society of Wales ( Welsh: Cymdeithas Ddysgedig Cymru) is a learned society and charity that exists to "celebrate, recognise, preserve, protect and encourage excellence in all of the scholarly disciplines", and to serve the Welsh natio ...

(born 28 January 1950Dunnett, Stephen B.
ISIHighlyCited.com Accessed 2 September 2009.) is a British neuroscientist, and among the most

highly cited researcher Clarivate Plc is a British-American publicly traded analytics company that operates a collection of subscription-based services, in the areas of bibliometrics and scientometrics; business / market intelligence, and competitive profiling for pha ...

s in the neurosciences. Until his retirement in 2017, he was a professor at

Cardiff University , latin_name = , image_name = Shield of the University of Cardiff.svg , image_size = 150px , caption = Coat of arms of Cardiff University , motto = cy, Gwirionedd, Undod a Chytgord , mottoeng = Truth, Unity and Concord , established = 1 ...

and the founder and co-director of the Brain Repair Group, where he worked on developing cell therapies for

neurodegenerative disease A neurodegenerative disease is caused by the progressive loss of structure or function of neurons, in the process known as neurodegeneration. Such neuronal damage may ultimately involve cell death. Neurodegenerative diseases include amyotrophic ...

s including

Parkinson's disease Parkinson's disease (PD), or simply Parkinson's, is a long-term degenerative disorder of the central nervous system that mainly affects the motor system. The symptoms usually emerge slowly, and as the disease worsens, non-motor symptoms becom ...

and

Huntington's disease Huntington's disease (HD), also known as Huntington's chorea, is a neurodegenerative disease that is mostly inherited. The earliest symptoms are often subtle problems with mood or mental abilities. A general lack of coordination and an unst ...

.The Brain Repair Group
Cardiff University. Retrieved 2 September 2009.

Early life and education

Dunnett was born in London, where he attended

Eltham College Eltham College is an independent day school situated in Mottingham, southeast London. Eltham and Mottingham once formed part of the same parish, hence its name. It is a member of The Headmasters' and Headmistresses' Conference (HMC). Early his ...

, an independent school, then won an open

exhibition An exhibition, in the most general sense, is an organized presentation and display of a selection of items. In practice, exhibitions usually occur within a cultural or educational setting such as a museum, art gallery, park, library, exhibition ...

to study Mathematics at

Churchill College, Cambridge Churchill College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge, England. It has a primary focus on science, engineering and technology, but still retains a strong interest in the arts and humanities. In 1958, a trust was establish ...

. After graduating in 1972, he worked for several years as social worker in the London Borough of Southwark. He returned to university to study for a second

bachelor's degree A bachelor's degree (from Middle Latin ''baccalaureus'') or baccalaureate (from Modern Latin ''baccalaureatus'') is an undergraduate academic degree awarded by colleges and universities upon completion of a course of study lasting three to six ...

in psychology at

Birkbeck College Birkbeck, University of London (formally Birkbeck College, University of London), is a public university, public research university, located in Bloomsbury, London, England, and a constituent college, member institution of the federal Universit ...

, London, from where he graduated in 1978 with the prize for the top first class degree in the Faculty of Sciences. Dunnett then returned to

Cambridge University , mottoeng = Literal: From here, light and sacred draughts. Non literal: From this place, we gain enlightenment and precious knowledge. , established = , other_name = The Chancellor, Masters and Schola ...

in 1978 as a research student at

Clare College Clare College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge in Cambridge, England. The college was founded in 1326 as University Hall, making it the second-oldest surviving college of the University after Peterhouse. It was refounded ...

and was awarded a PhD in

experimental psychology Experimental psychology refers to work done by those who apply experimental methods to psychological study and the underlying processes. Experimental psychologists employ human participants and animal subjects to study a great many topics, in ...

in 1981.Prof Steve Dunnett: Biography
Cardiff University. Retrieved 2 September 2009.

Academic career

After a brief spell as a visiting research scientist at

Lund University , motto = Ad utrumque , mottoeng = Prepared for both , established = , type = Public research university , budget = SEK 9 billion Fellow A fellow is a concept whose exact meaning depends on context. In learned or professional societies, it refers to a privileged member who is specially elected in recognition of their work and achievements. Within the context of higher education ...

of Clare College from 1984 onwards, and from 1992 to 1999 he was Director of Scientific Programmes at the Medical Research Council Centre for Brain Repair. He moved to Cardiff University in 2000, where he is a full professor in the neuroscience division of the School of Biosciences. He directs the Brain Repair Group, focussing on development of novel cell based therapies for neurodegenerative disease. For many years, Dunnett was editor in chief of ''

Brain Research Bulletin ''Brain Research Bulletin'' is a peer-reviewed scientific journal covering neuroscience. It was established in 1976 with Matthew J. Wayner (then at Syracuse University) as founding editor in chief. Later it was edited by Stephen Dunnett (Cardiff ...

''. He retired to France in 2017 but retains an emeritus appointment with Cardiff University.

Awards and honours

In 1988, the

British Psychological Society The British Psychological Society (BPS) is a representative body for psychologists and psychology in the United Kingdom. History It was founded on 24 October 1901 at University College London (UCL) as ''The Psychological Society'', the organ ...

awarded Dunnett the Spearman Medal for outstanding published work by an early-career researcher. He became a Fellow of the

Royal Society of Medicine The Royal Society of Medicine (RSM) is a medical society in the United Kingdom, headquartered in London. History The Society was established in 1805 as Medical and Chirurgical Society of London, meeting in two rooms in barristers’ chambers ...

the next year, of the

Academy of Medical Sciences The Academy of Medical Sciences is an organisation established in the UK in 1998. It is one of the four UK National Academies, the others being the British Academy, the Royal Academy of Engineering and the Royal Society. Its mission is to adv ...

in 2003, and of the

Learned Society of Wales The Learned Society of Wales (Welsh: Cymdeithas Ddysgedig Cymru) is a learned society and charity that exists to "celebrate, recognise, preserve, protect and encourage excellence in all of the scholarly disciplines", and to serve the Welsh nation ...

in 2011. He was the Knight Visiting Professor at the

University of Miami School of Medicine Leonard M. Miller School of Medicine (UMMSM) is the University of Miami's graduate medical school in Miami, Florida. Founded in 1952, it is the oldest medical school in the state of Florida. Campus The University of Miami's Leonard M. Miller Sch ...

in 1992. Dunnett has also been awarded the Alfred Mayer medal of the British Neuropathological Society (1998) and Honorary Fellowship of the

International Behavioral Neuroscience Society The International Behavioral Neuroscience Society (IBNS), was founded in 1992. The goal of the IBNS is to "encourage research and education in the field of behavioral neuroscience". Its current president is Mikhail Pletnikov. ''Brain Research Bul ...

(2002).

Books

Books that Dunnett has co-authored or co-edited include: * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Dunnett, Stephen 1950 births Living people British neuroscientists Fellows of Clare College, Cambridge Academics of Cardiff University Alumni of Churchill College, Cambridge Alumni of Birkbeck, University of London Alumni of Clare College, Cambridge People educated at Eltham College Fellows of the Learned Society of Wales