The Australian Academy of Science has today recognised 22 of Australia’s most distinguished scientists, naming the 2021 Fellows of the Australian Academy of Science.

Among this group is Professor Glenda Halliday who is acclaimed internationally for her research on neurodegeneration, making major impacts on understanding disease progression, and her promotion of neuroscience, mentorship and contributions to research evaluation. From origins in comparative neuroanatomy, she established the Sydney Brain Bank and applied her expertise to clinicopathological correlations, revealing the anatomical, biochemical, molecular and genetic characteristics of several neurodegenerative diseases, particularly Parkinson’s disease and frontotemporal dementia. Her work has changed international diagnostic criteria, provided differentiating characteristics for neurological diseases and developed disease staging schemes. She has defined unique roles of certain genes and proteins, now being used to develop diagnostic protocols and potential therapies.

Shake It Up has supported Professor Halliday’s research since we formed 10 years ago and we congratulate her on this achievement and commitment to Parkinson’s research.

Professor Halliday recently took us on a tour of her research laboratory at the Brain and Mind Institute