Celebrating Women's Impact: Honoring Leading Scientists in Parkinson's Research

Ideas and Inspiration
, ,
1

This past weekend we celebrated the International Day of Women and Girls in Science, and this is a good moment to recognize the invaluable contributions of female scientists to the field of Parkinson’s research. This is also a great opportunity to highlight the hard work of all women scientists in DCoP!

I would like to share a short list of some female scientists whose groundbreaking work in Parkinson’s research continues to leave an indelible mark on the community.

  1. Brenda Milner and her team conducted numerous studies to investigate how Parkinson’s affects memory, attention and other cognitive functions in patients.
  2. Virginia Man-Yee Lee work focuses on disease-related proteins that form pathological inclusions in disorders such as Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, frontotemporal lobar degeneration, and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis
  3. Margaret M. Hoehn is recognized for her research on Parkinson’s onset and progressio, and together with Dr. Melvin D. Yahr, she studied the variability of the disease and created the Hoehn and Yahr Scale
  4. Maria Rodríguez-Oroz is a neurologist known for her research in Deep Brain Stimulation and prevention of cognitive decline in PD.
  5. Ann Graybiel is a neuroscientist known for her research on neural circuits and movement control, and her laboratory focuses on the study of the basal ganglia.
  6. Jennifer Goldman’s work focuses on cognition and neuropsychiatry in PD and is also interested disparities in care and rehabilitation

And here is a nice piece Women in neurosurgery I really enjoyed!

Finally, if you are interested, there is a Women in Movement Disorders Special Interest Group in MDS, if you are interested.

Is there other scientist you admire in the community? Are you a part of any group that aims to empower women in science?

8 Likes
2

Hi @paularp.
Thanks for sharing this post, and this remarkable list of female scientists who have done so much for science. As a steering committee member of the Women in Movement Disorders SIG, I can assure you that is a wonderful, hardworking and dynamic community, and would love to have more members! Thank you for sharing the link.

4 Likes
3

Thanks for sharing, Paula! This article on women in neurosurgery was a great read.

2 Likes
4

Wow! Thank @Divyani ! Could you share a little bit of your experience in the group, please?

1 Like
5

Yes! Thanks for the interest, @paularp ! The Women in Movement Disorders is a Special Interest Group within the International Parkinson Disease and Movement Disorder Society. The SIG has specific subgroups that work on networking/outreach/advocacy, Education & mentorship, and clinical care. Through these subgroups, we are working to engage with women scientists, researchers and clinicians working in movement disorders so that we can understand specific challenges, provide mentorship and support, and also advocate for our patients. It is a very special SIG, and close to my :heart:!

2 Likes