Besides serving as Programme Director for the Translational Neuroscience domain at SICS, Professor Michael Meaney is also Programme Director of the Brain-Body Initiative Strategic Research Programme at A*STAR; and James McGill Professor, Emeritus for Department of Psychiatry in the Faculty of Medicine at McGill University. Renowned for his research on stress, maternal care and gene expression, his scientific work focuses on epigenetics and the mechanisms by which adversity in early life might alter neural development and render certain individuals at risk of mental illnesses and/or learning disabilities later in life.
One of the world’s most cited scientists, he has been invited to present his findings at research institutes, government health agencies, and scientific meetings globally. Through his work, he hopes to holistically depict what vulnerability to mental illnesses looks like, what constitutes resilience or risk, and what interventions can help stop these debilitating conditions before they take root in adolescence and early adulthood.
In 2014, Professor Meaney was awarded the prestigious Klaus J. Jacobs Research Prize for his work on how parental behaviour affects children’s brain development and lifelong function. He was also elected to the Royal Society of Canada, named a Knight of the National Order of Quebec and awarded the Order of Canada.
Professor Meaney graduated from Loyola College (Montreal), and received his PhD from Concordia University (Montreal) with post-doctoral training at The Rockefeller University in New York.