Dr. Nimmerjahn received his Ph.D. in physics from the University of Heidelberg and Max Planck Institute for Medical Research, Germany. Following postdoctoral training in the Departments of Biology and Applied Physics at Stanford University, USA, he joined the Salk Institute for Biological Studies, USA, where he is now a professor.

Dr. Nimmerjahn’s research focuses on developing and applying novel in vivo imaging, tissue staining, molecular genetic, behavioral, and computational methods to uncover cellular and molecular mechanisms underlying healthy and diseased central nervous system (CNS) function. He and his team have provided the first optical measurements of neuronal and astrocyte activity in the brain and spinal cord of freely behaving animals and shed light on how these cells encode sensory and motor information. Additionally, they have provided insight into how microglia, the innate immune sentinels of the CNS, recognize and respond to disturbances in tissue homeostasis and how these cells’ inflammatory responses can be controlled.

Dr. Nimmerjahn’s work has been recognized by a variety of awards, including the Du Bois-Reymond Award of the German Physiologic Society, Otto Hahn Medal and Award of the Max Planck Society, Scholar Awards by the Rita Allen and Whitehall Foundations, and New Innovator, EUREKA, and BRAIN Initiative Awards by the National Institutes of Health (NIH).