Enrica Montalban is the laureate of the Marian Diamond Prize 2024

She was presented with the award on Friday 9 February, during a special morning event organised as part of the annual Women and Girls in Science Day on 11 February.

Initiated by the Bordeaux Neurocampus Parity Committee, the Marian Diamond Prize aims to highlight women neuroscientists at a crucial stage in their careers, the post-doctoral period, when they face many obstacles in gaining access to academic positions.

She will receive a prize of €1,000 and will present her research work at the Bordeaux Neurocampus Day on 16 May.

Enrica Montalban

Parcours

Enrica obtained her Master’s degree in 2011 at the University of Rome and then began a joint PhD at the Institut du Fer à Moulin in Paris and the Rockefeller University in New York. Her PhD work identified the molecular mechanisms underlying long-term adaptation of dopamine sensitive neurons in the striatum. Her research also explored transcriptional changes underlying pathological states, including compulsive-like food-seeking.

Following her thesis defense in 2016, she began her postdoctoral career where she developed an interest in the neurobiological bases of feeding disorders. Enrica worked with Dr. Serge Luquet, a specialist in the field of metabolism, for several years before joining Nutrineuro in 2022. She is currently conducting a translational project to assess dopamine levels in relation with symptoms in obese patients.

Research output

Enrica has received numerous fellowships and awards, including a Marie Curie Initial Training Network Fellowship, FRM postdoctoral fellowship, Foundation de Treilles Young Researcher Award, as well as funding from the Modern Diet and Physiology Research Center, the FRC, and the Fondation de France. She has published 14 original articles (many as first and corresponding author), in journals such as Biological Psychiatry, Molecular Psychiatry, and Cell Metabolism.

In addition, Enrica has a strong commitment to teaching and actively participates in science outreach activities (such as semaine du cerveau, Unipop Bagnolet, and Festival des Sciences). She is also involved in the sustainable development and social responsibility committee at her institute (Nutrineuro), where she promotes the well-being of women in the laboratory.

Marian Diamond (1926-2017)

is an American pioneer in anatomical neuroscience who provided the first scientific evidence of anatomical neuroplasticity in the early 1960s. Later, her work on Einstein’s brain in the 1980s gave new impetus to the study of interactions between neurons and glia.