“Mind Matters: How to Keep Your Brain Young"

The Imperial Council Women’s Network is a series of events designed to give an unparalleled insight into the cutting-edge research Imperial is undertaking to solve some of the world’s greatest challenges.

About our Speaker

Professor Paul Matthews, Edmond and Lily Safra Chair, Department of Brain Sciences at Imperial

Paul Matthews is the Director of the Rosalind Franklin Institute, Edmond and Lily Safra Professor of Translational Neuroscience and Therapeutics in the Department of Brain Sciences at Imperial and a Group Leader in the UK Dementia Research Institute at Imperial. Since 2009 he has been on the Steering Committee of UK Biobank and has chaired the Imaging Enhancement Working Group, which has supported UK Biobank in creating the world’s largest imaging epidemiological dataset. Since 2023, he also has been Co-Chair of the UK Biobank Dementia Working Group.

Paul was an MRC Clinical Research Reader (later Professor) and founding Director of the Oxford Centre for Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging of the Brain in the University of Oxford (1995-2005). He then spent almost 9 years (2005-2014) as a Vice President in GlaxoSmithKline, holding a variety of senior portfolios, including those for the GSK Clinical Imaging Centre, the Global Imaging Group and as a Neuroscience Medicine Development Lead. From 2012-2024 Paul was Head of the Division (and later Department) of Brain Sciences and a member of the senior management group for the Faculty of Medicine at Imperial. He was Chair of the UKRI MRC Neuroscience and Mental Health Board 2020-24 and serves on many other national and international scientific advisory panels for academia and industry.

Paul has a broad scientific background and has worked to integrate tools and insights from multiple disciplines in his work. His personal research interest lies in defining brain inflammatory mechanisms contributing to the genesis and progression of multiple sclerosis and Alzheimer’s disease. He has been addressing these using a wide range of epidemiological, MRI and PET imaging and molecular ‘omics tools. He is a Fellow of the Academy of Medical Sciences, a Fellow by Special Election of St Edmund Hall, Oxford and a Fellow of the Academea Europea. He was made an Officer of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire (OBE) in 2008 for services to Neuroscience. Outside of work, Paul enjoys walking, reading and collecting ukiyo-e, especially those of Hiroshige.

About Imperial

Imperial is a global top ten university with a world-class reputation. The university’s 22,000 students and 8,000 staff are working to solve the greatest challenges in science, medicine, engineering and business. The Research Excellence Framework 2021 revealed that Imperial has a greater proportion of world-leading research than any other UK university. In addition, Imperial was named University of the Year 2022 by the Times and University of the Year for Student Experience 2022 by the Good University Guide. Imperial was awarded a Queen’s Anniversary Prize for its COVID-19 response.