From 2019 to 2024, the ICGNMD’s first MRC-funded award supported early career clinical fellows around the world to develop clinical academic research expertise in neuromuscular diseases. Some fellows undertook a PhD to support career progression in their chosen field. Cohort-wide progress was overseen by ICGNMD Clinical Fellowship leads Professors Mary Reilly and Robert Pitceathly.
We are delighted to announce that ICGNMD’s first two international PhDs have been awarded in June 2026!
In Turkey, Dr Özlem Köken was awarded her PhD in Medical Genetics. Dr Köken’s PhD was supervised by Prof. Dr. Haluk Topaloğlu and Assoc. Prof. Dr. Esra Manguoğlu. She also received support from colleagues Prof. Dr. Şenay Haspolat, Prof. Dr. Nur Semerci, Prof. Dr. Gülay Ceylan, Assoc. Prof. Dr. Büşranur Çavdarlı, and Assoc. Prof. Dr. Ahmet Cevdet Ceylan. During her PhD, Dr Köken liaised with Professor Francesco Muntoni, Dr Anna Sarkozy and Dr Luke Perry at the UCL Institute of Child Health and Great Ormond Street Hospital.
In Brazil, Dr Rodrigo Frezatti successfully defended his PhD thesis at FAEPA, University of São Paulo. His supervisors were Dr Pedro José Tomaselli and Professor Wilson Marques Júnior, and his thesis committee was formed by Professor Reilly, Professor Stephan Zuchner (Dept. Medical Genetics, University of Miami Miller School of Medicine) and Professor Alberto Martinez of UNICAMP, São Paulo.
ICGNMD Lead Professor Mike Hanna commented “Completing a PhD alongside clinical work and family commitments is always an impressive achievement, and our ICGNMD Fellows additionally had to manage wider challenges and clinical duties during the pandemic. We congratulate both Fellows and we look forward to following their future progress and maintaining ICGNMD’s strong connections with them.”
The clinical fellows were supported by an MRC strategic award to establish an International Centre for Genomic Medicine in Neuromuscular Diseases (ICGNMD) MR/S005021/1. Dr Frezatti additionally received a Guarantors of Brain Fellowship (UK Registered Charity 1197319), followed by a FAPESP SPRINT bursary.
