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Filiz ONAT
Prof. - Primary Principal Investigator

Filiz Onat graduated from Istanbul University Faculty of Medicine in 1989 where she completed her degree as an MD. She went on to have her PhD degree in Medical Pharmacology from Marmara University. She conducted her thesis studies at Arizona University Health Sciences Institute between 1991-1992. She focuses on neuropharmacology, basic and clinical epilepsy research and central cardiovascular regulation. She is the Coordinator of the GEMSTONE Project, financed by Horizon Europe (Grant Agreement no. 101078981). She is a member of the Editorial Board of Epilepsia, one of the leading journals in the field of neuropharmacology, and has more than 130 research and review articles in journals indexed in the SCI. Additionally, she has conducted and participated in many international collaborations from all over the world, including Europe, the UK, and the USA.


Affiliation: Acibadem Mehmet Ali Aydinlar University - Faculty of Medicine

ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0680-4782

Researcher Profile: https://avesis.acibadem.edu.tr/filiz.onat

Contact Information: Filiz.Onat@acibadem.edu.tr

Selected Publications: 

  1. Toplu A, Mutlu N, Erdeve ET, Sariyildiz Ö, Çelik M, Öz-Arslan D, Akman Ö, Molnár Z, Çarçak N, Onat F. Involvement of orexin type-2 receptors in genetic absence epilepsy rats. Front Neurol. 2023 Nov 30;14:1282494. doi: 10.3389/fneur.2023.1282494. PMID: 38107640; PMCID: PMC10721972.
  2. Yavuz, M., İyiköşker, P., Mutlu, N., Kiliçparlar, S., Şalci, Ö. H., Dolu, G., Kaymakçılar E.N., Akkol S. & Onat, F. Dexmedetomidine, an alpha 2A receptor agonist, triggers seizures unilaterally in GAERS during the pre-epileptic phase: does the onset of spike-and-wave discharges occur in a focal manner? Front Neurol. 2023 Dec 11;14:1231736. doi: 10.3389/fneur.2023.1231736. PMID: 38146441; PMCID: PMC10749324.
  3. Carcak N, Onat F, Sitnikova E. Astrocytes as a target for therapeutic strategies in epilepsy: current insights. Front. Mol. Neurosci., Sec. Molecular Signalling and Pathways Volume 16 - 2023 | https://doi.org/10.3389/fnmol.2023.1183775
  4. Çarçak N, Karanfil C, Akat Ş, Akman Ö, Onat F. The effect of chronic treatment with sodium channel blocker lacosamide on early development of absence seizures in genetic absence epilepsy rats. Epilepsy Research. Vol. 182:106896. Mar 7, 2022. doi: 10.1016/j.eplepsyres.2022.106896.
  5. Gülhan R, Eryüksel E, Gülçebi İdriz Oğlu M, Çulpan Y, Toplu A, Kocakaya D, Tigen E, Ertürk Şengel B, Sili U, Olgun Yıldızeli Ş, Balcan MB, Elçi A, Bulut C, Karaalp A, Yananlı HR, Güner AE, Hatipoğlu M, Karakurt S, Korten V, Ratnaraj N, Patsalos P, Ay P, Onat F. Pharmacokinetic characterization of favipiravir in patients with COVID-19. British Journal of Clinical Pharmacology.Vol.88(7):3516-22, 2022. doi: 10.1111/bcp.15227.
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Deniz KIRIK
Prof. - Local Principal Investigator

Deniz Kirik, MD, PhD, has over 25 years of experience in development of cell and gene therapy for treatment of neurodegenerative diseases, with special emphasis on Parkinson’s disease. His work involved development of AAV vectors in rodent and non-human primate models. Dr. Kirik made significant contributions cell therapy for PD demonstrating the relationship between the disease severity, integration of the grafted cells in the brain and functional recovery in complex tasks. His findings were instrumental in taking novel treatments in both areas into clinical testing. Dr. Kirik co-authored more than 150 papers and cited more than 17,000 times to date. He was the recipient of prestigious European Research Council (ERC) support in 2009 and 2012, and was recognized as one of 10 achievements in 10 years of the ERC in 2017. He was named the Allan and Maria Myer Fellow in 2010 and has been a regular member of the Science Academy, Istanbul, Turkey since 2015.


Affiliation: Lund University - Brain Repair and Imaging in Neural Systems (BRAINS)

ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1360-1265

Researcher Profile: https://portal.research.lu.se/en/persons/deniz-kirik

Contact Information: Deniz.Kirik@med.lu.se

Selected Publications:

  1. Sastre, D., Zafar, F., Torres, C. A. M., Piper, D., Kirik, D., Sanders, L. H., Qi, L. S. & Schüle, B., “Inactive S. aureus Cas9 downregulates alpha-synuclein and reduces mtDNA damage and oxidative stress levels in human stem cell model of Parkinson’s disease”, 2023 Dec, In: Scientific Reports. 13, 1, 17796.
  2. Bergh, S., Gabery, S., Tonetto, S., Kirik, D., Petersén, Å. & Cheong, R. Y., “Effects of mutant huntingtin in oxytocin neurons on non-motor features of Huntington's disease”, 2023 Apr, In: Neuropathology and Applied Neurobiology. 49, 2, e12891.
  3. Wali, G., Li, Y., Abu-Bonsrah, D., Kirik, D., Parish, C. L. & Sue, C. M “Generation of human-induced pluripotent-stem-cell-derived cortical neurons for high-throughput imaging of neurite morphology and neuron maturation”, Wali, G., Li, Y., Abu-Bonsrah, D., Kirik, D., Parish, C. L. & Sue, C. M., 2023, In: STAR Protocols. 4, 2, 102325.
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Serena COGONI
Local Principal Investigator

Serena is an experienced professional in the field of research projects and grants writing and management. She has 20 years of proven experience, with a track record of more than 300 grant applications submitted in the most complex line of EU programmes (FP6/FP7/H2020 and Horizon Europe) and more than 30 funded projects in the field of biomedical research.


Affiliation: Fondazione ICONS

Researcher Profile: https://www.icons.it/people/cogoni/

Contact Information: Serena.Cogoni@icons.it

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My ANDERSSON
Assoc. Prof. - Researcher

My Andersson graduated from the Faculty of Natural Sciences at Gothenburg University in 2004 and earned a PhD in Physiology in 2009. During her doctoral studies, she conducted research on postnatal development of synaptic plasticity in rodent hippocampus. She then performed her postdoctoral research at Lund University under the guidance of Prof. Merab Kokaia. Her research group focuses on epilepsy during development and advanced therapeutic interventions, such as cell and gene therapy. They employ opto- and chemogenetics to investigate the mechanisms of epilepsy and seizures and develop strategies to mitigate their progression.


Affiliation: Lund University - Brain Repair and Imaging in Neural Systems (BRAINS)

ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3699-138X

Researcher Profile: https://portal.research.lu.se/en/persons/my-andersson

Contact Information: My.Andersson@med.lu.se

Selected Publications: 

  1. Ledri, M., Andersson, M., Wickham, J. & Kokaia, M., “Optogenetics for controlling seizure circuits for translational approaches”, 2023 Aug, In: Neurobiology of Disease. 184, p. 1-13 106234.
  2. Ahl, M., Taylor, M. K., Avdic, U., Lundin, A., Andersson, M., Amandusson, Å., Kumlien, E., Compagno Strandberg, M. & Ekdahl, C. T., “Immune response in blood before and after epileptic and psychogenic non-epileptic seizures”, 2023 Mar, In: Heliyon. 9, 3, e13938.
  3. Wickham, J., Ledri, M., Andersson, M. & Kokaia, M., “Cell-specific switch for epileptiform activity: critical role of interneurons in the mouse subicular network”, 2023, In: Cerebral Cortex. 33, 10, p. 6171-6183
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Nihan ÇARÇAK YILMAZ
Assoc. Prof. - Leader of WP2

She graduated from Istanbul University Faculty of Pharmacy in 2004. She holds a PhD degree of Pharmacology. She conducted her post-doctoral studies at Cardiff University Faculty of Biosciences between 2012-2013. She focuses on translational epilepsy research uncovering cellular and molecular mechanisms underlying genetic generalised and autoimmune-mediated epilepsies. She is the WP2 Leader of the GEMSTONE Project. Through her publications, presentations, academic visits she has already built a reputation as one of the promising women neuroscientists in the field of translational research for epilepsy.


Affiliation: Acibadem Mehmet Ali Aydinlar University - Faculty of Medicine / Istanbul University - Faculty of Pharmacy

ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6254-4319

Researcher Profile: https://avesis.istanbul.edu.tr/nihan.carcak/

Contact Information: Nihan.Carcak@istanbul.edu.tr / Nihan.Yilmaz@acibadem.edu.tr

Selected Publications:

  1. Çarçak N, Karanfil C, Akat Ş, Akman Ö, Onat F. The effect of chronic treatment with sodium channel blocker lacosamide on early development of absence seizures in genetic absence epilepsy rats. Epilepsy Res. 2022 DOI: 10.1016/j.eplepsyres.2022.106896.
  2. Çarçak N, Ali I, Powell K, Zheng T, Onat F, O'Brien TJ (2019) Cav 3.2 T-type calcium channel mutation influences kindling-induced thalamic neuronal firing patterns in Genetic Absence Epilepsy Rats from Strasbourg. Epilepsia. 60(7): 1378-1386.
  3. David F, Çarçak N, Furdan S, Onat F, Gould T, Meszaros A et al (2018). Suppression of HyperpolarizationActivated Cyclic Nucleotide-Gated Channel Function in Thalamocortical Neurons Prevents Genetically Determined and Pharmacologically Induced Absence Seizures. J. Neurosci, 38:6615-27.
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Meltem KOLGAZİ
Assoc. Prof. - Leader of WP3

She received her degree from Istanbul University's Cerrahpasa Faculty of Medicine's Department of Medical Biology. Subsequently, she completed her master's and doctoral degrees in physiology at Marmara University School of Medicine. Since December 2013, she has been employed as Associate Professor of Physiology at the Department of Physiology, Acibadem University, School of Medicine. She studies gastrointestinal inflammation, its relationship with the autonomic nervous system, particularly the cholinergic pathway, and gastrointestinal immune responses. In addition, Meltem Kolgazi serves as the Laboratory Animal Application and Research Center's (ACU-DEHAM) assistant director. She has recently concentrated on the ethical issues surrounding animal experimentation, animal refinement, and animal lab settings.


Affiliation: Acibadem Mehmet Ali Aydinlar University - Faculty of Medicine

ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4820-1904

Researcher Profile: https://avesis.acibadem.edu.tr/meltem.kolgazi

Contact Information: Meltem.Kolgazi@acibadem.edu.tr

Selected Publications: 

  1. Yilmaz O., Okullu S., Catakci M., Elmas M., Pinheiro Y., Arbak S., et al. “Akkermansia muciniphila improves chronic colitis-induced enteric neuroinflammation in mice” NEUROGASTROENTEROLOGY AND MOTILITY , vol.36, no.3, 2024 (SCI-Expanded).
  2. Kolgazi M.,“The Effects of Cholinergic Anti-Inflammatory Pathway on Inflammatory Bowel Diseases and the Role of Vagus Nerve” ACTA PHYSIOLOGICA , pp.16-17, 2023 (SCI-Expanded).
  3. Cilingir S., Acikel-Elmas M., Arbak S., Kolgazi M., “Ferulic acid attenuates pancreaticobiliary duct occlusion-induced inflammation in both pancreas and liver”,INFLAMMOPHARMACOLOGY , vol.31, no.2, pp.997-1008, 2023 (SCI-Expanded).
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Melike ŞAHİNER
Assoc. Prof. - Leader of WP4

Melike Şahiner completed her Doctorate in Medical Sciences at Ege University, Faculty of Medicine, Turkey, from 1998 to 2011, following her Undergraduate studies in Medicine at Ankara University, Turkey, from 1983 to 1990. She also pursued postgraduate studies at Universiteit Maastricht, School of Education, Netherlands, from 2011 to 2013, specializing in the MHPE program. Melike Şahiner is an Associate Professor at Acibadem Mehmet Ali Aydinlar University, School of Medicine, Department of Basic Sciences, since 2015. Melike Şahiner is actively engaged in the scientific community, serving as a member of the Evaluation Committee for Tıp Eğitimi Dünyası since 2021. She is also a member of TEPDAD (Turkish Association of Medical Education) since 2018.


Affiliation: Acibadem Mehmet Ali Aydinlar University - Faculty of Medicine

ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6561-7675

Researcher Profile: https://avesis.acibadem.edu.tr/Melike.Sahiner

Contact Information: Melike.Sahiner@acibadem.edu.tr

Selected Publications: 

  1. Aldinc H.,Gun C.,Yaylaci S.,Senuren C.O.,Guven F.,Sahiner M.,Kayayurt K.,Turkmen S., “Comparison of self versus expert-assisted feedback for cricothyroidotomy training: a randomized trial”, BMCMEDICAL EDUCATION, vol.22,no.455,pp.1-7,2022 (SCI-Expanded).
  2. KAVAS M.V.,Ulman Y. I.,DEMİR F.,ARTVİNLİ F.,Sahiner M., DEMİRÖREN M.,Senyurek G.,PAKİŞ I., BAKIRCIN., “The state of ethics education atmedical schools in Turkey: taking stock and looking forward”, BMCMEDICAL EDUCATION,vol.20,no.1,2020 (SCI-Expanded).
  3. Sürmeli A.,Tolunay T.,Yasin Y.,Kusoglu H.,Arcan A., Jaiswal A.,Gökmen B.,Acharya B.,Arslan B.,Baka B., “Child health, parasites and lower socioeconomic status: Outcomes of a long-termscreening, intervention and training study by health volunteers in rural Nepal.” Acta tropica, vol.202, pp. 105263,2019 (SCI-Expanded).
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Beki KAN
Prof. - Co-Leader of WP5

Beki Kan graduated from Bogazici University with a BSc in Chemistry.  She received her PhD at Istanbul University, Istanbul Faculty of Medicine. Subsequently, she worked as a post-doctoral associate at Harvard-MIT Division of Health Sciences and Technology in the USA. She started the Biophysics Department at Marmara University School of Medicine, where she worked until 2009.  Between 1990 and 1992 she visited the same laboratory at MIT with a Biotechnology Career Fellowship from The Rockefeller Foundation.  Currently, she is the head of the Biophysics Department at Acibadem University, School of Medicine.


Affiliation: Acibadem Mehmet Ali Aydinlar University - Faculty of Medicine

ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2738-9680

Researcher Profile: https://avesis.acibadem.edu.tr/beki.kan

Contact Information: Beki.Kan@acibadem.edu.tr

Selected Publications: 

  1. “Role of reversing factor in the inhibition of protein synthesis initiation by oxidized glutathione.”,Kan B, London IM, Levin DH.J Biol Chem. 1988 Oct 25;263(30):15652-6.
  2. “Evidence for the presence of muscarinic M2 and M4 receptors in guinea-pig gallbladder smooth muscle.”, Oktay S, Cabadak H, Iskender E, Gören Z, Calişkan E, Orun O, Aslan N, Karaalp A, Tolun A, Ulusoy NB, Levey AI, El-Fakahany EE, Kan B.J Auton Pharmacol. 1998 Aug;18(4):195-204. doi: 10.1046/j.1365-2680.1998.18474.x.PMID: 9788289
  3. “Structural characterization of T-protein of the Escherichia coli glycine cleavage system by X-ray small angle scattering.” Orun O, Koch MH, Kan B, Svergun DI, Petoukhov MV, Sayers Z., Cell Mol Biol (Noisy-le-grand). 2003;49 Online Pub:OL453-9.PMID: 14995075
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Eda TAHİR TURANLI
Prof. - Co-Leader of WP5

Eda Tahir Turanlı is a Professor and Chair at Acibadem University's Department of Molecular Biology and Genetics in Istanbul, Turkey. She holds a BSc in Genetics from Nottingham University (1995), an MSc in Human Molecular Genetics from Imperial College of Science and Technology (1996), and a PhD in Medical Biology from Marmara University (2000). Dr. Turanlı's research focuses on investigating the genetics of neurological and autoinflammatory diseases. Her current work in the laboratory involves conducting exome sequencing and analysis of familial multiple sclerosis and undefined familial autoinflammatory cases. Additionally, she conducts functional analysis of variants in cell culture models. Collaborating with esteemed colleagues from institutions such as Istanbul Cerrahpasa University, Marmara University, National Institutes of Health, and Commonwealth University, Dr. Turanlı fosters national and international partnerships in her research. With over 20 years of experience in academia, Dr. Turanlı leads a diverse research group at Acibadem University comprising PhD, master's, and undergraduate students.


Affiliation: Acibadem Mehmet Ali Aydinlar University - Faculty of Engineering and Natural Sciences

ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0789-0398

Researcher Profile: https://avesis.acibadem.edu.tr/eda.turanli

Contact Information: Eda.Turanli@acibadem.edu.tr

Selected Publications: 

  1. Everest, E., Ahangari, M., Uygunoglu, U., Tutuncu, M., Bulbul, A., Saip, S., Duman, T., Sezerman, U., Reich, D. S., Riley, B. P., Siva, A., & Tahir Turanli, E. (2022). Investigating the role of common and rare variants in multiplex multiple sclerosis families reveals an increased burden of common risk variation. Scientific reports, 12(1), 16984. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-022-21484-x
  2. Everest E, Uygunoglu U, Tutuncu M, Bulbul A, Onat UI, Unal M, Avsar T, Saip S, Bilge U, Turanli ET, Siva A. Prospective outcome analysis of multiple sclerosis cases reveals candidate prognostic cerebrospinal fluid markers. PLoS One. 2023 Jun 20;18(6):e0287463. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0287463. PMID: 37339131; PMCID: PMC10281571
  3. Ahangari, M., Everest, E., Nguyen, T. H., Verrelli, B. C., Webb, B. T., Bacanu, S. A., Tahir Turanli, E., & Riley, B. P. (2022). Genome-wide analysis of schizophrenia and multiple sclerosis identifies shared genomic loci with mixed direction of effects. Brain, behavior, and immunity, 104, 183–190. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bbi.2022.06.007
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Levent ALTINTAŞ
Assoc. Prof. - Leader of WP6

Levent Altıntaş completed his Doctorate in Internal Medicine Sciences at Istanbul University, Cerrahpaşa Faculty of Medicine, Turkey, from 1994 to 1998, following his Undergraduate studies in Medicine at Marmara University, Turkey, from 1983 to 1992. He specializes in Medicine Education and has been engaged in academic and administrative roles at Acibadem Mehmet Ali Aydinlar University since 2016. Levent Altıntaş is a dedicated member of the scientific community, actively contributing to journals such as Tıp Eğitimi Dünyası, where he served as a Committee Member from 2012 to 2020. He is also involved in various scientific organizations, including the Turkish Medical Education Association, where he has been a Board Member since 2019, and the Association for Evaluation and Accreditation of Medical Education Programs, where he has been a Member of the Science Committee since 2013.


Affiliation: Acibadem Mehmet Ali Aydinlar University - Faculty of Medicine

ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4950-6956

Researcher Profile: https://avesis.acibadem.edu.tr/levent.altintas

Contact Information: Levent.Altintas@acibadem.edu.tr

Selected Publications: 

  1. Aydınlar A., Mavi A., Kütükçü E., KIRIMLI E. E., ALİS D. C., AKIN A., et al., “Awareness and level of digital literacy among students receiving health-based education”,BMC Medical Education , vol.24, no.1, 2024 (SCI-Expanded).
  2. YILMAZ Y., Sarikaya O., ŞENOL Y., BAYKAN Z., KARACA O., Demiral Yilmaz N., et al., “RE-AIMing COVID-19 online learning for medical students: a massive open online course evaluation”, BMC MEDICAL EDUCATION , vol.21, no.1, 2021 (SCI-Expanded).
  3. Sahiner M., AKSUNGAR F., ALTINTAŞ L., “A Modified TBL Used in an Integrated Physiology and Biochemistry of Endocrine System Lectures”, ACTA PHYSIOLOGICA , vol.225, pp.73, 2018 (SCI-Expanded).
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Cem ÖZTÜRK
Project Manager

Cem Öztürk is the Project Manager for the GEMSTONE initiative, where they oversee project coordination, resource management, and stakeholder engagement. With a background in Human Genetics from the University of Nottingham and extensive experience in project management and funding strategy, Cem brings a strong scientific foundation and a proven record of driving high-impact projects in nonprofit and research-focused environments. Fluent in Turkish and English, they are dedicated to enhancing GEMSTONE’s scientific and public outreach, contributing to ACU’s vision of scientific excellence.


Affiliation: Acibadem Mehmet Ali Aydinlar University - Project Management Office 

Researcher Profile: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ozturkcem/ 

Contact Information: Cem.Ozturk@acibadem.edu.tr