Dr. Mark Ellisman is a distinguished professor of neurosciences and bioengineering and
director of the Center for Research in Biological Systems at UCSD. He received his
PhD in 1976 in molecular, cellular and developmental biology at the University of
Colorado, Boulder (with Keith R. Porter) and has been a professor at UCSD since 1977.

Dr. Ellisman directs the National Center for Microscopy and Imaging Research
(NCMIR), an internationally acclaimed technology development center and research
resource established by the NIH. He is a pioneer in the development of three-dimensional
light and electron microscopy. He and his group determined that LRRK2 binds to
microtubules and decorates them in an organized manner. His lab works on alpha-synuclein and LRRK2 as well as other aspects of Parkinson’s and neurodegenerative diseases.