George Paxinos

George Paxinos AO DSc FASSA FAA FRSN FAHMS (Greek: Γιώργος Παξινός, born 6 December 1944) is a Greek Australian neuroscientist, born in Ithaca, Greece. He completed his BA in psychology at the University of California at Berkeley and his PhD at McGill University in Montreal, Canada. After a postdoctoral year at Yale University, he moved to the School of Psychology of the University of New South Wales in Sydney, Australia. He is currently an NHMRC Senior Principal Research Fellow at Neuroscience Research Australia and Scientia Professor of Medical Sciences at the University of New South Wales.

George Paxinos

AO DSc FASSA FAA FRSN FAHMS
Born
Yiorgos Paxinos (Γιώργος Παξινός)

(1944-12-06) 6 December 1944
Ithaca, Greece
Alma mater
ChildrenTwo
Awards
Websiteneura.edu.au/research/themes/paxinos-group

He is a fellow of the Australian Academy of Science, the Australian Academy of Social Sciences in Australia, and the Australian Academy of Health and Medical Sciences. He was also awarded a Distinguished Fellow of the Royal Society of New South Wales in 2019. Paxinos is a corresponding member of the Academy of Athens, and the only Australian with this award.

Personal life

Although known for his impact within neuroscience, Paxinos has a history of campaigning for the environment. For more than 10 years (1989 - 2000), Paxinos was the leading proponent of light rail for the city of Sydney. His motivation had been to reduce atmospheric pollution from automobile use. He founded the Light Rail Association and, through this organization, produced a plan for a comprehensive light rail system to complement the heavy rail network of Sydney. He organized demonstrations to preserve tramway infrastructure for a future light rail system. One of these demonstrations was a march on the Harbour Bridge that attracted more than 400 people. He also founded the Randwick Environment Group and the Coastal Walk Group – groups engaged in local activities in Randwick and Tamarama/Bronte, respectively. He wrote his novel Κατ’ Εικόνα to sensitize people on environmental issues. He stood as candidate for the Australian Cyclists Party for the 2015 state elections in New South Wales.

Research

Paxinos has published 54 research books, 1 textbook, 165 refereed journal articles, 30 book chapters, and 17 CDROMs.[1] He has identified 94 nuclei (areas) in the rat and human brains. Comparing rats and humans, he has identified 64 homologous nuclei. He has identified 180 nuclei and homologies in birds. He was the first to produce a reliable stereotaxic space for the brain of rats, mice, and primates — a factor fuelling the explosion in neuroscience research since the 1980s. He developed the first comprehensive nomenclature and ontology for the brain, covering humans, birds, and developing mammals. Further, Paxinos constructed the most frequently cited atlases of the brain and spinal cord of rats, mice, monkeys, birds and humans. He also published developmental atlases of rats and mice, and the only comprehensive MRI/DTI atlas of the rat brain

Impact

He produced two paradigm shifts in the field of neuroscience. (i) During a sabbatical at Cambridge in 1977, he learned immunohistochemistry and applied it for the first time in brain atlases. That is, he used the chemical phenotype of neurons as a criterion for identifying brain regions and for establishing brain homologies across experimental animals and humans. (ii) In his avian brain atlas, he used neuromeric criteria to delineate the entire brain for the first time. Most scientists working on the relation between the human brain and neurologic or psychiatric diseases, or animal models of these diseases, use his maps and concepts of brain organization. His human brain atlases are the most accurate ones for identification of deep structures and are used in surgical theatres. In community impact, his 2018 discovery of the human endorestiform nucleus was widely reported.

Citation record and grant support

In the field of neuroscience, he is the author of the most cited publication internationally (The Rat Brain in Stereotaxic Coordinates; Paxinos and Watson, 1986.).[2][3] This is the third most cited book in science after Molecular Cloning and the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (68,471 citations over its 7 editions). Currently is ranked 14th in the 100 Most Cited Books of All-Time – BooksIcon.com[4] In total, his works have been cited 109,177 times, with 80,070 as first author.

Paxinos holds two National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) project grants and is a chief investigator at the ARC Centre of Excellence for Integrative Brain Function and of the NIH grant "Towards quantitative cell type-based mapping of the whole mouse brain".

Until 2013, he held an NHMRC Australia Fellowship ($4 million) with UNSW support ($1.5 million) as well as two grants from NIH (USD150,000 and USD528,951). He was a member of the first International Consortium for Brain Mapping. Unlike most academic books, some of his atlases have been commercially successful; he was able to obtain grants for his laboratory from the publishers development to fund eight prizes from book royalties.

Editorial boards of international refereed journals

Paxinos has served on 16 journal editorial boards, including Frontiers in Neuroanatomy (2008–present),[5] Dialogues in Clinical Neuroscience & Mental Health (2018 - present), Brain Structure and Function (2007–present),[6] Translational Neuroscience (2008–present),[7] ISRN Neurology (2010–present), PLoS ONE, for the SBMT NeuroMapping and Therapeutics Collection (2012–present), Journal of Chemical Neuroanatomy (2004–2014),[8] BrainNavigator (2009–12),[9] Neuroscience and Bio-behavioral Reviews (2000–11), Journal of Comparative Neurology[10] Human Brain Mapping, Posters in Neuroscience,[11] Journal fur Hirnforschung, International Neuropsychiatric Disease Journal, and NeuroImage.

Contribution to the Profession
  • President of the Australian Neuroscience Society (ANS; 2004-5).
  • President, World Congress of Neuroscience (2004-7).
  • Chairperson, IBRO World Congress & Regional Meetings Committee (2007-11).

Honorary Life Memberships

  • Society of Speech Therapists of Greece (Σύλλογος Επιστημόνων Λογοπαθολόγων Λογοθεραπευτών Ελλάδος)
  • Hellenic Neuropsychology Society

Conference Organizing

  • President of the Local Organizing Committee for the 2007 Melbourne IBRO World Congress of Neuroscience (and President of the Melbourne consortium bid for the Congress).
  • Mai, Saper and Paxinos organized the International Conference on the Structural Basis for Understanding Human Brain Function and Dysfunction; Roma 5-10 Oct 2002.
  • He was a founding member of the international committee that organizes the International Human Brain Mapping Conferences.
  • He was the co-organizer of the 1988 Neuropsychology symposium that took place on Heron Island as a satellite of the International Congress of Psychology in Sydney.

Contribution to teaching

He wrote the internationally used textbook The Brain: an Introduction to Functional Neuroanatomy (2010) which is used in the Australian and New Zealand Brain Bee Challenge and has contributed to Australia’s dominance in the International Brain Bee Challenge competition. He taught psychology for 27 years and served on the Academic Board and Council of UNSW. He is currently supervising two postdoctoral fellows and a PhD student.[12]

Professional service
  • President of the Australasian Neuroscience Society (ANS; 2004–5).[13]
  • President, World Congress of Neuroscience (2004–07).
  • Chairperson, IBRO World Congress & Regional Meetings Committee (2007–11).[14]

Community service
  • Founder and President of the Light Rail Association (1989–2000)[15][16][17]
  • Founder and former Secretary of the Migrants' Rights Committee[18][19][20]
  • Member of the Australian Cyclists Party[21]
  • Founder of the Living Junction Facebook Community, the Coastal Walk Group and the Randwick Environmental Group.

Honours and awards
  • 1968 The Warner Brown Memorial Prize, University of California at Berkeley
  • 1992 The Walter Burfitt Prize, Royal Society of NSW[22]
  • 1994 DSc, The University of New South Wales
  • 1997 The Award for Excellence in Publishing in Medical Science, Assoc American Publishers
  • 1999 Disk of Sacred Truce, International Committee of Olympic Winners; for Community Service
  • 1999 The University of New South Wales Alumni Achievement Award[23]
  • 1999 The Ramaciotti Medal for Excellence in Biomedical Research[24]
  • 1999 FASSA (Fellow of the Academy of Social Sciences in Australia)[25]
  • 2001 Scientia Professor, The University of New South Wales (Distinguished Professor)[26]
  • 2002 AO (Officer in the General Division of the Order of Australia for service to Neuroscience)[27]
  • 2003 Alexander von Humboldt Award (Prize) (Germany) for contributions to neuroscience
  • 2004 President, Australian Neuroscience Society[28]
  • 2004–7 President, IBRO World Congress of Neuroscience
  • 2007 The Distinguished Scientific Contribution Award, The Aus Psychological Society[29]
  • 2008 Doctor Honoris Causa, University of Athens
  • 2009 NHMRC Australia Fellow[30]
  • 2009 FAA (Fellow of the Australian Academy of Science)[31]
  • 2011 Honorary President, School of Psychology, City Unity College (Athens)
  • 2012 Pioneer in Medicine Award, Society for Brain Mapping and Therapeutics[32]
  • 2012 Academy of Athens, elected foreign member
  • 2013 Scientia Professor, University of New South Wales[26]
  • 2014 Fellow, Royal Society of New South Wales
  • 2019 FAHMS (Fellow of the Australian Academy of Health and Medical Sciences)[33]
  • 2019 Distinguished Fellow, Royal Society of New South Wales (an award limited to 24 fellows)
  • 2020 2020 PROSE Awards Finalist in Biomedicine & Neuroscience, Assoc of American Publishers

Nina Kondelos Prize

The Nina Kondelos Prize[34] has been awarded annually since 2007 to a female neuroscientist for making significant contributions to neuroscience research. The award is named after the late sister of Professor George Paxinos and was initially funded by him.

References
  1. "Paxinos Group publications | NeuRA – Medical Research Institute". NeuRA. Retrieved 20 March 2015.
  2. https://web.archive.org/web/20071117032008/http://isiwebofknowledge.com/media/pdf/MostHighlyCitedArticles.pdf
  3. Paxinos, George; Watson, Charles (2007). The Rat Brain in Stereotaxic Coordinates. ISBN 978-0125476126.
  4. "100 Most Cited Books of All Time".
  5. "Frontiers in Neuroanatomy | Editorial Board". Frontiersin.org. Retrieved 20 March 2015.
  6. "Brain Structure and Function – incl. option to publish open access (Editorial Board)". Springer.com. Retrieved 20 March 2015.
  7. "Translational Neuroscience – incl. option to publish open access (Editorial Board)". Springer.com. Archived from the original on 10 November 2014. Retrieved 20 March 2015.
  8. "Journal of Chemical Neuroanatomy". ScienceDirect.com. Retrieved 20 March 2015.
  9. "BrainNavigator [electronic resource] : interactive atlas and 3D brain software for research, structure analysis, and education / [authored by the team around the leading brain cartographers George Paxinos and Charles Watson]. – Version details – Trove". Trove.nla.gov.au. Retrieved 20 March 2015.
  10. "George Paxinos – Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia". Onlinelibrary.wiley.com. Retrieved 20 March 2015.
  11. "Paxinos-Watson Award – Australasian Neuroscience Society Inc". Ans.org.au. 22 February 2013. Archived from the original on 12 March 2015. Retrieved 20 March 2015.
  12. "Paxinos Group – Scientia Professor George Paxinos AO | NeuRA – Medical Research Institute". NeuRA. Retrieved 20 March 2015.
  13. "Past Executive Members – Australasian Neuroscience Society Inc". Ans.org.au. 22 February 2013. Retrieved 20 March 2015.
  14. "IBRO | World Congress Committee". Ibro.info. Archived from the original on 2 April 2015. Retrieved 20 March 2015.
  15. "The Sydney Morning Herald - Google News Archive Search".
  16. "Trams overtake buses in battle over city network". Sydney Morning Herald. 31 August 2002. Retrieved 20 March 2015.
  17. "LIGHT RAIL- AN OPTION FOR SYDNEY? : GEORGE PAXINOS – Transport Research International Documentation – TRID". Trid.trb.org. 29 February 1992. Retrieved 20 March 2015.
  18. "Community Relations Commission And Principles of Multiculturalism Bill – 10/10/2000 – 2R – NSW Parliament". Parliament.nsw.gov.au. 10 October 2000. Archived from the original on 2 April 2015. Retrieved 20 March 2015.
  19. "The Age - Google News Archive Search".
  20. "The Sydney Morning Herald - Google News Archive Search".
  21. Dow, Nik (16 February 2015). "Professor George Paxinos AO". Australian Cyclists Party. Archived from the original on 2 April 2015. Retrieved 20 March 2015.
  22. "Burfitt Prize". Royalsoc.org.au. 30 September 2010. Archived from the original on 11 February 2015. Retrieved 21 March 2015.
  23. "Past Alumni Award Winners". Alumni.unsw.edu.au. 20 January 2014. Archived from the original on 2 April 2015. Retrieved 21 March 2015.
  24. "Ramaciotti – Supporting Biomedical Research | Award recipients". Perpetual.com.au. 20 October 2014. Archived from the original on 2 April 2015. Retrieved 21 March 2015.
  25. "Professor George Paxinos". Assa.edu.au. Archived from the original on 27 March 2015. Retrieved 21 March 2015.
  26. "Scientia Professor George Paxinos | UNSW Research Gateway". Research.unsw.edu.au. 19 September 2014. Archived from the original on 2 April 2015. Retrieved 21 March 2015.
  27. "It's an Honour – Honours – Search Australian Honours". Itsanhonour.gov.au. 26 January 2002. Retrieved 21 March 2015.
  28. "Past Executive Members – Australasian Neuroscience Society Inc". Ans.org.au. 22 February 2013. Retrieved 21 March 2015.
  29. "Australian Psychological Society : Distinguished Contribution to Psychological Science Award". Psychology.org.au. Retrieved 21 March 2015.
  30. https://web.archive.org/web/20140214042151/http://www.nhmrc.gov.au/_files_nhmrc/publications/attachments/nh126_annual_report_0809.pdf
  31. "Fellowship list – Australian Academy of Science". Science.org.au. Archived from the original on 2 April 2015. Retrieved 21 March 2015.
  32. "Society for Brain Mapping & Therapeutics – Award Recipients". Worldbrainmapping.org. Archived from the original on 6 April 2015. Retrieved 21 March 2015.
  33. "Academy elects new Fellows and discusses global pandemic threat at annual meeting". AAHMS - Australian Academy of Health and Medical Sciences. 9 October 2019. Retrieved 11 October 2019.
  34. "Australasian Neuroscience Society". www.ans.org.au. Archived from the original on 9 March 2017. Retrieved 21 January 2017.
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