Professor Perry F Bartlett AO FAA

Neuroscientist and founder of the Queensland Brain Institute

2017 QLD Senior Australian of the Year

A pioneering neuroscientist, Professor Perry Bartlett has made ground-breaking progress in the discovery of how the human brain can be regenerated through stimulating the production of new nerve cells. Perry discovered the brain could produce new nerves in 1992, overturning traditional dogma and transforming the way we think of the brain. Once considered a static organ, the brain is now understood as an ever-evolving body part that can produce new nerve cells capable of altering learning, memory and mood. In 2003, Perry founded the Queensland Brain Institute at the University of Queensland, and through his leadership and vision it has become one of the world’s leading neuroscience institutes with over 500 staff. Perry and his team now have their sights set on a slowing down dementia by activating stem cells to produce new nerves. With dementia currently affecting one in three adults over the age of 85, Perry’s work has the potential to change the lives of many older Australians.