Stephen Strittmatter is appointed to new Coates Chair in Neurology

Stephen M. Strittmatter, M.D., Ph.D., who has been named to the Vincent Coates Chair in Neurology, is a specialist in the development and regeneration of the nervous system.

Earlier this year, he earned international attention for leading a research effort that resulted in the discovery of a protein that prevents the regeneration of axons following a traumatic injury to the central nervous system. The discovery of this protein, called Nogo, may lead to treatments to stimulate regrowth of axons in order to reverse brain and spinal cord injuries. Strittmatter is now engaged in work to define the nature of Nogo receptors and to develop methods to block those receptors.

A member of the Yale faculty since 1993, Strittmatter holds joint appointments in neurology and neurobiology. Since coming to Yale, he has been the principal investigator of a number of research projects focusing on axonal regeneration. He has received major grant awards for these projects from the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, the Christopher Reeve Paralysis Foundation, the Donaghue Foundation and the John Merck Fund.

The Coates Chair in Neurology was endowed with a gift from alumnus Vincent J. Coates ’46 of Sunnyvale, Calif. He is chair and chief executive officer of Nanometrics, a company that designs and manufactures microscopes to monitor the fabrication of integrated circuits on wafters, flat display panels and magnetic recording heads. In addition to his abiding interest in engineering, which he studied as an undergraduate, Coates has a strong personal interest in the study of the chemistry of the brain.