Welcome from the Department Chair

Welcome to the Department of Translational Neuroscience at UTMB. The focus on “Translational Neuroscience” signifies our expertise and goal to bridge basic science and clinical disciplines by advancing knowledge about nervous system function and clinically relevant diseases related to the nervous system and brain health.

The department traces its roots back to 1891 when the Department of Anatomy was established with Dr. William Keiller as the inaugural professor of anatomy at UTMB and department chair. In 1986, Dr. William D. Willis became the chair of the Department of Anatomy and Neurosciences restructured to house the Neuroscience Graduate Program established in 1981 as the first Ph.D. program in neuroscience in the State of Texas. In 2004, the department was consolidated with the Department of Physiology and Biophysics to form the Department of Neuroscience and Cell Biology with Dr. Henry F. Epstein as the new chair. Having served as interim chair since 2013, Dr. Jin Mo Chung became the chair of the renamed Department of Neurobiology in 2016. In 2025 Dr. Ping Wu was appointed as interim chair and ensured the smooth transition to current leadership.

Our department is committed to a culture of collegiality and collaboration for excellence in research and medical, graduate and postgraduate education and training. Our faculty are well funded for their work on nervous system functions and diseases particularly in the areas of chronic pain, neurotrauma, neuroinfectious diseases, neurodegenerative diseases, brain development and brain health as well as the development of innovative technologies and biomedical engineering. Our researchers employ a comprehensive array of technical tools, integrating both established methodologies and innovative, cutting-edge approaches for molecular, cellular, and systems-level analyses. We strive to strengthen and expand interactions with basic science and clinical colleagues across departments, centers and institutes at UTMB and to continue to grow our collaborations nationally and internationally for innovative translational research and education, fostering an environment “Where Purpose Meets Passion”.

Thank you for visiting our website. Please feel free to contact me or my colleagues with any questions or for more information.

Volker Neugebauer, MD, PhD
Professor and Chair, Department of Translational Neuroscience
Cecil H. and Ida M. Green Distinguished University Chair in Neuroscience and Cell Biology