Established in 1947 to celebrate neuroanatomy and now promotes all of neuroscience.

Dr. Paola Arlotta, Golub Family Professor and former Chair of the Department of Stem Cell and Regenerative Biology at Harvard University, has been elected to three prestigious organizations American Academy of Arts and Sciences, the National Academy of Medicine, and the National Academy of Sciences—a tremendous honor that is a rare and remarkable achievement that underscores her impact across multiple domains of science and medicine.

 

She also belongs to the Harvard Stem Cell Institute, the Broad Institute, and the Stanley Center for Psychiatric Research. Her research uses stem cell–based models and the developing brain in mouse embryos to illuminate the processes of human brain formation and to understand the development of the cerebral cortex. The aim is to redefine understanding of cortical development and human brain disease. Her lab combines developmental biology with neuroscience, developing advanced models of the human cortex—including complex and reproducible 3D brain organoids—to investigate the cellular diversity of the human brain and the mechanisms of human neurological disorders. Arlotta was elected to the American Academy of Arts and Sciences in September 2024. A month later, in October 2024, she was inducted into the National Academy of Medicine and most recently, in May 2025, she was elected to the National Academy of Sciences.