The staff members of the LIN mourn the death of Ivan Izquierdo, one of the most significant neuroscientists and pioneers in the field of learning and memory research. He was concerned with the mechanisms playing a role when we acquire or lose memories. One of the most important results of his research: the proof of the existence of long-term and short-term memory, which are formed simultaneously, but by different mechanisms.
His research focused on the biological mechanisms of memory processes, using multiple experimental approaches ranging from behavioral psychobiology to neurochemistry, pharmacology, neurophysiology, and experimental neurology. In his 60 years of research and teaching, Izquierdo published more than 700 scientific articles and received more than 60 national and international awards for his work.
Izquierdo first visited the Magdeburg Institute of Neurobiology and Brain Research, LIN's predecessor institute, in the 1980s and was a regular visitor over the following 30 years. He appreciated the professional exchange and was closely connected with his scientific colleagues in Magdeburg. In 2010, he hold the first Matthies Memorial Lecture in honor of Magdeburg neuroscientist Hans-Jürgen Matthies.
Izquierdo was born in Buenos Aires in 1937 and moved to Brazil in 1973 where he educated and inspired generations of brain researchers. On February 9, the renowned neuroscientist passed away at the age of 83.
Through his death, the LIN loses a long-time companion whose research was pioneering for learning and memory research.