Thomas Südhof

Stanford University School of Medicine

Thomas Südhof is a German-American biochemist and neuroscientist, Avram Goldstein Professor in the School of Medicine at Stanford University. He shared the 2013 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine with James Rothman and Randy Schekman for discoveries of machinery regulating vesicle traffic, specifically for revealing the molecular mechanisms underlying synaptic vesicle exocytosis—the process by which neurotransmitters are released from nerve terminals. Südhof has made extraordinary contributions to understanding how synapses work at the molecular level. He identified and characterized the key proteins governing synaptic vesicle fusion: the neurexin and neuroligin families of synaptic adhesion molecules that specify synapse formation and trans-synaptic signaling; the synaptotagmins that act as calcium sensors triggering vesicle fusion; and Munc18/Munc13 regulatory proteins that control SNARE complex assembly. His work revealed that mutations in synapse-organizing proteins—particularly neurexins and neuroligins—are major genetic risk factors for autism spectrum disorder and schizophrenia, directly linking synaptic dysfunction to psychiatric disease. This has opened entirely new avenues for understanding and potentially treating autism. He has also contributed significantly to our understanding of Alzheimer's disease pathogenesis. With an h-index among the highest of any living neuroscientist, Südhof's publication record reflects decades of consistent, high-impact contributions to synaptic biology and neurological disease mechanisms.