Read the latest Issue
Next Head of EMBL Grenoble appointed
Kristina Djinović-Carugo will take up the position in July
Professor Kristina Djinović-Carugo has been appointed as the next head of EMBL Grenoble. Awarded a PhD in Chemistry at the University of Ljubljana, Professor Djinović-Carugo has a long career in structural biology, and will join EMBL in July from the Max Perutz Laboratories at the University of Vienna, where she is currently Head of the Department of Structural and Computational Biology and full Professor of Structural Biology.
She was previously Head of Structural Biology and Crystallography Unit of the Sincrotrone Trieste from 1999 to 2004, and Director of the Laura Bassi Center for Optimized Structural Studies, Austria, from 2010 to 2016.
“I am thrilled that Kristina Djinović-Carugo has agreed to become the next head of EMBL Grenoble. She will be a fantastic successor to Stephen Cusack and her long-standing experience will contribute to a smooth transition for the site,” said EMBL Director General Edith Heard. “She is joining EMBL at an exciting time, as we just launched EMBL’s next programme ‘Molecules to Ecosystems’. I really look forward to her contribution to EMBL’s new vision for the life sciences.”
“It has been an honour to lead EMBL Grenoble through all the exciting transformations of the last 30 years and Kristina has the experience and vision to meet the challenges of the future and continue our pursuit of excellence in structural biology research, technology development, and service,” said Stephen Cusack, who has led EMBL’s French site since 1989.
Professor Djinović-Carugo’s research focuses on the structural biology of a complex assembly of proteins – called the Z-disk – responsible for muscular contraction, and on understanding the molecular basis of diseases affecting muscles, particularly cardiomyopathies. She will continue her personal research at EMBL Grenoble.
“I am excited to join EMBL Grenoble and EMBL as a whole in this moment of transformative opportunities for structural biology,” said Professor Djinović-Carugo, who shares in this interview her vision for EMBL Grenoble. “It is a huge honour and a responsibility to inherit the legacy of an outstanding research site from Stephen, and I will do my best to honour it.”
