Dr Michael Johnston, MD: [1946 - 2022]
Michael V. Johnston, MD, was a Research Scientist, Director of the Neuroscience Laboratory, Professor Emeritus of Paediatrics and Neurology at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, former Chief Medical Officer, Executive Vice President at the Kennedy Krieger Institute, Baltimore, two-term executive board member of the International Child Neurology Association (ICNA), passed away on July 30, 2022. He was a brilliant academician and researcher. His seminal work on the role of glutamate and excitotoxicity in hypoxic-ischaemic injury and its effects on the developing brain is well known internationally. He collaborated with clinicians and researchers and continued to treat patients with complex Neurological Disorders. He and his group performed clinical and basic laboratory research focused on developing therapies to reduce brain injury in infants and children and promote recovery by enhancing brain plasticity. His laboratory was one of the first to describe the mechanisms through which the neurotransmitter glutamate triggers brain injury from lack of oxygen, trauma, and other insults.
Awards and Achievements:
The Frank Ford Lecture Award from the ICNA in 2016.
The Blum/ Moser Endowed Chair for Paediatric Neurology at the Kennedy Krieger Institute.
The Bernard Sachs Award from the Child Neurology Society.
It is a great honor for the ICNA to host the entire award lecture at the 18th International Child Neurology Congress (ICNC2024), Cape Town, South Africa, in the name of Dr. Michael Johnston, whose service to the ICNA and the world of Paediatric Neurology will be admired forever! The Michael Johnston Award is sponsored by the Kennedy Krieger Institute, United States, where he and his friend and colleague, Dr. Gary Goldstein, spearheaded for 31 years. The institution is known for its cutting-edge research and for providing state-of-the-art management to children with neurodevelopmental disorders.
He had qualities of the head and heart both!
Mike will be missed by the ICNA community and Paediatric Neurologists worldwide.