Frances Jensen

Frances E. Jensen, MD, is Director of Translational Neuroscience and Director of Epilepsy Research at Children's Hospital Boston, and Professor of Neurology at Harvard Medical School. Her research focuses on mechanisms of epileptogenesis and cortical injury in the developing brain, with specific emphasis on age specific therapies for clinical trials development. She received a 2007 Pioneer Award from the NIH to explore the interaction between epileptogenesis and cognitive dysfunction. Dr. Jensen also is the recipient of the 2008 American Epilepsy Society Basic Science Research Award, and will be President of the American Epilepsy Society in 2012. Dr. Jensen serves on a number of leadership boards including the Council for the Society for Neuroscience, the Executive Board of the American Epilepsy Society, member of the nominating committee at the American Neurological Association, and serves on the scientific advisory panel of a number of charitable foundations for medical research. Dr. Jensen has authored over 100 manuscripts on subjects related to her research, has been continuously funded by NIH since 1987, and has trained numerous clinical and basic research fellows who now hold independent faculty positions nationally and internationally. Dr. Jensen also is the sponsor of an FDA-approved IND for an ongoing multi-center clinical trial of a novel therapy for neonatal seizures, generated from basic research in her laboratory.