World's Best Scientists 2026 revealed!
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Medicine
Germany
2026

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Medicine

D-Index
149
Citations
97698
World Ranking
1187
National Ranking
57

Research.com Recognitions

  • 2026 - Research.com Medicine in Germany Leader Award
  • 1994 - Fellow of the Royal Society, United Kingdom
  • 1993 - Member of the National Academy of Sciences
  • 1993 - German National Academy of Sciences Leopoldina - Deutsche Akademie der Naturforscher Leopoldina – Nationale Akademie der Wissenschaften Genetics/Molecular Biology and Cell Biology
  • 1992 - Fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences
  • 1992 - Member of Academia Europaea
  • 1991 - Ralph W. Gerard Prize in Neuroscience, Society for Neuroscience
  • 1991 - Nobel Prize for their discoveries concerning the function of single ion channels in cells
  • 1989 - Canada Gairdner International Award
  • 1986 - Louisa Gross Horwitz Prize, Columbia University
  • 1983 - W. Alden Spencer Award, College of Physicians and Surgeons
  • Member of the European Molecular Biology Organization (EMBO)
  • Member of the European Molecular Biology Organization (EMBO)

Overview

Bert Sakmann is affiliated with the Max Planck Society in Germany and has contributed extensively to the fields of neuroscience and molecular biology. Their research primarily focuses on cellular and molecular neuroscience, with additional work in cognitive neuroscience, biophysics, physiology, and molecular biology.

The main topics covered in their research include:

  • Neuroscience and Neuropharmacology Research
  • Neural dynamics and brain function
  • Neuroscience and Neural Engineering
  • Photoreceptor and optogenetics research
  • Cell Image Analysis Techniques
  • Mitochondrial Function and Pathology
  • Genetic Neurodegenerative Diseases

Recent papers authored or co-authored by Sakmann include the following:

  • "The impact of neuron morphology on cortical network architecture," 2022, Cell Reports
  • "High-frequency burst spiking in layer 5 thick-tufted pyramids of rat primary somatosensory cortex encodes exploratory touch," 2021, Communications Biology
  • "Neuroscience history interview with Professor Bert Sakmann, Nobel Laureate in Physiology or Medicine (1991), Max Planck Society, Germany," 2021, Journal of the History of the Neurosciences
  • "Sparks in the Brain: The Story of Ion Channels and Nerve Cells," 2022, Frontiers for Young Minds
  • "Amyloid β-dependent neuronal silencing through synaptic decoupling," 2025, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences

The scientist has collaborated frequently with several co-authors, including:

  • Christiaan P. J. de Kock
  • Marcel Oberlaender
  • Daniel Udvary
  • Philipp Harth
  • Jakob H. Macke

Sakmann's work has been published in various scientific venues such as:

  • Cell Reports
  • Communications Biology
  • Journal of the History of the Neurosciences
  • Frontiers for Young Minds
  • Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences

The scientist has received multiple awards and honors throughout their career, including:

  • Fellow of the Royal Society, United Kingdom (1994)
  • Member of the National Academy of Sciences (1993)
  • German National Academy of Sciences Leopoldina - Nationale Akademie der Wissenschaften (1993) - Genetics/Molecular Biology and Cell Biology
  • Member of Academia Europaea (1992)
  • Fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences (1992)
  • Ralph W. Gerard Prize in Neuroscience, Society for Neuroscience (1991)
  • Nobel Prize (1991) for discoveries concerning the function of single ion channels in cells
  • Canada Gairdner International Award (1989)
  • Louisa Gross Horwitz Prize, Columbia University (1986)
  • W. Alden Spencer Award, College of Physicians and Surgeons (1983)
  • Member of the European Molecular Biology Organization (EMBO)

Best Publications

  • Improved patch-clamp techniques for high-resolution current recording from cells and cell-free membrane patches.

    Owen P. Hamill;A. Marty;Erwin Neher;Bert Sakmann

  • Developmental and regional expression in the rat brain and functional properties of four NMDA receptors.

    Hannah Monyer;Nail Burnashev;David J. Laurie;Bert Sakmann

  • Regulation of Synaptic Efficacy by Coincidence of Postsynaptic APs and EPSPs

    Henry Markram;Joachim Lübke;Michael Frotscher;Bert Sakmann

  • Single-channel recording

    Bert Sakmann;Erwin Neher

  • Single-channel currents recorded from membrane of denervated frog muscle fibres

    Erwin Neher;Bert Sakmann

  • Heteromeric NMDA receptors: Molecular and functional distinction of subtypes

    Hannah Monyer;Rolf Sprengel;Ralf Schoepfer;Anne Herb

  • Flip and flop: a cell-specific functional switch in glutamate-operated channels of the CNS

    Bernd Sommer;Kari Keinänen;Todd A. Verdoorn;William Wisden

  • Divalent ion permeability of AMPA receptor channels is dominated by the edited form of a single subunit

    Nail Burnashev;Hannah Monyer;Peter H. Seeburg;Bert Sakmann

  • Active propagation of somatic action potentials into neocortical pyramidal cell dendrites

    Greg J. Stuart;Bert Sakmann

  • Relative abundance of subunit mRNAs determines gating and Ca2+ permeability of AMPA receptors in principal neurons and interneurons in rat CNS

    Jörg R. P. Geiger;Thorsten Melcher;Duk Su Koh;Bert Sakmann

  • A thin slice preparation for patch clamp recordings from neurones of the mammalian central nervous system.

    Francis A. Edwards;Arthur Konnerth;Bert Sakmann;Tomoyuki Takahashi

  • Mechanism of anion permeation through channels gated by glycine and gamma-aminobutyric acid in mouse cultured spinal neurones.

    Jochen Bormann;Owen P. Hamill;Bert Sakmann

  • A new cellular mechanism for coupling inputs arriving at different cortical layers.

    Matthew E. Larkum;J. Julius Zhu;Bert Sakmann

  • Molecular distinction between fetal and adult forms of muscle acetylcholine receptor

    Masayoshi Mishina;Toshiyuki Takai;Keiji Imoto;Masaharu Noda

  • Physiology and anatomy of synaptic connections between thick tufted pyramidal neurones in the developing rat neocortex.

    Henry Markram;Joachim H. R. Lübke;Michael Frotscher;Arnd Roth

  • Importance of AMPA receptors for hippocampal synaptic plasticity but not for spatial learning.

    Daniel Zamanillo;Rolf Sprengel;Øivind Hvalby;Vidar Jensen

  • Activity-dependent action potential invasion and calcium influx into hippocampal CA1 dendrites

    Nelson Spruston;Yitzhak Schiller;Greg Stuart;Bert Sakmann

  • Patch-clamp recordings from the soma and dendrites of neurons in brain slices using infrared video microscopy

    Greg Stuart;H.-U. Dodt;Bert Sakmann

  • Patch clamp techniques for studying ionic channels in excitable membranes.

    Bert Sakmann;Erwin Neher

  • Action potential initiation and backpropagation in neurons of the mammalian CNS

    Greg Stuart;Nelson Spruston;Bert Sakmann;Michael Häusser

Frequent Co-Authors

Nail Burnashev
Nail Burnashev Aix-Marseille University
Arthur Konnerth
Arthur Konnerth Technical University of Munich
Joachim H. R. Lübke
Joachim H. R. Lübke Forschungszentrum Jülich
Fritjof Helmchen
Fritjof Helmchen University of Zurich
Hannah Monyer
Hannah Monyer German Cancer Research Center
Christiaan P. J. de Kock
Christiaan P. J. de Kock Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam
Peter Jonas
Peter Jonas Institute of Science and Technology Austria
Greg J. Stuart
Greg J. Stuart Australian National University
Randy M. Bruno
Randy M. Bruno University of Oxford
Shosaku Numa
Shosaku Numa Kyoto University

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