Cagla Eroglu, PhD, Chancellor’s Distinguished Professor of Cell Biology and Neurobiology in the School of Medicine, is one of two Duke University faculty elected to the American Academy of Arts & Sciences for 2024.
Eroglu, a Howard Hughes Medical Institute investigator and vice chair of research in the Department of Cell Biology, investigates the cellular and molecular underpinnings of how synaptic connections between neurons are established and remodeled in the mammalian brain by the bidirectional signaling between neurons and cells called astrocytes. Eroglu’s work has shown that astrocytes, previously thought to be inert support cells, help construct an intricate web of neural circuitry, and that astrocyte dysfunction has been connected to devastating diseases like autism, schizophrenia, and epilepsy.
Also elected to the American Academy of Arts & Sciences from Duke this year was Thavolia Glymph, PhD, Peabody Family Distinguished Professor of History.
Duke’s newest members join a long list of notable Academy members including Duke University President Vincent E. Price and historical figures John Adams, Benjamin Franklin, Alexander Hamilton, George Washington, Ralph Waldo Emerson, Maria Mitchell, and Alexander Graham Bell. Other distinguished members have included Margaret Mead, Jonas Salk, Barbara McClintock, John F. Kennedy, Martin Luther King, Jr., Aaron Copland, Martha Graham, John Hope Franklin, Georgia O’Keeffe, E. O. Wilson, Madeleine Albright, and Colin Powell.
The academy’s current members represent innovative thinkers in every field and profession. The 250 members elected in 2024 are being recognized for their excellence and invited to uphold the Academy’s mission of engaging across disciplines and divides.
“We honor these artists, scholars, scientists, and leaders in the public, non-profit, and private sectors for their accomplishments and for the curiosity, creativity, and courage required to reach new heights,” said David Oxtoby, president of the Academy. “We invite these exceptional individuals to join in the Academy’s work to address serious challenges and advance the common good.”