Researcher profile

Erik Hrabovszky

Erik Hrabovszky received a medical degree at the University Medical School of Pécs in Hungary to join the neuroanatomical research laboratory of Zsolt Liposits. Long-lasting neuroendocrine traditions of this department date back to the chairmanship of János Szentágothai at the 1960s. Erik Hrabovszky began to study the central regulation of reproduction during his postdoctoral training in Sandra Petersen’s laboratory in Amherst (MA) with a focus on the possible role of estrogen receptor beta in neuroendocrine functions. Following his return to Hungary, he has been working as a research professor at the Institute of Experimental Medicine in Budapest. The Human Hypothalamus Research Unit(http://hhru.koki.hu) of his Laboratory of Reproductive Neurobiology creates a unique infrastructural and intellectual background for anatomical and molecular studies of neuronal circuitries that regulate endocrine, metabolic and autonomic functions of the human in normal and pathological conditions. This laboratory combines anatomical, electrophysiological and molecular approaches to study i) the neuronal and hormonal control of pulsatile GnRH/LH secretion, ii) the mechanisms of the mid-cycle GnRH/LH surge which triggers ovulation in females, iii) the central effects of gonadal steroid hormones on neuroendocrine systems and on wider aspects of general neuronal functioning and iv) the molecular and cellular processes underlying reproductive senescence.