LEXINGTON, Ky. — University of Kentucky researcher Linda Van Eldik has received the Khalid Iqbal Lifetime Achievement Award in Alzheimer's Disease Research, one of the field's highest honors, during the Alzheimer's Association International Conference in London on July 12.

Van Eldik, director of UK's Sanders-Brown Center on Aging and a professor in the UK College of Medicine, was recognized for a career spanning more than four decades studying how inflammation in the brain contributes to Alzheimer's disease. The award recognizes scientists whose work has fundamentally advanced understanding, prevention and treatment of Alzheimer's disease and related dementias.

"To be recognized by my peers with the Khalid Iqbal Lifetime Achievement Award is truly humbling," Van Eldik said in a statement. "This honor reflects the incredible collaborations and dedication of so many colleagues, trainees and researchers I've had the privilege of working with throughout my career."

A pioneer in neuroinflammation research, Van Eldik's discoveries have established brain inflammation as a key target for potential treatments for Alzheimer's disease and traumatic brain injury. She has authored hundreds of scientific publications, secured continuous federal research funding and mentored numerous students and early-career researchers who now hold leadership positions across academia and industry.

Under her leadership since 2010, the Sanders-Brown Center has strengthened its reputation as one of the world's premier aging and dementia research institutions. One of the nation's original 10 Alzheimer's Disease Research Centers funded by the National Institute on Aging, Sanders-Brown now operates with more than 40 faculty members and $28 million in active grants.

Ilhem Messaoudi, UK acting vice president for research, called the award "well-deserved for a lifetime of work, from fundamental discoveries to treatment targets and clinical trials that have brought hope for Kentucky families."

The Sanders-Brown Center's recent discoveries include work on LATE (limbic-predominant age-related TDP-43 encephalopathy), a form of dementia affecting roughly one in five older adults, and research disproving the once-popular "aluminum hypothesis" in Alzheimer's disease.