Daniela Ostatníková from Comenius University is Outstanding Academic
Daniela Ostatníková from the Faculty of Medicine of Comenius University won the ESET Science Award in the Outstanding Academic category. In her research she studies the effect of sex hormones on cognitive abilities. She has also spent the last 15 years researching the causes of autism.
On 13 October 2023 the fifth annual ESET Science Award took place in the Slovak Philharmonic. The Outstanding Scientist of Slovakia award was presented to Igor Lacík from the Institute of Polymers of the Slovak Academy of Sciences. Matej Baláž, who works at the Institute of Geotechnics of the SAS in Košice, became Outstanding Scientist in Slovakia under the age of 35.
Award-winning researcher, teacher and doctor of medicine Professor Daniela Ostatníková is the head of the Institute of Physiology of the Faculty of Medicine of Comenius University and vice-dean for international relations. She founded the Academic Center for the Research of Autism at the Faculty of Medicine that she leads. It is the only academic centre in Slovakia doing interdisciplinary research of autism. She and her research team study the causes of autism and their connection to genes, sex hormones, and disorders of digestion and sleep.
This year, the centre celebrates its tenth anniversary of existence. "In our centre we work with the families and children with autism, who are also our partners in research, to find a suitable marker, and figure out the cause of this disease. Our work rests on two pillars: research and education. Both foundations are based on the principles of interprofessionalism, interdisciplinarity and internationalisation", said the laureate while accepting the award.
Since 2019, the ESET Science Award has been honouring outstanding scientists in recognition of their research and contribution to other areas of life. The laureates are chosen by an international jury consisting of world-renowned researchers from various fields. Every year the jury chaired by a Nobel Prize winner.