Dan Edwards awarded prestigious fellowship from the Chief Scientific Office

Dr Dan Edwards, a postdoctoral research associate in the Horrocks Group, has been awarded an early postdoctoral fellowship from the Chief Scientist Office (CSO), part of the Scottish Government Health Directorate.

Dan will begin the three-year fellowship this year with a project focused on advancing Parkinson's disease diagnosis through biomarkers that enable early detection from accessible biofluids.

It is an honour to be awarded the CSO early postdoctoral fellowship which will give me the time and resources to develop assays to improve our approaches to the challenge of diagnostics in Parkinson's disease using a single-molecule methods.
Through this project, I aspire to strengthen collaborations between the School of Chemistry and the Institute for Regeneration and Repair, and to showcase the impact of involving the public and individuals with lived experience at every stage of research.

Dan Edwards is a Postdoctoral Research Associate in the Edinburgh Single-Molecule Biophysics group, specialising in the development of approaches to study biological membranes and neurodegeneration.

His research focuses on applying advanced biophysical techniques to understand the molecular mechanisms underlying disease. He brings broad experience across academia, the pharmaceutical industry, and government, including work in drug development and science-informed policymaking. This diverse background shapes his interdisciplinary approach to tackling complex challenges in neurodegenerative research.

Dan has previously won the IRR's Innovator 2026 competition for his project proposal "Detect-PD: Extracellular Vesicle Biomarkers for Early Parkinson's Diagnosis"

The fellowship demonstrates the commitment of the CSO to supporting translational research in fundamental chemistry, addressing key challenges in health, diagnostics, and the ageing population. Dan's ambitious project will draw on the lived experience of people with Parkinson's disease to help raise awareness of the underrepresented challenges facing the development of new diagnostics and technologies in the field.

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