Dr. William Zeiger is the 2024 recipient of the $20,000 DLF Prize
Dan Lewis Foundation | Summer 2024

The Dan Lewis Foundation for Brain Regeneration Research (the DLF) is extremely pleased to introduce the recipient of the 2024 DLF Prize, Dr. William Zeiger. The DLF Prize recognizes an early career scientist in neuroscience, pharmacology, or biotechnology whose research record and future research plans align with one or more of the DLF’s current research priorities. These research priorities are:


  1. Research into pharmacological methods of reactivating or augmenting synaptogenesis
  2. Research into trials of repleting damaged cortex using derived cortical neurons
  3. Research into transcriptomic profiles of cortical neurons during recovery phase post brain injury
  4. Research furthering effective design of anti-sense oligonucleotides and/or other small molecule medicines to down-regulate inhibitors of regeneration in the cortex and spinal cord


Dr. Zeiger is a physician-scientist in the Department of Neurology, Movement Disorders Division, at UCLA. Dr. Zeiger was born in Burlington, Wisconsin and grew up in the suburbs of Chicago. He attended the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign where he majored in Molecular and Cellular Biology. He then completed the M.D.,Ph.D. program at the University of Chicago. 



Dr. Zeiger’s doctoral research focused on understanding the cell biology of the stress-induced protein Stanniocalcin 2, and the role of calcium homeostasis in regulating amyloid beta production. Dr. Zeiger completed clinical residency training in neurology at the Johns Hopkins Hospital and UCLA. He then did a fellowship, specializing in movement disorders at UCLA and completing post-doctoral research in the laboratory of Dr. Carlos Portera-Cailliau. Dr. Zeiger has expertise in the diagnosis and medical treatment of movement disorders, including Parkinson's disease, atypical Parkinsonism, tremors, and dystonia, among others. His research interest includes understanding mechanisms of cortical circuit function in the healthy brain and how dysfunction of cortical circuits contributes to pathophysiology and symptoms of neurologic disorders such as stroke and Parkinson's disease.


Dr. Zeiger has had extensive training in both clinical neurology and in research neuroscience. In Dr. Zeiger’s words,  “During my time in clinical training, I came to appreciate that many neurologic disorders, particularly those resulting from stroke or other acute brain injuries, operate on the level of neural circuits and that I would need to acquire new research skills to investigate neural circuits. Toward that end I joined the laboratory of Dr. Carlos Portera-Cailliau where I developed expertise in interrogating neural circuits using a classic “lesional neurology” approach. Our lab remains focused on understanding how neural circuits become dysfunctional after lesions to the cortex and on investigating novel circuit-based approaches to reactivate and restore damaged cortex”. 


The DLF is enthusiastic regarding the content and quality of Dr. Zeiger’s work. We believe he will make significant contributions to the field of brain regeneration in the future. We look forward to his participation in and contributions to the DLF.

Gloved hands hold a tablet showing medical data in a lab with blurred researchers in the background

ARPA-H Launches a Major Program in Brain Regeneration and Initiates a Second Offshoot Program

By Dan Lewis Foundation • July 24, 2026
ARPA-H, which stands for Advanced Research Projects Agency for Health, is an agency within the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. One of its major projects is called the FRONT program which stands for Functional Repair of Neocortical Tissue .  The FRONT program focuses on repair and regeneration of the neocortex, the largest part of the brain. The neocortex is critical for many aspects of cognition and everyday functioning. The neocortex can be damaged in many ways including stroke, traumatic injury, and neurodegeneration, such as in Alzheimer's disease. Serious damage to the neocortex often causes individuals to be dependent on costly therapies or caregivers and can also lead to related health and medical problems. The FRONT program hopes to alter this pattern by using cutting-edge neurodevelopmental principles and stem cell technology to regenerate brain tissue and restore lost functions.
Lab technicians in blue gloves working with samples in a bright laboratory

Can Lost Brain Tissue Be Rebuilt?

By Hal Lewis • July 24, 2026
For decades, families facing severe traumatic brain injury have lived with a painful assumption: once brain tissue is lost, recovery is limited to what the surviving brain can re-learn. Rehabilitation can help. Technology can assist. Time can produce surprises. But the central wound—the loss of brain cells, circuits, and connections—has often been treated as permanent. That assumption is beginning to change.