Class of 2026
Nicholas Bodnar, MD, PhD
Massachusetts General Hospital and Brigham and Women’ s Hospital Boston, Massachusetts
Questions Without Clear Answers Growing up with two physicians as parents, I was guaranteed a strong education. But my parents also cultivated in me an early curiosity about complex problems. While I was often drawn to subjects like biology and chemistry, what interested me most were the questions without clear answers. That curiosity eventually led me to medicine.
During my training, I became especially fascinated by the brain— an organ that is extraordinarily complex and still deeply mysterious. Parkinson’ s, in particular, stood out as a field filled with immense scientific challenges and tremendous opportunity. The idea that new discoveries could directly improve patients’ lives made the work feel urgent and meaningful.
From the Lab Bench to the Bedside— and Back During my time as an Edmond J. Safra Fellow, I’ ve focused on understanding the underlying biology of Parkinson’ s disease while continuing to work closely with patients. That balance between research and clinical care shapes how I think about the field and its urgency.
In the lab, my work explores how cells manage and protect essential proteins, focusing on a cellular machine called the retromer. The retromer acts like a recycling and sorting system inside cells, helping direct proteins to where they need to go, rather than allowing them to be broken down. In Parkinson’ s, this system may not function properly. My research examines how stress within cells can disrupt components of the retromer, and how those changes might contribute to both genetic and non-genetic forms of the disease.
Caring for patients keeps this work grounded in real life. There are days in the lab when I’ m doing small, repetitive tasks, but seeing the people this work ultimately serves brings everything back into focus. It reinforces the feedback loop between patient care and scientific discovery. While that connection can be challenging to maintain, it’ s also what makes the work so rewarding.
Building the Foundation Having the time to pursue important questions while receiving invaluable mentorship and continuing to grow as a clinician has been a rare and formative experience. More than that, it has helped me build a foundation that integrates the clinical and research elements of Parkinson’ s disease. I look forward to continuing that work as a clinical faculty member at Mass General Brigham.
8 The Edmond J. Safra Fellowship in Movement Disorders