A native of Israel, Prof. Maya Schuldiner trained at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem (BSc magna cum laude, in biology, 1998; MSc in 1999 and PhD in 2003, both in genetics). After postdoctoral research at the University of California in San Francisco, she joined the faculty of the Weizmann Institute in 2008. She is the incumbent of the Dr. Gilbert Omenn and Martha Darling Professorial Chair in Molecular Genetics.
As a molecular geneticist who studies cell function, Prof. Schuldiner is the inventor of multiple tools that help explain the functions of unstudied genes and proteins. One of her methods, involving robotic microscopy, makes it possible to track protein location and abundance under various conditions. Her creative methods make it possible to study how organelles respond to stress. Her work has biomedical significance, as disruptions in organelle function can contribute to metabolic disorders as well as aging, cancer and neurodegeneration.
Prof. Schuldiner was the Technical University of Munich’s (TUM) IAS Hans Fischer Senior Fellow during 2017-2018 and has recently been elected a TUM Ambassador. She received the Jean Vance prize for breakthroughs in Contact Site research (2021), the European Molecular Biology Organization (EMBO) Gold Medal and the Federation of European Biochemical Societies (FEBS) National Prize in 2017. In addition, she is the recipient of the FEBS Anniversary Prize (2015), the Weizmann Institute Scientific Council Prize in the Life Sciences (2014), the EMBO Young Investigators Program (2011), a Human Frontiers Science Program Career Development Award (2008), and an NIH Pathway to Independence Award (2007). She was elected a member of the German Academy of Sciences, Leopoldina (2020), EMBO (2017) and of the Israel Young Academy (2014), and was selected for the 40 under 40 list by Cell, recognizing young scientists shaping future trends in science (2014).
She is married to Weizmann Institute scientist Prof. Oren Schuldiner, and they have three sons. When not in the lab she loves to bake, read, play the piano, scuba dive, and go hiking with her family (especially in the desert).