UK DRI Future Leader Fellowships
1 October 2025
Dr Wioleta Zelek, from Cardiff University UK Dementia Research Institute (UK DRI), and a UK-DRI Emerging Leader, has been awarded a Future Leaders Fellowship by UK Research & Innovation.
Three researchers from the UK DRI have been awarded Future Leader Fellowships by UK Research & Innovation – including Dr Mathieu Bourdenx, from the UK DRI at University College London, Dr Sophie Morse at UK DRI at Imperial College London, and Dr Zelek from Cardiff University’s UK DRI.
The Future Leaders Fellowship scheme provides long-term support to early career researchers to enable them to tackle ambitious programmes or multidisciplinary questions, and new or emerging research and innovation areas and partnerships.
The Cardiff-DRI researcher joins a cohort of 77 talented future leaders who have been awarded a total of £120 million to lead vital research, collaborate with innovators, and develop their careers as the research and innovation leaders of the future.
Dr Zelek’s project ‘Complement in Alzheimer’s disease’ will focus on how the complement system, a key part of our immune system’s inflammatory response, may contribute to Alzheimer’s disease. Her research aims to bring us one step closer to new treatments and, ultimately, a cure.
Dementia is a global health challenge that demands urgent action. I’m incredibly grateful that my research has been prioritised for funding, and I aim to generate new knowledge and therapies to prevent brain inflammation, bringing us closer to new treatments and offering real hope to people and families affected by dementia.
Professor Sir Ian Chapman, UKRI Chief Executive, said: “UKRI’s Future Leaders Fellowships offer long-term support to outstanding researchers, helping them turn bold ideas into innovations that improve lives and livelihoods in the UK and beyond."
These fellowships continue to drive excellence and accelerate the journey from discovery to public benefit. I wish them every success.
