Laurent Roybon, Ph.D., is a neurobiologist with strong expertise in CNS- and induced pluripotent stem cell (iPSC)-based assays to study diseases of the aging brain.

Laurent earned his B.S., M.S. and DEA in cellular and developmental biology from the Institute of Developmental Biology of Marseilles (IDBM) in France, and a Ph.D. in neurobiology from Lund University in Sweden (mentor: Dr. Jia-Yi Li). He completed postdoctoral fellowships in the labs of Dr. Patrik Brundin at Lund University, Drs. Christopher E. Henderson and Hynek Wichterle at Columbia University of New York, and Dr. Jenifer Estess of the Laboratory for Stem Cell Research, Project ALS, USA. In 2011, he returned to Lund University as assistant professor of neurobiology and group leader of the Stem Cell Laboratory for CNS disease modelling. He was promoted to associate professor in 2015.

In 2022, Dr. Roybon joined Van Andel Institute’s MiND Program as director of its new Induced Pluripotent Stem Cell (iPSC) Platform, which provides leading-edge technologies and expertise to empower breakthroughs in neurodegenerative diseases. He was appointed as associate professor in VAI’s Department of Neurodegenerative Science in 2023.

The Roybon Laboratory leverages iPSCs to design and develop new, much-needed models to study proteinopathies, including Parkinson’s disease, Alzheimer’s disease and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. These critical tools enable detailed research into the mechanisms that drive neurodegeneration, thus creating new opportunities for therapeutic development.

Dr. Roybon has earned numerous accolades, including the Olav Thon International Research Award in Mathematics/Natural Sciences and Medicine, and Lund University’s Young Faculty MultiPark Award. While at Lund University, he received several grants from the Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson’s Research, the European Joint Program for Neurodegeneration, the Swedish Research Council, the AFM Telethon France, and several Swedish private foundations.