It is with deep sadness that we announce the unexpected and sudden passing of Professor Norman Saunders.
Norman was educated at the University College London (UCL) between 1957 to 1967 where he earned a Bachelor of Science, a Bachelor of Medicine and Surgery and his PhD. He remained a staff member at UCL until 1986 when he moved on to the University of Southampton where he served as the Head of the Department of Physiology and Pharmacology. Next, he moved to the function of Head of Anatomy and Physiology to the University of Tasmania. In 2002, he moved to the University of Melbourne and finally to the position of Adjunct Professor in the Department of Neurosciences at Monash University from 2020 to 2025.
Norman made profound and impactful contributions to our current understanding of the brain barriers and the cerebrospinal fluid system. He will be remembered for his groundbreaking work on the role of brain barriers in the developing brain. Norman identified the unique physiology of marsupials, which unlike higher mammals are born in very early embryonic stage and mature in a pouch of the mother, as being particularly suited for this research. To this end, he developed highly innovative and multidisciplinary research methods combining physiological approaches with tissue analysis using immunohistochemistry and electron microscopy with molecular approaches to study brain barriers including the endothelial blood–brain barrier and the blood-cerebrospinal fluid barrier of the choroid plexus and the function of cerebrospinal fluid in developing brains. His work identified how the different brain barriers mature and change during development examining this process across species. In addition, he investigated how the developing nervous system including the brain barriers respond to trauma. Last but not least, his research addressed how drugs and toxins cross the brain barriers and the placental barrier and cause neurotoxicity to the embryo, fetus or newborn. His work has been published in more than 300 papers, many of which have received over 400 citations.
Norman was an inspiring mentor and colleague who will be remembered for many things. Norman was a larger-than-life figure for many in our field and, importantly, a very good, thoroughly decent human being who stood above all else for rigorous science done correctly. He also brought humility and a profound sense of purpose for his research to find the truth. His research showed his deeply collaborative spirit with numerous international collaborations. He appreciated the scientific debate like few other colleagues. In Britta’s personal career, she had the pleasure to interact as a junior group leader with Norman when receiving the invitation from the journal Microscopy Research and Technique to serve as a guest editor for an issue dedicated to the choroid plexus. Norman readily accepted to contribute with an article and beyond that provided enthusiastic support to her in this novel role. In Robert’s personal career, Norman repeatedly stimulated an interest in early development and in thinking about how the biodistribution of macromolecules to and within the brain might be different in the embryo and neonate. Norman did this with Robert through numerous constructive conversations, frank feedback, and generous sharing of ideas over a 20+ year relationship. Most recently, Robert was fortunate to have had several dinners and a few long final discussions with Norman at a meeting (co-organized by Norman with his former trainee Helen Stolp) in London earlier this year (‘Placental and Fetal Brain Interfaces’, April 2025). In an Australian context, Norman was considered the expert and leader in brain barriers research, educating the neuroscience community about the critical role of these barriers in disease and drug delivery. He was well known for his excellence and dedication in graduate student supervision and encouraging his students to undertake international laboratory visits, which has culminated in a new generation of brain barriers researchers across the globe.
With Norman, we lose a pioneering brain barriers researcher with high standards and tireless energy to support and educate our junior researchers. In fact, he had just kicked off the IBBS “Horizons Research Rounds”, an online seminar series dedicated to our junior researchers, with a fantastic talk summarizing his research on brain barriers development and neurotoxicology while not missing out on giving valuable advice to the listening junior researchers. His deep interest in mentoring and supporting our junior researchers was just recently underscored by the fact that he did not miss the opportunity to continue to take part in the Horizons Research Rounds designed to be more accessible to the European/Amercian time zone which meant that Norman participated at 2 am in his time zone.
We will deeply miss Norman’s lexical knowledge on the physiology of the brain barriers, his brillant mind, his humor, his blunt interpretations, his thought-provoking inquiries and thoughtful comments during our meetings, as well as his critical written contributions to our field that moved us forward. His absence will be profoundly felt.
Our sincere condolences go out to his wife and our colleague, Kate, and his family.