Dr. Goate is a renowned neuropsychiatric researcher and molecular geneticist whose pioneering work falls within two areas: gene discovery and modeling disease mutations. She is best known for identifying the first gene mutation linked to an inherited form of Alzheimer’s disease, and for finding common and rare variants that influence the risk of developing late onset Alzheimer’s disease. This includes identification of protective variants—an important new field of research that could herald new ways to exploit the body’s natural defense systems to prevent the disease.