Affiliation: New York University Abu Dhabi

Dr. Khaled Ben El Kadhi is a research scientist at NYU Abu Dhabi specializing in developmental neurobiology and live cell microscopy. He obtained his PhD in molecular biology from the University of Montreal under the mentorship of Dr. Sébastien Carréno. His doctoral research elucidated molecular mechanisms underlying Lowe syndrome in a Drosophila model system, characterizing how phosphoinositide homeostasis regulates cytokinesis.

Following his PhD, Dr. Ben El Kadhi joined the laboratory of Dr. Claude Desplan as a postdoctoral fellow, first at New York University and later at NYU Abu Dhabi. His current work uses Drosophila to investigate the genetic and temporal cues that govern neuronal diversity and cell fate. As guest editor for this special issue, he brings extensive expertise bridging molecular cell biology with modern developmental genetics to highlight emerging approaches in the field.