Professor Dr med. Stephan Zierz (1954–2024)

Stephan Zierz, an innovator in the field of neurology and neuromuscular medicine, was born on 20 July 1954 in Heidelberg, Germany. In 1973, Stephan Zierz enrolled in medical studies at the University of Giessen, Germany, at 19. In 1980, he completed his medical studies at the University of Giessen and the University of Bonn. He started his residency in neurology at a small clinic in Klingenmünster and, in parallel, his scientific career as a scientific coworker at the Max Planck Institute in Gottingen (1980–1983). In 1984, he joined the Neuromuscular Research Center at Mayo Clinic in Rochester, MN, USA, as a research fellow. Under Dr Andrew Engel's supervision, he worked on the biochemical characterization of carnitine palmitoyl transferase II (CPT II), one of the mitochondrial enzymes that catalyse the oxidation of long-chain fatty acids. He was very productive, generating four scientific papers.

After Mayo, Stephan Zierz joined the University Hospital of Bonn in 1986 as a physician and was promoted to senior physician in 1989. A core trigger element of his career was coworking with Felix Jerusalem, the most well-known myologist in Germany then, who also collaborated with Andrew Engel. In 1990, he completed a post-doctoral teaching degree (‘Habilitation’) on ‘Ophthalmoplegia-plus and Kearns–Sayre syndrome: clinic, biochemistry and therapeutic trials with coenzyme Q’. In 1994, he was appointed as chair for neurology at the Faculty of Medicine at Martin Luther University Halle-Wittenberg and remained in that position until his retirement in 2021. For several years, Stephan Zierz also served as the academic and administrative head of the Faculty of Medicine, holding the position of Dean.

Beyond his local and national engagement for neuromuscular disorders, he was an active member of various neurological and neuromuscular societies. He was a recognized Fellow of the European Academy of Neurology. He was keen to organize neuromuscular sessions at the annual congress of the German Neurological Society and at several European Academy of Neurology congresses. For many years, he also engaged himself with the Union of European Medical Specialists (UEMS), Section of Neurology, and he was keen to participate as a faithful examiner in the European Board Exam in Neurology. During the UEMS meetings, he was always eager to contribute to the mission of the Section of Neurology, to support medical specialists in enhancing their skills and proficiency. He established, for example, cooperation with the Mongolian Neurological Society, with annual training events and internship programs for Mongolian doctors in Germany and Mongolia.

After the meeting, he loved to sit with all UEMS delegates and chat about his encounters and experiences, for example in Mongolia. It was a pleasure to join him at dinner, where classical philosophy and literature were beloved topics. Stephan Zierz was a family man who often brought his daughters, who were also devoted to neurology, along to section meetings.

Stephan Zierz's impact on the field of neurology and neuromuscular medicine was profound. His research in neuromuscular disorders earned him the highly esteemed lifetime award for a myologist, the Erb–Duchenne Prize in 2017 of the German Society of Neuromuscular Disorders. This recognition was a testament to the weight of his contributions and his influence in the field, a source of pride for all who knew him.

Stephan Zierz was an excellent and enthusiastic teacher and supervisor, and the author of more than 350 scientific reports and monographs, especially on mitochondrial disorders, addressing their clinical, pathological, histological, biochemical and molecular genetic aspects. His unique sense of humour warmly backed his endless enthusiasm linked to German perfectionism.

Stephan Zierz is sadly missed, but his legacy in European and international neuromuscular medicine will continue to inspire and guide future generations.

Benedikt Schoser: Conceptualization; writing – original draft; writing – review and editing; visualization. Jan B. M. Kuks: Writing – review and editing. Marianne de Visser: Writing – review and editing.

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