Petar Brlek, M.D.

Dr. Petar Brlek is a young Croatian physician and scientist, the winner of the Rector’s Award for best individual scientific paper, and the recipient of the Croatian national prize “Oscar of Knowledge”, given by the Ministry of Science, Education and Sport for extraordinary achievements on a national and international level.

During his education, he actively promoted the popularization of science and participated in the work of several centers of excellence. He competed in a total of 26 regional and 12 national and international competitions, where he won 11 first places, 2 second, and 6 third places. By achieving the best score of his generation on the state Matura Biology exam, he gained the right of direct admission to the Molecular Biology graduate program at the Faculty of Science in Zagreb, but he ultimately decided to enroll at the University of Zagreb School of Medicine.

He was a student demonstrator at the Medical Biology and Medical Chemistry and Biochemistry departments, and in 2016 he joined the research team at the Neuro-oncology laboratory of the Croatian Institute for Brain Research. During his education at medical school, he simultaneously enrolled in the Molecular Biology graduate program at the Faculty of Science in Zagreb, where he deepened his knowledge of molecular medicine, i.e., molecular pathology, oncology, mutagenesis and carcinogenesis, bioinformatics, and medical genetics. While studying at the Faculty of Science, dr. Brlek specialized in performing numerous DNA, RNA, and protein analysis techniques, which are necessary for modern molecular diagnostics and genetics. In 2020, dr. Brlek was awarded the Rector’s Award for his paper entitled: “In silico analysis of genetic, transcriptional, epigenetic and protein changes in the EGFR-PI3K-AKT-mTOR signaling pathway participants in diffuse gliomas of the brain”. After successfully defending his graduate thesis in the field of genetics, he graduated from the School of Medicine Zagreb in 2021 with excellent grades. In September of the same year, he joined the Centre of Excellence for Integrative and Preventive Medicine of St. Catherine Specialty Hospital.

Dr. Brlek has actively participated in a large number of domestic and international congresses, where he has been awarded multiple times for his scientific activity. To date, he has published over 30 scientific papers and abstracts in the fields of molecular oncology, metabolic disorders of bone and cartilage, genetics, personalized and regenerative medicine, and immunology. He is also the co-author of a textbook on palliative medicine. He has actively participated in several scientific projects funded by the European Union and the Croatian Science Foundation. His areas of interest are medical genetics, genomics, molecular oncology, personalized medicine, and stem cell and gene therapy. As a member of the International Society of Applied Biological Sciences, he is a part of the organizational committee of the 12^th ISABS conference in Dubrovnik, which gathers Nobel Prize winners and many world-renowned experts in the fields of genetics, forensics, and personalized medicine.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, he actively helped and volunteered at the Ministry of Health and the Croatian Institute of Public Health. He is a certified jet-ski instructor, and his hobbies include water sports, mountaineering, and astronomy.