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A renowned neuroscientist from Columbia University, who previously won a Nobel Prize, has stepped down from certain roles at the institution due to his association with convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
Richard Axel, who serves as the co-director of the Zuckerman Mind Brain Behavior Institute, was awarded the Nobel Prize in 2004 for his groundbreaking discovery of more than 1,000 unique receptors in the nose that transmit olfactory signals to the brain.
In a statement shared with NewsNation, Axel expressed regret over his past connection to Epstein, calling it a “serious error in judgment.” He stated, “I deeply regret this association and apologize for undermining the trust of my friends, students, and colleagues. I am committed to working towards rebuilding this trust.”
Axel further noted, “The revelations about Epstein’s reprehensible actions and the widespread harm he inflicted make my past involvement with him even more distressing and indefensible.”
According to documents, Axel had a friendship with Epstein, which included visits to Epstein’s Manhattan residence and assisting him in establishing connections with university officials, as reported by The New York Times.
While Axel said he will step down as co-director of the institute and resign as an investigator at the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, he will continue research and teaching at Columbia, where he has been a professor for over 50 years.
Columbia University said in a statement that Axel has broken no policies or laws in his interactions with Epstein, but the school agreed with the scientist’s decision.
“Dr. Axel’s work has transformed our understanding of how the brain perceives the world and has also led to the production of life-saving protein-based therapy,” the school wrote. “Dr. Axel, a Nobel Laureate, will continue to pursue his research and teaching in his lab at the Zuckerman Mind Brain Behavior Institute at Columbia.”
The Hill has reached out to Columbia University for comment.
The situation is the latest fallout for professors who have been found with ties to Epstein from the most recent batch of files released.