2022 Neurobiology of Brain Disorders GRC and GRS

PROJECT SUMMARY/ABSTRACT The Specific Aims of the 2022 Neurobiology of Brain Disorders Gordon Research Conference (GRC) and Gordon Research Seminar (GRS) are to promote dialogue among established and emerging leaders in neurodegenerative disease focusing on Alzheimer's disease and related dementias. The Co-Chairs, Drs. Alison Goate and Leonard Petrucelli, in consultation with past chairs, and the 2022 Vice Chairs (Drs. Karen Duff and Christopher Shaw) have planned nine oral sessions: Session 1 - Keynote Address on the Development of Novel Blood-Based Biomarkers for Neurodegenerative Disease, Session 2 - Genetic and Genomic Approaches to Neurodegenerative Disease, Session 3 - Epigenetics of Neurodegenerative Disease, Session 4 - Frontotemporal Dementia and ALS: Mechanisms, Session 5 - Parkinson's Disease: Mechanisms, Session 6 - Alzheimer's Disease: Mechanisms, Session 7 - Tauopathies: Mechanism, & Biomarkers, Session 8 - Biomarkers: Diagnosis and Theranostics, and Session 9 - Therapeutic Approaches. All invited speakers/discussants have confirmed their participation, and gender and diversity-related issues are addressed as 17 of 33 accepted speakers/discussants are women (51.5%), 5 are non-European (15%) and 5 (15%) are young investigators. 11 of the invited speakers are international (33%). The GRC will be preceded by a GRS to facilitate presentation and discussion of frontier research by trainees. As the Chairs and Co-Chairs place the highest priority on participation by trainees and early career individuals, short talks will be selected from submitted abstracts to complement invited speakers. We will make every effort to increase participation of under-represented minorities among conference participants and speakers. Conference participants will interact informally in a collegial atmosphere and have ample free time, providing ideal settings for participants to brainstorm and establish interdisciplinary collaborations. The significance of this GRC is to provide a unique forum for the international community working on the neurobiology of brain disorders including Alzheimer's disease and related dementias to discuss the latest advances and the future challenges in the field of neurodegeneration and aging related brain disorders. The relevance of this application to public health is that the discussions will define the most important questions in the field of neurodegenerative diseases including Alzheimer's disease and related dementias spanning basic biology and disease mechanisms and aid the development of novel therapeutic strategies. The long-term goal of this GRC is to provide a consistent platform for this community to meet every two years to disseminate the most recent discoveries and formulate the most important questions concerning the current state of the art research on age related neurodegenerative diseases.