****Our next Annual Meeting is scheduled for September 23, 2023: stay tuned!****

The Annual Meeting of the Hudson-Berkshire Chapter brings together external speakers and local neuroscientists from public and private research institutions in the Capital District. It is a meeting of the minds for our faculty and trainees, who can enjoy the constructive feedback from hard-core neuroscientists! The Meeting is a full-day event and takes place in the idyllic settings of our Capital District Region.

2023 Edition (2023 Registration) - In person!

Keynote Speakers:                        

TBA


Local Speakers:     

Hannah Shorrock (RNA institute) - "Selective reduction of CAG expansion transcript levels in spinocerebellar ataxias"

Caitlin Hill (NSCI ) - "Targeting nuclear export for spinal cord injury repair"

Pablo Gomez (Skidmore College ) - "TBD"


2022 Edition (2022 Registration) - In person!

Keynote Speakers:                        

Malú Gámez Tansey (University of Florida)  - "Targeting chronic inflammation and TNF-dependent mechanisms to reduce lifetime risk of neurodegenerative disease"


Local Speakers:                               

Sophie Belin (AMC) - "Role of a fatty acid binding protein in Schwann cell metabolism and myelination"

Lori Newman (Vassar College) - "Astrocytes in cognition: an important piece of the unfinished puzzle"

Dominique Vuvan (Skidmore College) - "Electrophysiological indices of musical expectation"

Kathryn Feller (Union College) - "Setting the spring: neuromuscular control of the mantis shrimp strike"


Local Undergraduate/Graduate/Postdoc Speakers:

Kainat Akhtar (AMC) - "Focused ultrasound to ameliorate inflammatory bowel disease"

Jose Velez (SUNY Albany) - "Characterization of alternative splicing in spinocerebellar ataxia type 3"

Charly Abi Ghanem (AMC)- "Sex differences in metabolic disease effects on brain pathology in a mouse model of VCID"


Supported by Companies:

Krackeler Scientific; Evident-Olympus; Nikon USA


With the participation of:

Alzheimer's Association; American Heart Association


Supported by Research Institutions:   

Albany Medical Center; Skidmore College; SUNY Albany - Department of Biology; The Society for Neuroscience


Congratulations to Antonio Fidaleo (Mongin lab - AMC), Richard Glynn (Lagalwar lab - Skidmore College),  Chloe Mickels (Lagalwar lab - Skidmore College), Matthew Grega (Vecsey Lab - Skidmore College), Lilia Sattler (Lagalwar lab - Skidmore College), and Niitiggya Taneja (Scimemi lab - SUNY) who won the best poster awards



2021 Edition (2021 Registration) online via Zoom

Keynote Speakers:                        

William Banks (University of Washington)  - "Neuroimmunology and the Blood-Brain Barrier: implications for viral invasions of the CNS"


Local Speakers:                               

Ewan McNay (SUNY Psychology) - "Diabetes in the brain? Insulin, glucose, and why hiking makes you smart"

Patricia Grasso (AMC) - "Therapeutic and prophylactic application of MA-[D-Leu-4]-OB3, a small molecule synthetic peptide leptin mimetic, improves energy balance, insulin sensitivity, and episodic memory in mouse models of T1DM and T2DM"

Irma Rukhadze (AMC) - "From basic mechanisms to clinical insights of obstructive sleep apnea"

Ting Wang (SUNY Albany) - "Synthesis of small molecules for studies of neurological diseases"

Tatiana Schnieder (Skidmore College/Columbia University) - "Neuroimmunology of suicide"


Local Undergraduate/Graduate/Postdoc Speakers:

Mohammad Uddin (Wadsworth Center - Postdoc in David Lawrence's group) - "Immuno-phenotype and autoantibodies production in an autism mouse model"

Zahra Ashkavand (AMC - Postdoc in Ken Norman's group) - "Does APP interfere with presenilin mitochondrial function in C. elegans?"


Supported by Research Institutions:   

Albany Medical Center; Skidmore College; SUNY Albany - Department of Biology; SUNY Albany - Department of Psychology; The Society for Neuroscience

2020 Edition (2020 Registration) online via Zoom

Keynote Speakers:                        

Ania Majewska (University of Rochester)  - "The role of microglial dynamics in experience-dependent plasticity"


Local Speakers:                               

Shannon Stephens (AMC) - "Reproductive function and regulation of kisspeptin neurons: lessons from mouse models"

Michael Jarko  (Siena College) - "Exercise may cure the isolation blues: insights from rodent models"

Hadley Bergstrom (Vassar College) - "Binge alcohol drinking, fear extinction, and medial prefrontal cortex plasticity"


Local Undergraduate/Graduate/Postdoc Speakers:

Zachary Olmsted (SUNY Polytechnic - MD/PhD in Janet Paluh's group) - "Transplantable neural circuitry for spinal cord injury"

Haley Jeanette (AMC - Yannick Poitelon/Sophie Belin's group) - "Effects of YAP and TAZ on peripheral nerve regeneration and remyelination"

Mustafa Balkaya (AMC - Damian Shin's group) - "Neuropsychiatric and cognitive deficits in a mouse model of focal ischemic stroke"

Kerry Ryan (AMC - Ken Norman's group) - "Disruption of mitochondria calcium homeostasis by loss of presenilin promotes mTORC1 activity to drive neurodegeneration"


Supported by Research Institutions:   

Albany Medical Center; Skidmore College; The Society for Neuroscience

2019 Edition (2019 Registration) at SUNY Albany

Keynote Speakers:                        

Mel Feany (Harvard University)  - "Genetic analysis of Parkinsonism"

Janghoo Lim  (Yale University School of Medicine) - "Genetic and pharmacological approaches to modulate TDP43-associated pathology" 


Local Speakers:                               

David Butler (NSCI) - "Targeted degradation of neurodegenerative proteins with bifunctional intracellular antibodies"

Joanna Workman  (SUNY Albany) - "Oxytocin and prolactin in postpartum stress-coping behavior: evidence for antidepressant potential?"

Ashley Kopec (AMC) - "Sex-specific immune mechanisms guide adolescent brain and behavioral development"

Bojana Zupan (Vassar College) - "Maternal programming of dopamine signaling and sociability"

Congressman Paul Tonko

Jennifer Hurley (RPI) - "Circadian regulation of Tau and Abeta metabolism" 

Chad Rogers (Union College) - "Does aging change speech perception beyond hearing loss?  Evidence from brain and behavior"


Supported by Companies:

Krackeler Scientific; Chroma|89 North


With the participation of:

Alzheimer's Association; Epilepsy Foundation


Supported by Research Institutions:   

Albany Medical Center; Skidmore College; SUNY Albany - Department of Biology; SUNY Albany - Department of PsychologyThe Society for Neuroscience


Congratulations to Maurice Petroccione (Scimemi lab - SUNY) who used his 2019 SfN-HBC Travel Award to present his work at the 50th Society for Neuroscience Meeting in Chicago (IL)

2018 Edition (2018 Registration) at The Glen Sanders Mansion

Keynote Speakers:                        

Zayd Khaliq (NIH/NINDS)  - "GABAergic control of excitability in midbrain dopaminergic neuron subpopulations"

Linda Overstreet-Wadiche (UAB) - "Synaptic connectivity of adult-born neurons"


Local Speakers:                               

Andrew Poulos (SUNY) - "Organization of context fear neural circuits: a developing story"

Robert Olberg (Union College) - "How single target-selective visual neurons direct multiple facets of prey interception in dragonflies"

Glen Ernstrom (Middlebury College) - "Regulation of neurotransmitter release by the acidification of synaptic vesicles"

Alex Mongin (AMC) - "Heteromeric LRRC8A anion channels: new contributors to neurotransmitter release and intercellular  communication in the CNS"

Thomas Kiehl (NSCI) - "From high-throughput to single cell sequencing: applications in aging, development and injury of neurological systems"

Ryan Gilbert (RPI) - "Injectable, magnetically alignable bioscaffolds for directed axonal regeneration"


Supported by Companies:

Agilent; Krackeler Scientific; Chroma|89 North


Supported by Research Institutions:   

Albany Medical Center; SUNY Albany - Department of Biology; SUNY Albany - College of Arts and Sciences; SUNY Albany - Research Foundation; The Society for Neuroscience


Congratulations to Lianna D'Brant (Scimemi lab - SUNY) and Maurice Petroccione (Scimemi lab - SUNY) who used their 2018 SfN-HBC Travel Award to present her work at the 49th Society for Neuroscience Meeting in San Diego (CA)

2017 Edition (2017 Registration) at The Glen Sanders Mansion

Keynote Speaker:                        

Henry Yin (Duke University) - "The basal ganglia in action"


Local Speakers:                               

Janet Paluh (CNSE) - "Meeting challenges in CNS therapies: stem cells, microchips and nanotechnology"                                                        

Marvin Bentley (RPI) - "The molecular motors that mediate selective transport in neurons"

Paolo Forni (SUNY Albany) - "Uncoupling olfactory development and GnRH-1 neuronal migration, new isights into Kallmann syndrome"

Arseny Khakhalin (Bard College) - "Functional network connectivity during looming stimulus detection in the optic tectum"

Yannick Poitelon (AMC) - "Acetyl-CoA production from pyruvate is not necessary for preservation of myelin"

Christopher Vecsey (Skidmore College) - "Sleeping on the fly: optogenetic assessment of the role of neuropeptide signals in the regulation of sleep and rhythms"

Cay Anderson-Hanley (Union College) - "Neuropsychological effects of an interactive physical and cognitive exercise system (iPACES™) for older adults"


Supported by Companies:

Agilent; g.tec; Krackeler Scientific


Supported by Research Institutions:   

Albany Medical Center; SUNY Albany - Department of Biology; SUNY Albany - College of Arts and Sciences; SUNY Albany - Research Foundation; The Society for Neuroscience


Congratulations to Modhurika De (Scimemi lab - SUNY), John McCauley (Scimemi lab - SUNY) who used their 2017 SfN-HBC Travel Award to present her work at the 48th Society for Neuroscience Meeting in Washington (DC)

2016 Edition (2016 Registration, 2016 Slideshow) at The Carey Institute for Global Good (Rensselaerville, NY)

Keynote Speakers:                        

Attila Losonczy (Columbia University) - "Dissecting hippocampal circuits for learning and memory"

David Lovinger (NIH/NIAAA) - "Probing corticostriatal circuitry roles in action control and habit learning"


Local Speakers: 

Ji Ung Lee (CNSE) - "The future of penetrating neural probes"

Sarah McCallum (AMC) - "The role of the habenulo-interpeduncular pathway in nicotine addiction"

Damian Zuloaga (SUNY Albany) - "Sex differences in methamphetamine alterations in the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis"

Lucy Spardy (Skidmore College) - "The effects of long-range connectivity on limb coordination in crayfish swimming"

Jim Dias (SUNY Albany) - "Investing in neuroscience research at UAlbany"

Bruce Herron (Wadsworth) - "Genetic mechanisms of epileptogenesis"                                     

Dan Meyer (GE) - "Molecular and cellular characterization of post-mortem human brain by multiplexed immunofluorescence"

Kristen Zuloaga (NSCI) - "Effect of diabetes in a mouse model of vascular cognitive impairment"

Mariana Figueiro (RPI) - "Tailored light treatment for improving sleep, mood and behavior in patients with Alzheimer's disease"                 

                                

Supported by Companies:

g.tec; Krackeler Scientific; Olympus; Stem Cultures


Supported by Research Institutions:    

Albany Medical Center; SUNY Albany - Department of Biology; SUNY Albany - College of Arts and Sciences; SUNY Polytechnic Institute - College of Nanoscale Science and Engineering; The Society for Neuroscience


Congratulations to Jennifer Lin (Forni lab - SUNY), who used her 2016 SfN-HBC Travel Award to present her work at the 2017 North East Society for Developmental Biology Meeting in Woods Hole (MA)

2015 Edition (2015 Registration) at The Carey Institute for Global Good (Rensselaerville, NY)

Keynote Speakers:                       

Michael O’Donovan (NIH/NINDS) - "Optogenetic dissection of motor circuits in the spinal cord"

Zhenyu Yue (Mount Sinai) - "How shall I eat thee: a question of autophagy and neurodegeneration"


Local Speakers:                              

Russ Ferland (AMC) - "Developmental disorders and primary cilia"

Maria Apostopoulou (NSCI) - "Over the hill: neural stem cells and aging"

Deanna Thompson (RPI) - "Electrical stimuli in neural engineering"

Mark Fleck (AMC) - "Amine modulation of GABA-A receptors"

Annalisa Scimemi (SUNY Albany) - "A novel role for brain astrocytes in hemorrhagic stroke"

Sara Lagalwar (Skidmore) -  "Pathogenesis and treatment of spinocerebellar ataxia type 1"

Gerwin Schalk (Wadsworth) - "Neurotechnologies: applying engineering principles to basic and applied neuroscience"


Supported by Companies:              

Krackeler Scientific; Leica Microsystems; Micro Video Instruments; Olympus Corporation; Thermo Fisher Scientific


Supported by Research Institutions:   

Albany Medical Center; Skidmore College; SUNY Albany - Department of Biology; SUNY Albany - College of Arts and Sciences; SUNY Albany - Research Foundation; Wadsworth Center - NYS Department of Health