BNA2015 Festival of Neuroscience

BNA Event - 12th to 15th Apr 2015

BNA2015: Festival of Neuroscience [23^rd Meeting, Edinburgh]

• BNA2015 meeting report
• Programme
• Book of abstracts
• Onsite guide

Programme at a glance:

• Sunday 12th April
• Monday 13th April
• Tuesday 14th April
• Wednesday 15th April

Audiovisual material:

- Video

• Public lecture 1 (Professor David Nutt) Watch here
• Public lecturs 2 (Dr Adrian Owen) Watch here

- Photographs

• Click here for photographs from the BNA2015 Festival of Neuroscience

It involved 7 plenary lectures and 7 themes for symposia.

The plenary lecturers involved were:

• Professor Dame Kay Davies, University of Oxford
• Professor Annette c Dolphin, UCL
• Professor Thomas M Jessell, Columbia University
• Professor Richard G M Morris, University of Edinburgh
• Professor Giacomo Rizzolatti, University of Parma
• Professor Susumu Tonegawa, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
• Professor Lorraine Tyler, University of cambridge

Themes and speakers for symposia:

1. Development
   • What can cognitive neuroscience tell us about development?
     • Chair: Dr Catherine Sebastian, Royal Holloway, University of London, London, UK
     • Cognitive neuroscience approaches to adolescent emotion regulation - Dr Catherine Sebastian, Royal Holloway, University of London, London, UK 
     • Unique challenges to adolescent self-regulation: Lessons from the brain - Dr Leah Somerville, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA, USA 
     • Understanding the brain mechanisms that underpin performance in childhood using magnetoencephalography - Dr Duncan Astle, MRC Cognition and Brain Sciences Unit, Cambridge, UK 
     • Scores ‘in the normal range’ can be deceptive: neural and cognitive underpinnings to behaviours in autism spectrum disorder and Williams syndrome - Professor Annette Karmiloff-Smith, Birkbeck, University of London, London, UK
   • The cell Biology of neurogenesis
     • Chair: Professor Kate Storey, University of Dundee, Dundee, UK
     • Ultradian gene expression oscillations control neural progenitor maintenance and the timing of differentiation - Professor Nancy Papalopulu, University of Manchester, Manchester, UK 
     • The role of centrosomal proteins during zebrafish neurogenesis - Dr Paula Alexandre, University College London, London, UK 
     • Cutting to the chase: an ESCRT module is required for neuron pruning - Dr Darren Williams, King's College London, London, UK 
     • Cell biological mechanisms regulating neuronal differentiation - Professor Kate Storey, University of Dundee, Dundee, UK
   • Molecular mechanisms of neurodevelopment and links to later-life neurological disorders
     • Chair: Professor Kevin Mitchell, Trinity College Dublin, Dublin, Ireland
     • Mouse models to elucidate the contribution of genes to neurodevelopmental defects and the emergence of pathophysiology. - Professor Kevin Mitchell, Trinity College Dublin, Dublin, Ireland 
     • The brain-gut-microbiome and its influence on neurodevelopment - Dr Gerald Clarke, University College Cork, Cork, Ireland 
     • Investigating the role of endoplasmic reticulum proteins in motor neuron degeneration. - Dr Niamh O'Sullivan, University College Dublin, Dublin, Ireland 
     • Cellular and molecular mechanisms controlling the development and maturation of neural networks - Professor Beatriz Rico, King's College London, London, UK
   • Exploring axonal development and connectivity
     • Chair: Dr Andrew Furley, University of Sheffield, Sheffield, UK
     • 'Mapping a sensory axonal projection and investigating its stability with Brainbow transgenic labels - Dr Jean Livet, Ecole de Neuroscience, Paris, France 
     • Spontaneous activity and integration of guidance cues in thalamocortical axon development - Dr Anton Filipchuk, CSIC & Universidad Miguel Hernández, Alicante, Spain 
     • Cadherins and spontaneous activity regulate the development of cranial motor neurons- Professor Sarah Guthrie, King's College London, London, UK 
     • Role of chondrolectin in spinal motor axon guidance and spinal muscular atrophy - Professor Catherina Becker, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK
2. Molecular, Cellular and Synaptic Mechanisms
   • Learning from LTP
     • Chair: Professor Tim Bliss, NIMR, London, UK
     • Synaptic mechanisms relevant to learning and memory - Dr Arturas Volianskis, University of Bristol, Bristol, UK 
     • Presynaptic mechanisms of synaptic plasticity - Professor Nigel Emptage, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK 
     • Left-right asymmetry in hippocampus-dependent learning - Dr Olivia Shipton, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK 
     • Hippocampal-Neocortical network interactions: Plasticity and implications - Ms Andrea Moreno, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK
   • Holiding it together: membrane interactions underlying the health and well-being of neuronal cell biology
     • Chair: Dr Paul Skehel, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK
     • Cerebellar ataxia: beta III spectrin scaffold of interactions disconnected - Dr Mandy Jackson, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK 
     • More than one ligand: differential actions of BDNF on neuronal morphology - Dr Katrin Deinhardt, University of Southampton, Southampton, UK 
     • Translational control of gene expression in neuropsychiatric diseases - Dr Christos Gkogkas, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK 
     • The missing link between motoneuron excitability and ER stress in fALS - Professor Smita Saxena, University of Bern, Bern, Switzerland
   • Cholinergic neuromodulation in the CNS: from single cells to networks
     • Chair: Professor David Brown, University College London, London, UK
     • Cholinergic interneurons: gatekeepers to striatal dopamine function? - Dr Stephanie Cragg, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK 
     • Cholinergic fiber activity-induced axonal ion channel plasticity - Dr Mala Shah, University College London, London, UK 
     • Acetylcholine and the modulation of encoding and retrieval dynamics in cortical structures - Professor Michael Hasselmo, Boston University, Boston, USA 
     • Cholinergic modulation of attentional signals in striate and extrastriate visual cortex - Professor Alexander Thiele, Newcastle University, Newcastle, UK
   • Synaptopathy: the new field of synaptic medicine
     • Chair: Professor Seth Grant, Edinburgh University, Edinburgh, UK
     • Convergence of disease onto complexes in the postsynaptic proteome - Professor Seth Grant, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK 
     • The role of synaptic dysfunction in striatum - Professor Jean-Antoine Girault, Institut du Fer à Moulin, Paris, France 
     • Convergence of Hippocampal Pathophysiology in Syngap+/- and Fmr1-/y mice - Professor Peter Kind, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK 
     • Synaptic pathology in neurodegenerative diseases - Professor Giovanna Mallucci, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK
   • Brain cannabinoid system: a new therapeutic frontier in brain repair
     • Chair: Dr Francisco Molina-Holgado, University of Roehampton, London, UK
     • Crosstalk between endocannabinoid signalling and the immune system in brain repair - Dr Francisco Molina-Holgado, University of Roehampton, London, UK 
     • Cannabinoids and neuropathology - Professor Ken Mackie, Indiana University, Bloomington, USA 
     • The diacylglycerol lipases; roles in and beyond endocannabinoid signalling - Professor Patrick Doherty, King's College London, London, UK 
     • Endocannabinoid modulation of toll-like receptors (TLR)-induced neuroinflammation - Dr Michelle Roche, National University of Ireland Galway, Galway, Ireland
   • Modelling human disease in a dish: implications for understanding neurodegeneration and for development of novel therapies
     • Chair: Dr Maeve Caldwell, Medical School, Bristol, UK
     • Generation of disease relevant neuron subtypes from human Pluripotent Stem Cells for understanding neurological diseases - Professor Meng Li, Cardiff University, Cardiff, UK 
     • Differentiation of human pluripotent stem cells to study Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias - Dr Maeve Caldwell, University of Bristol Medical School, Bristol, UK 
     • Differentiation of clinical grade human pluripotent stem cells into midbrain dopaminergic neurons. - Dr Tilo Kunath, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK 
     • Generation of authentic dopamine neurons for use in cell therapy for Parkinsons disease - Dr Malin Parmar, Lund University, Lund, Sweden
   • Fats are fitting for brain diease, but how do they work?
     • Chair: Professor Robin Williams, Bourne Laboratory School of Biological Sciences, Royal Holloway University of London, Egham, UK, & Professor Matthew Walker, Department of Clinical and Experimental Epilepsy, UCL Institute of Neurology, London, UK
     • Diet-induced ketosis in regulating brain function - Professor Jong Rho, University of Calgary Faculty of Medicine, Calgary, Canada 
     • A direct mechanism of medium chain fatty acids in regulating neurotransmission - Professor Robin Williams, Royal Holloway University of London, Egham, UK 
     • Energy metabolism and medium chain dietary fatty acids - Professor Simon Heales, Great Ormond Street Children’s Hospital, London, UK 
     • The epigenetics of ketogenic diet therapy - opportunities for epilepsy prevention - Dr Detlev Boison, Legacy Research Institute, Portland, USA
   • Microglia and Neuronal Function
     • Chair: Professor Marina Lynch, Trinity College , Dublin, Ireland
     • The impact of microglial phenotype on neuronal function - Professor Marina Lynch, Trinity College, Dublin , Ireland 
     • Innate immune responses in the brain following neuronal injury - Professor Stuart Allan, University of Manchester, Manchester, UK 
     • Systemic inflammation and neural function in health and disease - Dr Jessica Teeling, Southampton General Hospital, Southampton , UK 
     • New roles for proinflammatory cytokines in Alzheimer's Disease pathogenesis - Professor Kerry O'Bannion, University of Rochester Medical Center, Rochester NY, USA
   • Molecular mechanisms of neurodengeration and regeneration
     • Chair: Professor Giovanna Mallucci, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK
     • Synaptic regeneration in neurodegeneration - Professor Giovanna Mallucci, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK 
     • APP metabolism regulates tau proteostasis in human cerebral cortex neurons - Dr Steven Moore, Trinity College, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK 
     • RNA metabolism and ALS - Dr Pietro Fratta, University College London, London, UK 
     • The regenerative medicine of multiple sclerosis - Professor Robin Franklin, Wellcome Trust-MRC Cambridge Stem Cell Institute, Cambridge, UK
   • Role of a novel type of synaptogenesis in memory formation
     • Chair: Professor Michael Stewart, The Open University, Milton Keynes, UK
     • Nitric oxide as a mediator of synaptic crosstalk and synapse formation - Dr Iryna Nikonenko, University of Geneva, Geneva, Switzerland 
     • Morphological alterations in spines and synapse following behavioural and pharma-cological manipulations in young and old mice. - Professor Mike Stewart, The Open University, Milton Keynes, UK 
     • The mechanism of memory formation when functional plasticity is impaired. - Dr Kasia Radwanska, Nencki Institute, Warsaw, Poland 
     • The impact of multiple innervated spine generation in hippocampal memory: molecular studies - Professor Peter Giese, Institute of Psychiatry, King's College London, London, UK
3. Sensory and Motor Systems
   • Closing the loop: brian-computer interfaces and neurofeedback
     • Chair: Dr Andrew Jackson, Newcastle University, Newcastle, UK
     • Applications of closed-loop brain computer interfaces - Professor Eberhard Fetz, University of Washington, Seattle, USA 
     • Operant conditioning of low-frequency local field potentials - Dr Andrew Jackson, Newcastle University, Newcastle, UK 
     • Brain Training in Huntington’s Disease: Enhancing neural plasticity using real-time fMRI neurofeedback training - Dr Marina Papoutsi, University College London, London, UK 
     • Brain-computer interfaces for severe motor paralysis - Professor Andrea Kübler, University of Wuerzberg, Wuerzberg, Germany
   • Neuroimaging and quantitative sensory testing: a new appraoch to translational pain studies in humans
     • Chair: Professor Anne King, University of Leeds, Leeds, UK
     • Altered function and connectivity in the spinal cord and brainstem of patients with neuropathic pain - Dr Jon Brooks, University of Bristol, Bristol, UK 
     • The use of CHEPS and EEG analyses to assess spinothalamic tract functional integrity in spinal cord injury - Professor Armin Curt, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland 
     • The quantification of changes in brain activity with altered physiological states such as anaesthesia and pain. - Dr Katie Warnaby, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK 
     • Neurophysiology and psychophysics of ascending nociception and descending pain modulation in humans: physics vs. cognition - Dr Rony-Reuven Nir, Technion - Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa, Israel
4. Learning Memory and Cognition
   • Memory consolidation: an interdisciplinary approach
     • Chair: Professor Sergio Della Sala, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK
     • Effects of wakeful rest on early memory consolidation and forgetting  - Dr Michaela Dewar , Heriot Watt University, Edinburgh, UK 
     • Accelerated long-term forgetting: a case for pathological consolidation? - Professor Adam Zeman , University of Exeter, Exeter, UK 
     • Hippocampal inhibitory networks in Alzheimer's disease pathology - Dr Iris Oren, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK 
     • Memory consolidation by replay - Dr Nikolai Axmacher, University of Bonn, Bonn, Germany 
     • Acetylcholine and consolidation - Professor Michael Hasselmo, Boston University, Boston, USA
   • Sex differnences in synaptic plasticity and memory
     • Chair: Professor Karl Peter Giese, King's College London, London, UK
     • Differences in the role of nitric oxide in synaptic plasticity in males and females - Professor Kevin Fox, Cardiff University, Cardiff, UK 
     • Sex differences in gene transcription during memory consolidation - Dr Keiko Mizuno, King's College London, London, UK 
     • Targeting fear memory via beta-adrenergic receptors differs in male and female mice. - Dr Judith ter Horst, University of Amsterdam, Amsterdam, The Netherlands 
     • Sex differences in the behaviour of mouse models of Alzheimer's Disease - Professor Richard Brown, Dalhousie University, Halifax, Canada
   • Dynamics of brain responses to faces
     • Chair: Dr Nicholas Furl, Royal Holloway, University of London, Egham, Surrey, UK
     • Network dynamics in response to moving faces - Dr Nicholas Furl, Royal Holloway, University of London, Egham, UK 
     • Functional connectivity in the face processing network - Dr Lucia Garrido, Brunel University, Uxbridge, UK 
     • The timing of dynamic facial expression processing measured using magnetoencephalography - Professor Philippe Schyns, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, UK 
     • Computational models of dynamic face representation - Dr Alan Johnston, University College London, London, UK
   • The social life of voices
     • Chair: Dr Carolyn McGettigan, Royal Holloway University of London, Egham, United Kingdom
     • It ain't what you say… : the neural processing of social and emotional cues during vocal communication - Dr Carolyn McGettigan, Royal Holloway, University of London, Egham, UK 
     • Human Brain Oscillations entrain to the rhythm of speech - Professor Joachim Gross, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, UK 
     • Echoes of the spoken past: How the brain "hears" nonverbal context during spoken language comprehension - Dr Jeremy Skipper, University College London, London, UK 
     • Face to face, brain to brain: exploring the mechanisms of dyadic social interactions - Dr Uri Hasson, Princeton, Princeton, USA
   • Action and cognition in the human cortico-cerebellar system
     • Chair: Professor Jeremy Schmahmann, Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston, USA
     • Motor and non-motor territories of the human dentate nucleus: Mapping the topographical connectivity of the cerebellar cortex with in-vivo sub-millimeter diffusion imaging - Dr Chris Steele, Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences, Leipzig, Germany 
     • Mapping Human Cortico-Cerebellar Functional Connectivity & Its Behavioral Associations - Professor Rachael Seidler, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, USA 
     • The cerebellar cognitive affective syndrome (CCAS): clinical manifestations of dysmetria of thought. - Professor Jeremy Schmahmann, Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston, USA
   • Frontal lobe mechansms of behavioural change
     • Chair: Professor Matthew Rushworth, University of Oxford, Oxford, United Kingdom
     • Adjusting accordingly: prefrontal areas updating valuations for objects and actions - Dr Betsy Murray, National Institute of Mental Health, Bethesda, USA 
     • Neuromodulation of human frontostriatal function - Professor Roshan Cools, Radboud University Nijmegen, Nijmegen, The Netherlands 
     • Bridging microscopic and macroscopic measures of value learning and choice - Dr Laurence Hunt, University College London, London, UK 
     • Frontal cortical interactions during behavioural change and learning - Professor Matthew Rushworth, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
   • Mind wandering, ADHD and the brain
     • Chair: Professor Philip Asherson, King's College London, London, UK
     • The mental phenomena of mind wandering and its relationship to ADHD and the brain - Professor Philip Asherson, King's College London, London, UK 
     • What can electrophysiology tell us about the DMN, and its relationship with the wandering mind? - Dr Elizabeth Liddle, University of Nottingham, Nottingham, UK 
     • The altered brain in ADHD and effects of medication - Professor Katya Rubia, King's College London, London, UK 
     • Evidence for the neural and psychological heterogeneity of the wandering mind - Dr Jonathan Smallwood, University of York, York, UK
   • Metacognition and self-awareness
     • Chair: Dr Stephen Fleming, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
     • Intentions and self-awareness: towards a model of metacognition - Dr Lucie Charles, CEA-Saclay Center, Paris, France 
     • Understanding the accuracy of self-knowledge: the contribution of human prefrontal cortex to metacognition - Dr Stephen Fleming, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK 
     • Metacognition of interoceptive states: How prediction of bodily condition underpins emotion and self - Professor Anil Seth, University of Sussex, Brighton, UK 
     • Metacognition: embedding the self in culture - Professor Chris Frith, University College London, London, UK
   • Reconsolidation, extinction and the space in between
     • Chair: Dr Amy Milton, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK
     • Reconsolidation and extinction: common and distinct triggers - Dr Charlotte Flavell, University of Birmingham, Birmingham, UK 
     • Molecular and behavioural properties of the transition between reconsolidation and extinction - Dr Emiliano Merlo, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK 
     • Reconsolidation-extinction boundaries in fear memory attenuation - Dr Marie Monfils, University of Texas, Austin, USA 
     • Targeting fear memory: a window of opportunity - Professor Merel Kindt, University of Amsterdam, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
   • Knowing where you are: circuit mechanisms for estimating location
     • Chair: Dr Matt Nolan, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK
     • How the geometry of the environment affects grid cell symmetry - Dr Julija Krupic, UCL, London, UK 
     • Synaptic and dendritic mechanisms of grid cell firing - Dr Christoph Schmidt-Hieber, UCL, London, UK 
     • Identifying the ionic algorithms for calculating spatial maps - Dr Lisa Giocomo, Stanford University, Stanford, USA 
     • Circuit mechanisms for path integration - Dr Matt Nolan, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK
   • Psychedelic neuroscience - can understanding brain mechanisms guide new treatments?
     • Chair: Professor David Nutt, Imperial College London, London, UK
     • Ketamine studies on human brain function - Dr Mitul Mehta, King's College London, London, UK 
     • Comparative effects of psychedelics and MDMA on human brain function - Dr Robin Carhart-Harris, Imperial College London, London, UK 
     • Electrophysiology of psychedelics and ketamine in rat brain - Dr Flavie Kersante, Bristol University, Bristol, UK 
     • The psychology and therapeutic potential of psychedelics, MDMA and ketamine - Professor Val Curran, University College London, London, UK
   • Neural mechanisms underlying emotion rgulation and dysregulation
     • Chair: Professor Angela Roberts, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK
     • Altered neural circuitry underlying the risk to develop Anxiety and Depression: Nonhuman primate translational studies - Professor Ned Kalin, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, USA 
     • The link between anxiety, motivation and energy metabolism in the nucleus accumbens- Professor Carmen Sandi, Ecole Polytechnique Federale de Lausanne, Lausanne, Switzerland 
     • Prefrontal/anterior cingulate cortex-amygdala connectivity in anxious humans - Dr Oliver Robinson, University College London, London, UK 
     • Prefrontal regulation of negative emotion and its modulation by serotonin - Professor Angela Roberts, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK
5. Sleep, Circadian and Neuroendocrine Mechanisms
   • Sleep, brain state and sensory processing
     • Chair: Professor Kenneth Harris, University College London, London, UK
     • Cortical mechanisms of sleep regulation - Dr Vladyslav Vyazovskiy, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK 
     • Functional scaling of synaptic inputs during cortical rhythmic activity - Professor Maria Sanchez-Vives , University of Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain 
     • Neuromodulation of attentional signals in macaque frontal cortex - Professor Alexander Thiele, University of Newcastle, Newcastle upon Tyne, UK 
     • Wakefulness, locomotion, and navigation: a view from visual cortex - Professor Kenneth Harris, University College London, London, UK
   • Sleep, circadian rhythms and the neuroendrocrine system
     • Chair: Dr Jon Johnston, University of Surrey, Surrey, UK
     • Timed feeding, neuroendocrinology and the human circadian system - Dr Jon Johnston, University of Surrey, Guildford, UK 
     • Chronobiology and sleep in relation to body weight regulation - Professor Margriet Westerterp, Maastricht University, Maastricht, The Netherlands 
     • Interactions between the circadian system and orexigenic neurones - Professor Hugh Piggins, University of Manchester, Manchester , UK 
     • Sleep, circadian rhythms and insulin sensitivity - Dr Rachel Leproult, Université Libre de Bruxelles, Brussels, Belgium
   • Long term consequenses of poor sleep on the brain
     • Chair: Professor Mary Morrell, Imperial College london, London, UK
     • Does sleep disruption predict neurodegeneration? - Dr Paul Reading, James Cook University Hospital, Middlesbrough, UK 
     • The role of hypoxia in neurodegeneration associated with sleep apnoea - Professor Luigi Ferini-Strambi , Università Vita-Salute San Raffaele, Milan, Italy 
     • Should we be investigating neurodegeneration or ischaemic preconditioning in sleep apnoa? - Dr Ivana Rosenzweig , King's College London, London, UK 
     • Biomarkers and clinical consequences of poor sleep - Dr Renata Riha, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK
6. Nervous System Disorders
   • Metabolic and vasular contributions to dementia
     • Chair: Professor Bettina Platt, University of Aberdeen, Aberdeen, UK
     • High-fat diet, diabetes and cognitive decline in transgenic dementia models - Professor Bettina Platt, University of Aberdeen, Aberdeen, UK 
     • Metabolic consequences of increased beta-secretase activity in neurons - Professor Michael Ashford, University of Dundee, Dundee, UK 
     • Mitochondrial dysfunction in Alzheimer's disease - Professor Frank Gunn-Moore, University of St Andrews, St Andrews, UK 
     • Neurovascular contributions to cognitive impairment and dementia - Professor Karen Horsburgh, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK
   • Normal ageing: Alzheimer's disease risk factor number one
     • Chair: Professor Stephen Wharton, Sheffield Institute for Translational Neuroscience, Sheffield, UK
     • Astrocyte pathology and oxidative damage in brain ageing: insights from population neuropathology studies - Professor Stephen Wharton, , Sheffield, UK 
     • Neuroinflammation in ageing and Alzheimer's disease - Dr Delphine Boche, University of Southampton, Southampton, UK 
     • Axonal ageing and pathology - Dr Michael Coleman, The Babraham Institute, Cambridge, UK 
     • Studying anatomical and molecular correlates of cognitive ageing in the Lothian Birth Cohort – extending deep-phenotyping to the level of the synapse - Dr Tara Spires-Jones, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK
   • Complex genetics of neurodegeneration
     • Chair: Professor Julie Williams, Cardiff University School of Medicine, Cardiff, UK
     • Exome sequencing in neurodegenerative diseases - more than a family business - Dr Rita Guerreiro, UCL Institute of Neurology, London, UK 
     • Genetics of dementia with lewy bodies - Dr Jose Bras, UCL Institute of Neurology, London, UK 
     • The genetics and cell biology of FTD with a focus on C9orf72 - Professor Stuart Pickering-Brown , University of Manchester, Manchester, UK 
     • Complex genetics of Alzheimer’s disease neurodegeneration - Dr Rebecca Sims, Cardiff University School of Medicine, Cardiff, UK
   • Mechanisms of reward-seeking
     • Chair: Professor David Belin, Cambridge University, Cambridge, UK
     • Modelling the transition from impulsivity to compulsive drug-seeking - Professor Jeff Dalley, Cambridge University, Cambridge, UK 
     • A common molecular mechanism for drug and natural reward-seeking. - Professor Rainer Spanagel, Central Institute of Mental Health , Mannheim, Germany 
     • Ascending peptide systems & stress-induced reward-seeking - Professor Andrew Lawrence, Florey Institute of Neuroscience & Mental Health, Parkville, Australia 
     • Social reward processing during adolescence - Dr Viviana Trezza, University Roma Tre, Rome, Italy
   • The role of synapses in neurodegenerative diseases
     • Chair: Professor Tom Gillingwater, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK
     • Identifying moderators of synaptic vulnerability - Dr Tom Wishart, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK 
     • Deficits in synaptic transmission in models of Parkinson’s disease - Dr Richard Wade-Martins, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK 
     • The role of amyloid beta and apolipoprotein E in synapse loss in Alzheimer’s disease - Dr Tara Spires-Jones, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK 
     • Synaptic dysfunction and nerve terminal degeneration - Professor Rafael Fernández-Chacón?, Hosp.Univ. Virgen del Rocío/CSIC/Univ. de Sevilla, Seville, Spain
   • Human stem cell models of neurodegneratie disease
     • Chair: Professor Christopher Shaw, King's College London, London, UK
     • Modelling alpha-synuclein disease mechanisms with neurons derived from human pluripotent stem cells - Dr Tilo Kunath, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK 
     • Human stem cell models of motor neuron disease - Professor Chris Shaw, King's College London, London, UK 
     • Stem cell models of frontotemporal dementia - Dr Selina Wray, University College London, London, UK 
     • Mechanistic studies of Alzheimer's disease initiation and progression in stem cell models - Dr Lewis Evans, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK
   • Cannabinoids in psychiatric neuroscience: medicine or menace?
     • Chair: Professor Val Curran, UCL, London, 
     • Advances in basic & translational cannabinoid neuroscience - Professor Jose Crippa, Universidade de São Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil 
     • Cannabinoids, endocannabinoids and psychosis - Dr Celia Morgan, University of Exeter, Exeter, UK 
     • Cannabis and addiction: cause, cure or both? - Dr Tom Freeman, University College London, London, UK 
     • Pharmacological imaging of cannabinoids in human cognitive functions - Dr Matthijs Bossong, Rudolf Magnus Institute of Neuroscience, Utrecht, The Netherlands
   • The pedunculopontine nucleus - a new target for deep brain stimulation in Parkinson's disease
     • Chair: Professor John Stein, University of Oxford, Oxford, United Kingdom
     • Connections of the PPN - Professor Paul Bolam, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK 
     • Primate studies on the PPN and translation to PD patients - Professor Tipu Aziz, John Radcliffe Hospital, Oxford, UK 
     • PPN stimulation for freezing and falling patients - Professor Peter Silburn, University of Queensland, Brisbane, Australia 
     • PPN pathology and the effects of PPN DBS on akinesia - Professor Elena Moro, University of Grenoble, Grenoble, France
   • Teasing out the mechanisms of depression
     • Chair: Dr Catherine Harmer, Oxford University, Oxford, UK
     • Cognition, circuitry and depression - Dr Jon Roiser, University College London, London, UK 
     • The search for biological and behavioural markers of depression - Professor Ian Goodyer, Cambridge University, Cambridge, UK 
     • Imaging the social aspects of depression - Dr Rebecca Elliott, University of Manchester, Manchester, UK 
     • Trans-diagnostic considerations - Dr Daniel Smith, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, UK
   • The neuoimmunology of stroke: inflammation, immunosuppression, infection and injury
     • Chair: Dr Barry McColl, Univesity of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK
     • Inflammation in stroke: promoting the good and inhibiting the bad - Professor Stuart Allan, University of Manchester, Manchester, UK 
     • Neutrophils in stroke - Professor Anna Planas, IIBB-CSIC, IDIBAPS, Barcelona, Spain 
     • Ischaemic stroke, B cells and susceptibility to infection - Dr Laura McCulloch, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK 
     • From ischaemic brain to lung infection and back - Professor Andreas Meisel, Charite University Medicine Berlin, Berlin, Germany
   • Brain repair: from fish to human
     • Chair: Professor Siddharthan Chandran, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh , UK
     • Modelling CNS degeneration and regeneration in fish - Professor Catherina Becker, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh , UK 
     • Neuroimaging signatures of ALS/MND - Dr Peter Bede, Trinity College Dublin, Dublin , Ireland 
     • Modelling and treating human diseases using induced pluripotent stem cells - Professor Clive Svendsen, Cedars-Sinai, Los Angeles, USA 
     • Cell and gene based therapy for retinal degeneration - Professor Robin Ali, Institute of Ophthalmology, University College London, London, UK
   • The utility of biomarkers in CNS drug development
     • Chair: Professor Alan Palmer, Cerebroscience , London, UK
     • Bringing risk forward with in vivo oxygen amperometry - a preclinical surrogate of BOLD fMRI - Dr Jennifer Li, Eli Lilly & Co Ltd, , UK 
     • The utility of pharmacologic fMRI in CNS drug development - Professor Steven Williams, King's College London, London, UK 
     • The use of MRI in patient selection and stratification in clinical trials for multiple sclerosis - Dr Richard Nicholas, Imperial College , London, UK 
     • The use of PET imaging to reduce the risk of failure in CNS drug development - Professor Roger Gunn, Imanova, London, UK
   • The immune system and the brain
     • Chair: Professor Sandra Amor, VU University Medical Center, Amsterdam, The Netherlands, & Professor Bruno Gran, University of Nottingham, Nottingham, UK
     • The Pathophysiology of Multiple Sclerosis - Professor David Hafler, Yale University, New Haven, USA 
     • The dual role of alpha B-crystallin in neuroprotection and neurodegeneration - Dr Johannes van Noort, Delta Crystallon BV, Leiden, The Netherlands 
     • Inflammatory pathways in multiple sclerosis T cells - Dr Anne Astier, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK 
     • The choroid plexus: Immune gateway to the CNS - Dr John Curnow, University of Birmingham, Birmingham, UK
   • Gene therapy for CNS disorders 
     • Chair: Dr Stuart Cobb, Institute of Neuroscience and Psychology, University of Glasgow, UK, & Dr Steven Gray, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, USA
     • Gene therapy in developmental/intellectual disability disorder - Rett Syndrome - Dr Stuart Cobb, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, UK 
     • CNS gene therapy in neuropathy - from basic science to clinical trials - Dr Steven Gray, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, USA 
     • Gene therapy in neurodegenerative disorders - Professor Mimoun Azzouz , University of Sheffield, Sheffield, UK 
     • Gene therapy in epilepsy - Dr Stephanie Schorge, University College London, London, UK 
     • Genome / mRNA editing and mutation correction in CNS disorders - Dr Mark Bailey, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, UK
   • Thinking of multiple sclerosis neurodegenerative pathology in a regenerative way
     • Chair: Dr Anna Williams, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK
     • What goes wrong in white matter in MS? - Dr Anna Williams, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK 
     • What goes wrong in grey matter in MS? - Professor Richard Reynolds, Imperial College, London, UK 
     • What goes wrong in axons in MS? - Dr Julia Edgar, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, UK 
     • What can we learn from NMO - another CNS demyelinating disease? - Professor Christine Stadelmann-Nessler, Georg-August-Universität , Göttingen, Germany
7. Methods and Techniques
   • ?Intravital optical imaging: conventionalto super-resolution
     • Chair: Professor Peter Brophy, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK
     • Protein trafficking to the node of Ranvier - Professor Peter Brophy, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK 
     • In vivo imaging of axon dismantling - Professor Thomas Misgeld, Technische Universität, Munich, Germany 
     • Intracellular trafficking visualised at super-resolution - Dr Melike Lakadamyali, Institut de Ciències Fotòniques, Barcelona, Spain 
     • Myelination in the zebrafish - Dr David Lyons, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK
   • Non-invasive brain stimulation: from neuroenhancement to neurorehabilition
     • Chair: Professor John Rothwell, University College London, London , UK
     • Computational neurostimulation - Dr Sven Bestmann, University College London, London, UK 
     • Controlling brain rhythms with brain stimulation - Dr Gregor Thut, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, UK 
     • Harnessing brain rhythms to control tremors - Dr John S. Brittain, John Radcliffe University Hospital, Oxford, UK 
     • Improving rehabilitation of stroke patients with transcranial direct current stimulation - Dr Jacinta O'Shea, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
   • Beyond BOLD: advanes in quantitive functional and metabolic imaging
     • Chair: Dr Fernando Zelaya, Institute of Psychiatry, King's College London, London, UK
     • Recent advances in non-invasive mapping of glucose metabolism - Professor Xavier Golay, University College London, London, UK 
     • Quantitative mapping of oxygen metabolism and oxygen extraction fraction by MRI - Professor Richard Wise, University of Cardiff, Cardiff, UK 
     • Functional magnetic resonance spectroscopy - Dr Paul Mullins, Bangor University, Bangor, UK 
     • Improving spatial and temporal resolution in FMRI - Dr Karla Miller, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
   • Enabling novel research in neuroscience through microfluidics
     • Chair: Dr Trevor Bushell, Strathclyde Institute of Pharmacy & Biomedical Sciences, & Dr Michele Zagnoni, Centre for microsystem and Photonics, EEE Dept., University of Strathclyde , Glasgow, UK
     • Use of microfluidic devices to model and examine the molecular mechanisms of synaptic plasticity following injury in long projection excitatory neurons - Dr Anne Marion Taylor, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, USA 
     • Interfacing of pre-patterned neuronal networks with electronic devices - Professor Andreas Offenhauser, Forschungszentrum Jülich GmbH, Jülich, Germany 
     • Microfluidics and miniaturised electrophysiology for studying neuronal function in nematodes - Professor Lindy Holden-Dye, University of Southampton, Southampton, UK 
     • Investigating functional communication between neuronal networks using microfluidics- Dr Michele Zagnoni, University of Strathclyde, Glasgow, UK
8. Special events
   • The search for consciouness: Detecting awareness in the vegetative state
     • The search for consciousness: Detecting awareness in the vegetative state - Dr Adrian Owen, University of Western Ontario, , Canada
   • Fat and stressed out, always late, but stillin love: a workshop in neuroendocrinology
     • Chair: Professor Julian Mercer, University of Aberdeen, Aberdeen, UK
     • Introduction to the field of neuroendocrinology - Professor Julian Mercer, University of Aberdeen, Aberdeen, UK 
     • The Hormonal Control of Food Intake - Dr Tony Coll, Institute of Metabolic Science, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK 
     • Stressed out: Consequences of stress across the lifespan on mood and cognition - Professor Megan Holmes, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK 
     • Always late: The neuroscience behind body clocks and sleep regulation - Dr Maria Canal, University of Manchester, Manchester, UK 
     • Still in Love: Intranasal oxytocin and vasopressin - do they really have a direct effect on the brain? - Professor Mike Ludwig, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK
   • Challengers and progress from the first calls of the EU Innovative Medicines Initiative
     • Chair: Dr Gary Gilmour, Eli Lilly & Co. Ltd., Windlesham, UK
     • The Innovative Medicines Initiative: facilitating industrial and academic partnership - Dr Sophie Dix, Eli Lilly & Co. Ltd., Erl Wood, UK 
     • What has NEWMEDS taught us about translational science for schizophrenia and depression? - Professor Trevor Robbins, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK 
     • MRI and qEEG markers in Alzheimer's disease: can they be back-translated to mouse models? - Professor Claudio Babiloni, University of Rome “La Sapienza”, Rome, Italy 
     • The IMI Europain collaboration: Building the chain of evidence for translational research in drug development for pain. - Dr Märta Segerdahl, H.Lundbeck A/S., Copenhagen, Denmark
   • How Scotland can use neuroscience to lead the world drugs and alcohol policy
     • How Scotland can use neuroscience to lead the world in drugs and alcohol policy - Professor David Nutt, Imperial College, London, UK
   • The Human Brain Project: relevance to UK neuroscience
     • Chair: Professor Seth Grant, Edinburgh University, Edinburgh, UK
     • The Medical Informatics contribution to the Human Brain Project - Professor Richard Frackowiak, Centre Hospitalier Universitaire Vaudois , Lausanne, Switzerland 
     • Neuroinformatics and Brain Simulation in the Human Brain Project - Dr Sean Hill, École Poly­tech­nique Fédérale de Lau­sanne , Lausanne, Switzerland 
     • Building Brains: neuromorphic computing in the HBP - Professor Steve Furber, University of Manchester, Manchester, UK 
     • Mapping brain and behavioural architecture in mice and humans - Professor Seth Grant, Edinburgh University, Edinburgh, UK
   • Drugs, addiction and freewill: do addictive individuals have free will?
     • Chair: Professor Barbara Sahakian, University of Cambridge School of Clinical Medicine, Cambridge, UK
     • Compulsivity and habit development in cocaine userstbc - Professor Trevor Robbins, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK 
     • Genetics of substance abuse - Professor Gunter Schumann, King's College, London, UK 
     • Substances of abuse, treatments, policy and law - Professor David Nutt, Imperial College, London, UK 
     • Neuroethical aspects of addiction focusing on free will - Professor Julian Savulescu, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
   • Effective Grantsmanship and Funding opportunites
     • Funding Opportunities and Priority Areas - Wellcome Trust - John Isaac, Wellcome Trust, Head of Neuroscience and Mental Health, London, UK 
     • Funding Opportunities and Priority Areas - BBSRC - Jef Grainger, BBSRC, Head of Sector for Bioscience for Health, Swindon, UK 
     • Funding Opportunities and Priority Areas - MRC - Kathryn Adcock, MRC, Head of Neuroscience and Mental Heath, London, UK 
     • Q&A - tbc , , , 
     • Effective grant-writing - Panel Members , , ,
   • Neuroimagine analysis methods
     • Chair: Dr Gerard Ridgway, University College London, London, UK
     • Mining HCP data with FSL and Workbench - Dr Saad Jbabdi, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK 
     • MSM: A new tool for multimodal surface-based registration - Dr Emma Robinson, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK 
     • Signal and noise in FMRI connectivity analyses - Dr Eugene Duff, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK 
     • SPM and FSL - Why and how you might use both together - Dr Gerard Ridgway, University of Oxford and UCL, Oxford and London, UK 
     • Dynamic Causal Modelling (DCM) for FMRI - Dr Peter Zeidman, University College London, London, UK 
     • Detecting cortical and sub-cortical activity in MEG and EEG - Ms Sofie Meyer, University College London, London, UK 
     • DCM for MEG and EEG - Dr Bernadette van Wijk, University College London, London, UK