Memphis Neuroscience Symposium 

Highlighting multiple disciplines in burgeoning field and encourage collaborations.

Neuroscience is a broad field of study devoted to understanding how the brain, spinal cord, and peripheral nerves guide human behavior. Due to the intricate, multimodal nature of nervous system activity, neuroscience is a multidisciplinary effort that necessitates expertise in biology, psychology, chemistry, engineering, statistics, and philosophy. The University of Memphis hosts an array of neuroscientists and clinicians with eclectic yet complementary interests and specializations; however, there remains a disconnect between departments.

To bridge this gap, we have developed The Memphis Neuroscience Symposium (MNS), an annual gathering of neuroscientists from across the University and other institutions in the Memphis area. By facilitating intellectual and experimental collaboration across disciplines, the University of Memphis is situated to become a leader in neuroscience research.

The MNS took place on April 20-21 at the Community Health Building at the University of Memphis Park Avenue campus. Proceedings began with a 21+ gathering on Thursday, April 20, followed by a full-day event on Friday, April 21, featuring two keynote lectures – Dr. Mark Hallett (NIH) and Dr. Stanislav Zakharenko (St. Jude), five speakers from four different UofM departments, and a student poster session with awards. In addition, multiple national vendors will be in attendance to discuss their products with local investigators. See detailed schedule below.

We encouraged all faculty and students performing neuroscience research or interested in neuroscience collaborations to attend. The conference was free of charge and included lunch, snacks, and beverages.

This conference was sponsored by a CoRS grant from the UofM Division of Research & Innovation, as well as donations from the Departments of Communication Sciences and Disorders, Biology, and Psychology.

Schedule:

• 8:30am – Registration
• 9:00am – Keynote Address
  • Mark Hallett, MD, National Institute of Health
• 10:30am – Break
• 10:45am – Invited presenters
• 11:45am – Q & A
• NOON – Lunch
• 1:30pm – Keynote Address
  • Stanislav Zakharenko, MD, PhD., St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital
• 2:30pm – Invited presenters
• 3:00pm – Poster Session/Networking
• 4:30pm – Wrap-up