The Society for Neuroscience (SFN) is the major professional organization for scientists who study the nervous system. An important goal of this organization is to encourage scientists in training to undertake research related to diseases of the nervous system. The objective of this grant application is to support teaching workshops that introduce young neuroscientists to current concepts about the etiology and pathogenesis of disorders of the nervous system. For each workshop, about 12 faculty are chosen by the Organizing Committee after eliciting proposals from the Society at large. Clinical presentations provide enrollees with an experience of the human dimension of particular diseases. Lectures cover both clinical research and relevant laboratory work. In addition to lectures, enrollees are given a choice of attending two of four small group workshops that emphasize either specific or methodological issues and encourage lively discussion. Since its inception, 20 workshops have been held, usually on the day prior to the start of the Society for Neuroscience meeting. Topics have included: Infections in the nervous system, epilepsy, Huntington's and Alzheimer's diseases, muscular dystrophy, multiple sclerosis, prion diseases, drug addiction, pain and affective disorders, stroke and excitotoxicity, neuromuscular diseases, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, schizophrenia, migraine, mental retardation and developmental disorders, Tourette's syndrome and obsessive-compulsive disorder, and the neurobiology of brain tumors. Enrollment generally runs between 100 and 200 attendees. Most enrollees are graduate students or postdoctoral fellows. Current plans are to cover the following topics in the near future: Genes, free radicals, mitochondria and apoptosis in Parkinson's disease, AIDS dementia, peripheral neuropathy, pain, language disorders, and affective disorders. Other topics will be chosen depending on their potential interest to young neuroscientists, their impact on society and the quality of recent research related to that disease area. We are especially interested in covering diseases of the nervous system which are important clinically but which are in need of enhanced basic cellular and molecular understanding. Society members are encouraged to suggest topics in the SFN Newsletter.
