Precision Neuroscience Conference
May 20 – 22, 2020 in Roanoke, VA
Advancing neuroscience-based precision medicine
Hosted every two years, the international Precision Neuroscience Conference builds on a collaboration between Nordic and Virginia universities to advance neuroscience-based precision medicine, including diagnosis and treatment. This year’s keynote lineup features world-renowned experts in aging, vision, computational psychiatry and neuroimaging, and mental health. View Keynote List
Who should attend?
Master’s and Ph.D. Students and Trainees
Physicians specializing in brain disorders
Faculty interested in precision neuroscience research
Quick facts
Precision Neuroscience online registration is now open! The conference registration fee for regular attendees is $275 USD. The graduate student rate is $75 USD, or $100 USD including up to two dinners
Lodging and conference sessions will take place at the Hotel Roanoke in downtown Roanoke, Virginia. Hotel Roanoke reservation pricing: $159 per night (single occupancy); $179 per night (double occupancy); $20 each additional person, per day
Reserve your hotel room online or by calling 540-985-5900 or 1-866-594-4722 and request the “Precision Neuroscience Conference” room block rate
Poster abstracts are being accepted until March 16, 2020. Submit your abstract online today!
Keynote Speakers
Joshua A. Gordon, M.D., Ph.D.
- Director of the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH)
Jan H.J. Hoeijmakers, Ph.D.
- International Faculty, University of Cologne
- Professor of Molecular Genetics, Erasmus University Rotterdam
Carol A. Mason, Ph.D.
- Professor of Neuroscience, Pathology and Cell Biology, and Ophthalmology, Columbia University
- Principal Investigator, Columbia University’s Zuckerman Institute
Read Montague, Ph.D.
- The VTC Vernon Mountcastle Research Professor, Virginia Tech
- Director, Center for Human Neuroscience Research, Fralin Biomedical Research Institute at VTC
Conference Program
The conference will feature roughly 25 – 30 presentations from leading international researchers. We are still finalizing the program, but here is the anticipated schedule and list of confirmed speakers.
7:30 – 8:15 AM: Registration
8:15 – 8:30 AM: Welcome and Conference Overview
8:30 – 9:45 AM: Sessions (Three Speakers)
9:45 – 10:05 AM: Break
10:05 – 10:55 AM: Keynote Presentation
10:55 – 12:10 PM: Sessions (Three Speakers)
12:10 – 1:10 PM: Lunch
1:10 – 2:25 PM: Sessions (Three Speakers)
2:25 – 2:45 PM: Break
2:45 – 4:00 PM: Sessions (Three Speakers)
4:00 – 5:00 PM: Poster Viewing
5:30 – 6:00 PM: Reception at the Hotel Roanoke
6:15 – 7:15 PM: Keynote Address
7:15 PM: Dinner at the Hotel Roanoke
8:15 – 8:30 AM: Welcome
8:30 – 9:45 AM: Sessions (Three Speakers)
9:45 – 10:10 AM: Break
10:10 – 11:00 AM: Keynote Presentation
11:00 – 11:50 PM: Sessions (Three Speakers)
11:50 – 1:00 PM: Lunch
1:00 – 1:50 PM: Keynote Presentation
1:55 – 2:55 PM: Poster Presentations
2:55 – 3:15 PM: Break
3:15- 4:05 PM: Sessions (Two Speakers)
4:05 – 5:05 PM: Panel
6:00 – 8:00 PM: Reception at the Center in the Square
8:30 – 8:40 AM: Welcome
8:40 – 10:20 AM: Sessions (Four Speakers)
11:20 – 11:30 AM: Concluding Remarks (Boxed Lunch Provided)
Confirmed speakers and panelists
Linda Hildegard Bergersen, Ph.D., University of Oslo | View Profile
Tomas Bjorklund, Ph.D., Lund University | View Profile
Clive Bramham, M.D., Ph.D., University of Bergen | View Profile | “The Arc of synaptic memory: from hub protein to retroviral-like capsid”
David Cifu, M.D., Virginia Commonwealth University Health| View Profile | “Repetitive Concussions from Blast and Combat-Exposure: Update from the Chronic Effects of Neurotrauma Consortium 2013-2020” | View Abstract
Ukpong Eyo, Ph.D., University of Virginia Health System| View Profile | “Targeting Microglia in Seizure Disorders”
Shannon Farris, Ph.D., Fralin Biomedical Research Institute – Virginia Tech | View Profile | “Gene Expression at Social Synapses”
Steve Finkbeiner, M.D., Ph.D., University of California San Francisco | View Profile | “Finding causes and treatments for neurodegenerative disease with stem cells, genomics, robotics and artificial intelligence”
Joshua A. Gordon, M.D., Ph.D., National Institute of Mental Health. | View Profile
Asta Kristina Haberg, M.D., Ph.D., Norweigan University of Science and Technology | View Profile | “Possibilities for precision aging”
Tor Haugstad, M.D., Ph.D., Sunnaas Rehabilitation Hospital | Clinical Panelist
Philip Haydon, Ph.D., Tufts University | View Profile
Jan H.J. Hoeijmakers, Ph.D., University of Cologne, Erasmus University Rotterdam | View Profile | “Understanding the contribution of aging to neurodegeneration and the effect of nutritional interventions”
Kathryn L. Holloway, M.D., Virginia Commonwealth University | View Profile | Clinical Panelist
Eugene Hwang, M.D., Children’s National Hospital | View Profile
Anthony-Samuel LaMantia, Ph.D., Fralin Biomedical Research Institute – Virginia Tech | View Profile | “The Odds of Small Things: Precision Analysis of Pathogenic Mechanisms in a Neurodevelopmental Disorder”
Catherine Limperopoulos, Ph.D., Children’s National, Children’s Research Institute | View Profile | “Prenatal Origins of Neurophyschological Disorders: The Role of Quantitative MRI”
Carol A. Mason, Ph.D., Columbia University | View Profile | “Wiring the Eye to the Brain for Binocular Vision: Lessons from the Albino Visual System” | View Abstract
Read Montague, Ph.D., Fralin Biomedical Research Institute – Virginia Tech | View Profile
Gretchen N. Neigh, Ph.D., Virginia Commonwealth University | View Profile | “Adolescent stress causes long-term sex-specific changes in neural metabolism and behavior” | View Abstract
Hilde Loge Nilsen, Ph.D., University of Oslo | View Profile | “Processing of endogenous DNA damage via the Base excision repair pathway generates genomic stress and neurodegeneration in a Parkinson’s disease model” | View Abstract
Anders Nykjaer, M.D., Ph.D., Aarhus University | View Profile | “SorCS1, a novel player in autism spectrum disorder?”
Jukka-Pekka Onnela, D.Sc., Harvard University | View Profile | “Smartphone-based digital phenotyping in precision neuroscience”
Michelle Olsen, Ph.D., Virginia Tech | View Profile | “Astrocyte Dysfunction Contributes to Disordered Breathing in Rett Syndrome”
Jennie Ponsford, Ph.D., Monash University | View Profile
Sharon Ramey, Ph.D., Fralin Biomedical Research Institute – Virginia Tech | View Profile “ | “Intensive early interventions: Transforming children’s neurobehavioral trajectories”
Stefanie Robel, Ph.D., Fralin Biomedical Research Institute – Virginia Tech | View Profile | “Targeting astrocytes after mild traumatic brain injury/concussion”
Aashit K. Shah, M.D., Carilion Clinic | View Profile | Clinical Panelist
Sharon Swanger, Ph.D., Fralin Biomedical Research Institute – Virginia Tech | View Profile | “Functional diversity of the NMDA receptors in the thalamus”
Accommodations
Hosted by Virginia Tech’s Fralin Biomedical Research Institute, the 2020 Precision Neuroscience Conference will be held at the Hotel Roanoke & Conference Center in downtown Roanoke, Virginia.
Conference Venue
The Hotel Roanoke & Conference Center is a Tudor-style hotel that offers world-class lodging, a spa, and a AAA Four Diamond restaurant, The Regency Room. Built in downtown Roanoke in 1882, the hotel is steps away from the museums, public art, craft breweries, shops, and restaurants that make downtown Roanoke such a popular destination.
Free shuttle service to and from the airport
Spa, pool, fitness rooms, and business center
Hotel Roanoke reservation pricing: $159 per night (single occupancy); $179 per night (double occupancy); $20 each additional person, per day
Reserve your hotel room online or by calling 540-985-5900 or 1-866-594-4722 and request the “Precision Neuroscience Conference” room block rate
Traveling to Roanoke
Air service is provided to the Roanoke-Blacksburg Regional Airport (ROA) through a variety of international carriers, including Allegiant Air, American Airlines, Delta, United Airlines, and U.S. Airways. Direct flights are offered from Atlanta, Charlotte, Chicago, NYC, Philadelphia, St. Petersburg, Washington, and Orlando.
Daily service provided to and from D.C., Baltimore, Philadelphia, NYC, and Boston via Amtrak
Take the Blue Ridge Parkway for a scenic drive to Roanoke through the famous Blue Ridge Mountains (Pictured Right)
Interstate 81 connects Roanoke to the northeast corridor. U.S. 220 is a main route coming from North Carolina
About Roanoke
Roanoke is a vibrant mountain city with 100,000 residents located in Virginia’s Blue Ridge. Recently ranked one of the top mountain bike destinations in the world, Roanoke is an outdoor-lovers paradise offering hundreds of miles of hiking and cycling trails.
Learn more about Virginia’s Blue Ridge
Download a Visitor’s Guide
Learn about the Roanoke Innovation Corridor
Register for Precision Neuroscience
Conference Fees
- Regular registration fee is $275 USD
- Graduate students may attend for a discounted rate of $75 USD ($100 including up to two dinners)
- Register for the conference online
Reserve your room at the Hotel Roanoke
- Single occupancy rooms are $159 per night
- Double occupancy rooms are $179 per night
- Hotel Roanoke charges $20 per each additional person, per day
Reserve your hotel room online or by calling 540-985-5900 or 1-866-594-4722 (toll free) and request the “Precision Neuroscience Conference” room block rate.
Submit a poster abstract
Please submit your poster title, author(s), abstract, and contact information using this online submission form. Poster abstracts are due by March 16, 2020.
Organizing Committee Members
Linda Hildegard Bergersen, Ph.D. University of Oslo, University of Copenhagen
Clive Bramham, Ph.D. University of Bergen
Pearl Chiu, Ph.D. Fralin Biomedical Research Institute at VTC
Stephanie DeLuca, Ph.D. Fralin Biomedical Research Institute at VTC
Michael Fox, Ph.D. Fralin Biomedical Research Institute at VTC
Michael J. Friedlander, Ph.D. Fralin Biomedical Research Institute at VTC
Tor Haugstad, M.D., Ph.D. Sunnaas Rehabilitation Hospital
Hal Irvin, Ph.D. Fralin Biomedical Research Institute at VTC
Jon Storm-Mathisen, M.D., Ph.D. University of Oslo
Anders Nykjaer, M.D., Ph.D. Aarhus University
