The MPUTC Research Day, co-organized with the Collaborative Program In Neuroscience (CPIN), will take place on Friday, May 19th, 2023 in person at the Medical Sciences Building, U of T. Registration is now open to all members of MPUTC and CPIN.
Keynote Speakers:
Ph.D. Professor and Chair, Department of Neurobiology & Behavior. University of California.
Dr. Wood received his BS in Chemical Engineering from the University of Colorado in Boulder. From there he changed fields to study the molecular mechanisms underlying cancer biology in the Department of Molecular Biology at Princeton University, where he received his Ph.D. His graduate work focused on epigenetic mechanisms of cancer biology. He then switched fields again to study the role of epigenetic mechanisms underlying long-term memory in his Postdoctoral research with Dr. Ted Abel at the University of Pennsylvania. Dr. Wood is a pioneer and is at the forefront of studying cognitive neuro epigenetics. His lab currently focuses on the role of epigenetic mechanisms involved in synaptic plasticity, normal long-term memory processes, memory processes associated with drugs of abuse, and age-related memory impairments. Image The goal in the Wood lab is to understand the molecular mechanisms underlying normal long-term memory processes so that we may be able to one day develop approaches to ameliorate memory dysfunction associated with intellectual disability disorders as well as age-dependent memory impairment. In addition, because memory circuits in the brain are affected by drugs of abuse, the lab also examines memory processes associated with drugs of abuse, and how to extinguish those memories. His lab has been continuously funded by NIDA, NIA, NIMH, private foundations, and sponsored research agreements. He works closely with several industry partners to develop therapeutics based on fundamental basic research discoveries in the field. In addition, Dr. Wood has a deep commitment to training, mentorship, and education, serving as Director of the NIDA T32 Training Program in Substance Use and Use Disorders, Founding Director of the UC Irvine Center for Addiction Neuroscience, Steering Committee Member of the Minority Science Programs at UC Irvine, and most recently awarded an HHMI Gilliam Advisor award.
Group Leader, Lichtenberg, Professor of Cognitive and Clinical Neurophysiology, Department of Epileptology, University of Bonn Medical Center.
Prof. Mormann will deliver a lecture titled “Cognitive adventures of single neurons in the human medial temporal lobe“.
Prof. Mormann and his lab are particularly interested in microscopic phenomena such as high-frequency oscillations, micro seizures, and cellular and network behavior. Their research focuses on
Cognitive Neurophysiology: We are interested in the neurobiology of perception and memory. We explore neuronal behavior in the medial temporal lobe to understand how conscious percepts are transferred into episodic memory traces.
As well as Clinical Neurophysiology: We investigate the pathophysiological mechanisms that lead to the occurrence of epileptic seizures. Our particular focus is on microscopic phenomena such as high-frequency oscillations, micro seizures, and cellular and network behavior.