Technical workshops will be held in the Palais des Congrès, on Saturday July 13, 2002.
There is an additional charge of 50 euros to participate to the workshops. Participants must be registered at the Forum.The programme of the workshops and their abstracts will be published as other presentations at the meeting.
W1- Brain Computer Interfaces (BCI): mechanisms and applications
W2- Multichannel recording and stimulation: techniques and developments for prosthetical and therapeutical applications
W3- Gene-Chip Technology as a tool to study neuropsychiatric disorders
W4- Use of recombinant viral vectors for gene therapy in neurodegenerative diseases
W5- From networks to molecules: advanced methods for neuroscience research
W6- Neural stem cell research and therapy: scientific opportunities, ethical, legal and social implications
W7- Databasing the brain - Tuesday, July 16, 12:00-13:00
[ Programme - Home page ]
W1- Brain Computer Interfaces (BCI): mechanisms and applications
Chair: N. Birbaumer (Germany)
Saturday, July 13, 09:00-12:00
Maximum number of participants: 250
Brain-Computer-Interfaces (BCI) are using brain signals for the manipulation of external devices, mainly computers. Monkeys learned to move an artificial hand directly with responses from an array of electrodes implanted in the motor cortex (Nicolelis 2000). Human patients with complete motor paralysis were able to control their slow cortical potentials and used that skill for selecting letters or words from a computer program (thought-translation-device, TTD, Birbaumer 1999).
The workshop will provide an overview of all available BCIs for animals and human subjects. The neuronal mechanisms of translating movement intention or thoughts directly in an external signal for a computer will be discussed. Problems of on-line-identification of single-cell-responses and EEG-pattern and classification limiting speed and precision will be reported as well as new clinical applications.
[
top of page - Programme - Home page ]
W2- Multichannel recording and stimulation: techniques and developments for prosthetical and therapeutical applications
Chair: T. Schanze, A. Stett (Germany)
Saturday, July 13, 9:00-14:30
Maximum number of participants: 50
During the last decades, multichannel recording and artificial excitation of neural, muscular and cardiac tissue by electrical stimulation has become an increasingly used tool for experimental investigations, medical diagnosis, therapy, and prosthetics. Well-known examples are cardiac pacing, restoration of muscle function after nerve injury, management of pain, cochlear implants, and visual prosthesis.
This workshop consists of six presentations covering a broad spectrum including in vitro recording and stimulation techniques, data analysis methods, micromechanics and manufacturing techniques, methods for in vivo testing of cochlear and retinal implants, and computational models for the management of chronic pain. It is intended that participants of this workshop will gain a detailed overview on present and emerging therapeutical and prosthetical applications of multichannel recording and stimulation techniques. Posters concerning the above-mentioned topics are welcome.
[ top of page - Programme - Home page ]
W3- Gene-Chip Technology as a tool to study neuropsychiatric disorders
Chair: P. Riederer (Germany), M. Youdim (Israel)
Saturday, July 13, 10:00-12:40
Maximum number of participants: 100
In the last quarter century, it has become apparent that the major mental and neuronal illnesses are in fact complex genetic diseases involving many genes. The expression pattern of genes can provide indirect information about function, drug target and causes of a disease. One new technique for measuring gene expression at the level of mRNA is cDNA and oligonucleotide microarrays. Microarray analysis provides a genome-wide, nonbiased study of gene expression patterns. One of the most attractive applications of these microarrays is in the study of differential gene expression in disease and animal models as well as drug pharmacogenetics.
This workshop will discuss the benefits of microarrays as a tool of studying neuropsychiatric disorders as well as their drugs effects on gene expression. In addition, there will be a discussion over a unified approach of analysis as well as presentation in order to overcome some of the problems occuring with such methods (e.g. tissue sampling, analysis procedures, thresholds and representations).
Speakers
Contact for further information:
Dr Edna Grünblatt
Bayerische Julius-Maximilians- Universität Würzburg
Clinic of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy
Dep. of Neurochemistry
Füchsleinstr. 15
D-97080 Würzburg, Germany
Tel: +49-931 2017730
Fax: +49-931 2017722
Email: edna.gruenblatt@mail.uni-wuerzburg.de
[ top of page - Programme - Home page ]
W5- From networks to molecules
Advanced methods for neuroscience research
Organizers: A. Draguhn (Charité Berlin, Germany), H. R. Polder, npi electronic GmbH (Tamm Germany)
Saturday, July 13, 10:00-13:00
Maximum number of participants: 100
Sponsored by:
ALA Scientific Instruments, Westbury, New York, USA (www.alascience.com)
Burleigh Instruments UK, Harpenden, Great Britain (www.burleighuk.co.uk)
MultiChannel Systems (MCS), Reutlingen, Germany (www.multichannelsystems.com)
npi electronic GmbH, Instruments for the Life Sciences, Tamm, Germany (www.npielectronic.com)
On the threshold of the age of high throughput and automated research methods in the life sciences, this symposium will include talks by international scientists within the field of neurophysiology. It is intended for scientists with some background in electrophysiology or pharmacology and will open opportunities for discussions and an intensive exchange of views. Focusing primarily on voltage and patch clamp techniques, it will examine the different electrophysiological approaches available, problems commonly encountered, and the new advances in microelectrode recording electronic design which help to overcome these problems. It will present also an outlook toward future methods such as automated patch clamping.
[ top of page - Programme - Home page ]
W6- Neural stem cell research and therapy: scientific opportunities, ethical, legal and social implications
Chair: L. Matthiessen, J. Sautter, European Commission, DG Research
Organized and supported by: the European Commission, DG Research, Directorates E and F for Life Sciences
Saturday, July 13, 09:00-13:00
Maximum number of participants: 100
Stem cell research is creating promising prospects for the treatment of a number of degenerative diseases such as Parkinson’s disease, Alzheimer’s disease, stroke, diabetes, heart diseases and arthritis etc. diseases for which we today have no efficient therapy or cure. This promising area of research, however, raises controversy and ethical questions, focusing in particular on the method for obtaining stem cells, patenting and commercialisation of human stem cells. It is important to prepare the ground for the regulatory process, which will be essential if this new technology is to be made available to the wider public. Added value in this field of research can undoubtedly be gained in creating a critical mass of research and in reinforcing co-ordination and co-operation between the various stakeholders (basic research scientists, industrialists, standardisation bodies, clinicians, policy makers, ethicists, regulatory authorities, patients) including integration and involvement of citizens.
The aims and objectives of the workshop will be to:
1) discuss the scientific opportunities and bottlenecks for development of stem cell research and therapy
2) review the ethical, legal and social issues
3) consider the future strategy for stem cell research at European level. The workshop will include presentations from basic research scientists, industrialists, standardisation bodies, clinicians, ethicists, lawyers, regulatory authorities and patients associations.
Position papers concerning the above-mentioned topics are welcome.
Speakers
Contact for further information:
Line MATTHIESSEN, MD, PhD
European Commission - DG Research
Directorate E - Life Sciences, Policy aspects - Bioethics
200 rue de la Loi, SDME 9/08
B - 1049 Bruxelles
Tel: +32 2 295 2853
Fax: +32 2 299 1860
Email: line-gertrud.matthiessen-guyader@cec.eu.int
[ top of page - Programme - Home page ]
W7- Databasing the brain
Organized and supported by: the European Commission
Tuesday, July 16, 12:00-13:00
Chair, introduction and conclusions: Jan BJAALIE (University of Oslo, Norway)
Speakers
Contact for further information:
Edition du 5/13/02 - webmaster
