Brain

Xiaoyu Shi, PhD & Weian Zhao, PhD
2022-06-14 10:00 - 11:00 (America/Los_Angeles) | CA
CNCM Seminar
Join the UCI Center for Neural Circuit Mapping in a hybrid seminar featuring Dr. Xiaoyu Shi and Dr. Weian Zhao of UC Irvine where they will be discussing: Molecular-resolution label-retention expansion microscopy (LR-ExM) and its application in brain mapping and Spatial omics using fluorescence spectral and lifetime imaging.

Albert La Spada, PhD
2022-06-14 12:00 - 13:00 | Interdisciplinary Science and Engineering Building (ISEB) and Virtually Via Zoom, 419 Physical Sciences Quad, Irvine, 92697, United States
Deconstructing Neurodegenerative Proteinopathies: From Pathology of Neuron Demise to Therapeutic Interventon
Join the Department of Neurobiology and Behavior in a hybrid seminar featuring Dr. Albert La Spada.

Abstract:Both rare inherited neurodegenerative disorders and common sporadic neurodegenerative diseases are caused by misfolded proteins that accumulate in neurons and glia of affected patients. The CAG – polyglutamine (PolyQ) repeat diseases are one category of inherited neurodegenerative disorders that are caused by the expansion of a CAG triplet repeat, resulting in a protein with an abnormally extended polyglutamine (polyQ) tract. The repeat expansions in these diseases occur in the coding region, and lead to the production of aggregate-prone proteins. Of the nine CAG-PolyQ diseases, I have been studying the disease pathogenesis of three such disorders: X-linked spinal & bulbar muscular atrophy (SBMA/Kennedy’s disease), Huntington’s disease, and spinocerebellar ataxia type 7. To determine the cellular and molecular basis of these diseases, I have relied upon mouse models and human stem cell models, and through these efforts, I have uncovered a central role for transcription dysregulation, altered proteostasis, and bioenergetic abnormalities in the pathogenesis of these disorders. Unbiased transcriptome analysis and directed studies of cell-type contribution have yielded crucial insights into the nature of these diseases, and have revealed targets and pathways likely amenable to therapeutic manipulation.
Hybrid Event
The seminar will be live-streamed via zoom and in person.
Please RSVP to let us know how you will attend and receive zoom link.
In-Person Meeting: Interdisciplinary Science and Engineering Building (ISEB) auditorium

C. Neill Epperson, M.D.
2022-06-14 13:00 - 14:00 | Virtual Event
Enduring Impact of Childhood Adversity: Multimodal Investigations Across the Lifespan

Join the Conte Center @ UCI in a virtual seminar featuring, C. Neil Epperson, M.D., Robert Freedman Endowed Chair and Professor of the Department of Psychiatry of the University of Colorado School of Medicine.

Virtual Lunch and Learn: Turning the Page as a Scientific Editor
2022-06-15 12:00 - 13:00 | Virtual Event
George Inglis, PhD
Associate Editor at Communications Biology

Virtual Lunch and Learn:
Turning the Page as a Scientific Editor
Wednesday, June 15, 2022
12 PM PT
Telecast via Zoom
Free to attend. Registration required.

Dr. Inglis is available for 1:1 meetings with any faculty or trainees interested in talking about their work. If interested, please feel free to contact Dr. Inglis directly at george.inglis@us.nature.com or complete the journal’s meet-the-editor form via this link.
Speaker Bio:
Dr. George Inglis is an Associate Editor at Communications Biology, an open-access journal in the Nature Portfolio that considers research articles, reviews and commentary in all areas of the biological sciences. In this session, Dr. Inglis will demystify the life science publishing landscape, the role of an editor in the publication process, and the career path to becoming an academic editor. He will also discuss the daily life of a research editor and ways to get involved in the editing or peer review process. Dr. Inglis received his BS in Biology from Pennsylvania State University in 2014, and PhD in Genetics and Molecular Biology from Emory University in 2020. While at Emory, he studied epigenomics, mouse models of voltage-gated sodium channel dysfunction, and in vitro models of neuronal development. George joined Communications Biology as an Associate Editor in September 2020 and is based in the New York office.
Event Contact: Robert Hunt, PhD | robert.hunt@uci.edu

Co-Sponsored by

Michael Wenzel, PhD
2022-06-21 10:00 - 11:00 | Virtual Event
EpiCenter Seminar Series
Join the UCI Epilepsy Research Center for a seminar featuring Michael Wenzel, PhD, Group Leader in the Department of Epileptology of the University Hospital Bonn.

Canceled: “Why and how does early adversity influence development? Toward an integrated model of dimensions of environmental experience.”
2022-07-12 01:00 - 14:00 | Telecast via Zoom
Bruce J. Ellis, Ph.D.
Professor of Psychology and Anthropology
The University of Utah

CANCELED: “Why and how does early adversity influence development? Toward an integrated model of dimensions of environmental experience.”
Host: Elysia Davis, PhD
Tuesday, July 12th, 2022
1 – 2 p.m. PT Telecast via Zoom
Event Contact: James Weinstock | jweinsto@hs.uci.edu

Linking Brain Function to Cell Types and Circuits
2022-08-15 08:00 - 2022-08-16 17:00 | Beckman Center of the National Academies of Sciences & Engineering, 100 Academy Wy, Irvine, CA, 92617, United States
This two-day in-person conference will take place at the Beckman Center in Irvine, CA. An in-person conference is not only an avenue for scientists to share their research with their peers, but also an avenue for engaged discussions and networking. Such an event offers intellectual stimulation and rewarding experiences that a virtual, online meeting can not offer.
There is a $175 fee for UCI affiliates and $189 fee for general admission required to cover the conference, food and beverage expenses. Please register early due to our capacity of hosting ~120 attendees. Conference attendees are encouraged to submit a 1-page abstract (<500 words) by July 5. The attendee abstracts submitted will be selected for short talks or poster presentations. Use the link above to submit.
We will work with the Beckman staff to implement proper guidelines to ensure that this conference will be a safe and healthy event. This will involve social distancing, temperature screens, and masks inside the building (masks policy continue to change, we will keep all attendees informed). All speakers and participants must show proof of a Covid-19 vaccination upon entering the building. Submit proof of vaccination here.

33rd Annual Southern California Alzheimer’s Disease Research Conference
2022-09-09 08:00 - 15:30 | Irvine Marriott Hotel, 18000 Von Karman Ave, Irvine, CA, 92612
Dementia across the lifespan…
Join UCI MIND, Alzheimer’s Orange County, and Alzheimer’s Association for the 33rd Annual Southern California Alzheimer’s Disease Research Conference. This hybrid conference will cover a wide range of topics across the lifespan, such as Down syndrome, frontotemporal dementia, early-onset Alzheimer’s, the oldest-old, and even more.To view the agenda, see our exhibitors, read about our esteemed speakers, and more, visit conference.mind.uci.edu.
This is a hybrid event, taking place in person at the Irvine Marriott Hotel and virtually via Zoom.

Susan B. Perlman, PhD
2022-09-13 16:00 - 17:00 | Virtual/Hybrid Event (In person at Gross Hall 4th Floor Conference Room), Irvine, CA, 92697, United States
Neuroscientific Evaluation of Risk in Early Childhood Psychopathology: Integrating Proximal and Distal Factors.

Join the Conte Center at UCI for a seminar featuring Dr. Susan B. Perlman, Associate Professor of Psychiatry at the Washington University of St. Louis.
To learn more, please visit: https://contecenter.uci.edu/seminar-series/

Li Zhang, Ph.D
2022-09-20 10:00 - 11:00 | Virtual Event
CNCM Seminar
Join the UCI Center for Neural Circuit Mapping in a seminar featuring Dr. Li Zhang, Professor of Physiology & Neuroscience and Director of the Center for Neural Circuits and Sensory Processing Disorders of the Keck School of Medicine of USC.

Maurizio Taglialatela, MD, PhD
2022-09-20 10:00 - 11:00 | Virtual Event
EpiCenter Seminar Series
Join the UCI Epilepsy Research Center featuring Maurizio Taglialatela, MD, PhD, Professor of Pharmacology, University of Naples Federico II, in a virtual seminar.

CNCM Seminar: Peyman Golshani, MD, PhD
2022-09-28 10:00 - 11:00 | Interdisciplinary Science and Engineering Building (ISEB) and Virtually Via Zoom, 419 Physical Sciences Quad, Irvine, 92697, United States
New open-source tools for imaging neuronal activity in freely behaving animals
Join the UCI Center for Neural Circuit Mapping in a hybrid conference featuring Dr. Peyman Golshani, Professor of Neurology at the David Geffen School of Medicine, UCLA.
Abstract:
Dr. Golshani obtained his MD/PhD from UC Irvine and UC Davis where he trained under the mentorship of Dr. Edward G. Jones on the development of corticothalamic synapse. He then completed his Neurology residency at UCLA and obtained postdoctoral training with Dr. Felix Schweizer and Dr. Guoping Fan where he studied the role of DNA methylation in development of cortical circuits. He then became faculty and in collaboration with Dr. Portera-Cailliau and Dr. Stelios Smirnakis studied the developmental desynchronization of internally generated activity in the cerebral cortex. His independent laboratory now investigates how cortical microcircuits in the awake behaving animal encode sensory input and how disorders such as autism and developmental epilepsies disrupt functional cortical connectivity.
Hybrid Seminar
In-Person: Interdisciplinary Science & Engineering Building ISEB 2020
Virtual: via Zoom

Rongxin Fang, PhD
2022-10-04 10:00 - 11:00 | Virtual Event
Analysis of Cortical Evolution with Specially Resolved Transcriptome Imaging
Join the UCI Center for Neural Circuit Mapping in a virtual seminar featuring Dr. Rongxin Fang. Dr. Fang is currently a Howard Hughes Medical Institute fellow of the Dameon Runyon Cancer Research Foundation at Harvard University. He received his Ph.D in Bioinformatics at the University of California, San Diego.

Neurobiology and Behavior Seminar with Dr. Alan Urban
2022-10-04 11:00 - 12:00 | CNLM Herklotz Conference Center and Virtually via Zoom
How can functional ultrasound imaging (fUSI) impact your research, and what’s next?
Join the UCI Department of Neurobiology and Behavior in a hybrid seminar featuring Dr. Alan Urban, Assistant Professor of the Department of Neurosciences of KU Leuven Research.
Abstract:
Functional ultrasound imaging (fUSI) is based on Doppler ultrasound to track changes in cerebral blood volume as an indirect readout of evoked neuronal activity. It is similar to fMRI but with better spatiotemporal resolution and fewer technical constraints. Indeed, fUSI can be performed in head-fixed or freely behaving rodents and allows volumetric images of the entire mouse brain. Proof of concept studies has been conducted in many species, including primates and humans. fUSI has reached maturity, and open access hardware and software solutions developed at NERF contribute to a faster and broader adoption by the neuroscience community. This seminar aims to introduce the physical basis of fUSI and present state-of-the-art in the field while providing detailed examples of the most impactful fUSI research. I will also discuss the latest capabilities of fUSI and suggest routes for improving the fUSI technology in the next few years.
Hybrid Event
The seminar will be live-streamed via zoom and in person.
Please RSVP to let us know how you will attend and receive zoom link.
In-Person Meeting: Dale Melbourne Herklotz Conference Room, the Center for the Neurobiology of Learning and Memory 300 Qureshey Research Lab

Serena M. Dudek, PhD
2022-10-07 10:00 - 11:00 | Virtual Event
Join the Department of Anatomy and Neurobiology in a virtual seminar featuring Dr. Serena M. Dudek , Deputy Chief and Neurobiology Laboratory and Principal Investigator of the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences.

BME Seminar Series: How does neuronal activity protect the cortex from stroke?
2022-10-07 12:00 - 13:00 | McDonnell Douglas Engineering Auditorium, 314 Los Trancos Drive, Irvine, CA, 92697, United States
Abstract: Stroke is the fifth leading cause for death in the U.S. and No. 1 cause for long term disability. Traditionally, stroke has been studied in animal models using cellular and molecular techniques, but little attention has been paid to neuronal activity. In this talk, I will describe surprising findings in a rat model of ischemic stroke relating sensory stimulation-evoked neuronal activity and stroke. Depending on delivery timing, sensory stimulation-evoked neuronal activity can protect the cortex from impending damage or exacerbate the damage. I will further elucidate the neuronal and vascular mechanisms underlying the protection and exacerbation processes and describe our accumulating evidence that neuronal activity and cortical structure-function relationship are pivotal players in understanding ischemic stroke outcome.
Biography: Ron D. Frostig is a professor of neurobiology and behavior and biomedical engineering at UCI. He received his bachelor’s degree in biology and his master’s degree in neurobiology from the Hebrew University, Israel. He received his doctorate in neuroscience at UCLA, and was a postdoctoral research scholar in neurobiology at the Rockefeller University. His lab’s major research interests include basic and pre-clinical studies of neocortical structure and function with an emphasis on plasticity.

Sean Foxley, PhD
2022-10-11 10:00 - 11:00 | CA
Join the UCI Center for Neural Circuit Mapping in a hybrid seminar featuring Dr. Sean Foxley of the University of Chicago.

UC Irvine Neuropolitics Symposium
2022-10-19 12:00 - 16:00 | Virtual Event
Cognitive Decline and Political Leadership
Join the UCI Center for Neuropolitics in a virtual symposium to discuss cognitive decline among politicians.
Cognitive deterioration of politicians (including diminished memory, impaired decision-
making, mood alterations, and dementia) is a critical emerging issue. This Symposium
will address the current state and future directions of assessment of cognitive function
and decline among politicians. As professions such as law and medicine are addressing
cognitive effects of age, their insights may inform development of the proper strategy
within politics.

Click here to view the symposium agenda

Li Zhang, Ph.D.
2022-10-25 10:00 - 11:00 | Interdisciplinary Science and Engineering Building (ISEB) and Virtually Via Zoom, 419 Physical Sciences Quad, Irvine, 92697, United States
“Neural circuits for valence coding, emotional states, and motivated behaviors”
Join the UCI Center for Neural Circuit Mapping in a hybrid seminar featuring Dr. Li Zhang of USC Medical School.
Abstract:
The topic is about our recent studies on neural circuits in the medial preoptic area (MPOA) of the hypothalamus. MPOA plays a critical role in parental and prosocial behaviors via subpopulations of its GABAergic neurons. We now show that MPOA can be more generally viewed to serve as a critical hub to mediate both negative and positive emotional states and related behaviors through its glutamatergic and GABAergic neurons, respectively, with the former encoding extremely negative valence and mediating anxiety-like behaviors, and the latter, oppositely, encoding positive valence and producing rewarding effects. I will discuss the circuitry underlying how MPOA coordinately and antagonistically mediates behaviors related to different emotional states.

NextGen Epilepsy Seminar: Jessie Buth and Christos Lisgaras
2022-10-25 12:00 - 13:00 | CA
Join the UCI Epilepsy Research Center in a virtual seminar of their NextGen Epilepsy Seminar Series featuring Jessie Buth, PhD Student of the Novitch Lab at UCLA and Christos Lisgaras, PhD, Postdoctoral Fellow of the Scharfman Lab at the Nathan S. Kline Institute for Psychiatric Research.
The seminar will be hosted by Robert Hunt, PhD and will feature Jessie Buth presenting Investigating the Role of KDM6B in Human Brain Development and Autism Spectrum Disorder Using Stem Cell Models and Christos Lisgaras presenting Deciphering the Role of Hippocampal Area CA2 in Temporal Lobe Epilepsy Using Closed-Loop Optogenetics.

Rajendra Morey, MD, MS
2022-10-25 13:00 - 14:00 | Virtual Event
Leveraging Team Science at a Global Scale to Investigate the Neurobiology of PTSD
Join the Conte Center @ UCI for a virtual seminar featuring Dr. Rajendra Morey, Professor of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at Duke University.

Patrick J. Lao, PhD
2022-10-28 11:00 - 12:00 | Virtual Event
Please join the UCI Center for Aging Research in Down Syndrome (CFAR-DS) Oct. 28 at 11 am PT for their Seminar Series presentationtitled Alzheimer’s disease and vascular neuroimaging in adults with Down syndrome, presented by Patrick J. Lao, PhD.
Patrick J. Lao, PhD is an Assistant Professor of Neurology Sciences at the Taub Institute, Sergeivsky Center, and Department of Neurology at Columbia University. He earned his Ph.D. at the University of Wisconsin-Madison in Medical Physics and completed his postdoctoral training at Columbia University in vascular MRI and applied cross-cultural neuropsychology. His research uses multimodal neuroimaging and plasma-based biomarkers to study Alzheimer’s disease. Areas of interest include applying these methods to adults with Down syndrome and in community-based settings.
This event will take place via Zoom:

https://ucihealth.zoom.us/j/92151970794?pwd=[REDACTED]
Meeting ID: 921 5197 0794
Passcode: [REDACTED]

Takaki Komiyama, PhD
2022-11-04 14:00 - 15:00 | Interdisciplinary Science and Engineering Building (ISEB) and Virtually Via Zoom, 419 Physical Sciences Quad, Irvine, 92697, United States
Motor cortex circuits for learned movements
Join the UCI Center for Neural Circuit Mapping in a hybrid seminar featuring Dr. Takaki Komiyama, Professor and Vice Chair of the Department of Neurobiology at UC San Diego.
This hybrid seminar will be taking place in the Interdisciplinary Science and Engineering Building (ISEB)2020 & Telecast via Zoom.

Abstract:
Motor cortex circuits are highly plastic, enabling adaptive control and learning of body movements. I will discuss two projects. In the first project, we studied the spatial and functional specificity of synaptogenesis that occurs during motor learning. This was done by longitudinal functional imaging of dendritic spines followed by correlated electron microscopy. In the second project, we are investigating the roles of motor cortex ensemble activity in the control of learned movements. This is done by population calcium imaging combined with holographic two-photon optogenetic stimulation of neural ensembles.

Trygve Bakken, Ph.D.
2022-11-08 10:00 - 11:00 | Interdisciplinary Science and Engineering Building (ISEB) and Virtually Via Zoom, 419 Physical Sciences Quad, Irvine, 92697, United States
Cellular diversity and evolutionary specializations in human neocortex
Join the UCI Center for Neural Circuit Mapping in a hybrid seminar featuring Dr. Trygve Bakken, Assistant Investigator at the Allen Institute for Brain Science in a hybrid seminar.

Alyson Zalta, Ph.D
2022-11-08 11:00 - 12:00 | CNLM Herklotz Conference Center and Virtually via Zoom
Exploring morning light therapy as a novel treatment for traumatic stress
CNLM Colloquium UCI Spotlight Series
Join the CNLM in a hybrid colloquium featuring Dr. Alyson Zalta, Associate Professor of Psychological Science at UC Irvine.
Description:
Trauma contributes to a wide variety of mental health problems including posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), depression, anxiety, substance use, and suicidality. Although front-line psychotherapies and pharmacotherapies exist for traumatic stress, evidence suggests that many individuals fail to receive treatment, remain symptomatic despite treatment, or drop out of treatment before its conclusion. Uptake of these treatments is poor for several reasons including stigma, avoidance, unpleasant side effects, and poor accessibility. New treatments are needed for traumatic stress that can overcome these critical barriers to care while targeting the underlying biological mechanisms of the pathology. Morning light treatment has good potential as a novel non-invasive, low risk, scalable treatment for traumatic stress. Evidence suggests that morning light may improve traumatic stress by reducing reactivity in the amygdala, a brain region implicated in the pathophysiology of PTSD and anatomically linked to circadian photoreceptors in the eye. This seminar will describe the results of a randomized pilot trial that provides initial proof-of-concept that light treatment can improve traumatic stress and preliminary results from an ongoing randomized clinical trial aimed at evaluating the brain mechanisms underlying morning light therapy for traumatic stress.

This event will be held in-person in the Herklotz Conference Center and virtually via Zoom.

Elizabeth Chrastil, PhD
2022-11-08 15:00 - 16:00 | CNLM Herklotz Conference Center and Virtually via Zoom
NBB Tenure Seminar
Join the Department of Neurobiology and Behavior in a hybrid seminar featuring Dr. Elizabeth Chrastil.
Abstract:
Navigation is a central part of daily life. For some, getting around is easy, while others struggle. Some clinical populations, such as those with Alzheimer’s Disease, display wandering behaviors and extensive disorientation. Working at the interface between immersive virtual reality and neuroimaging techniques, my research uses these complementary approaches to inform questions about how we acquire and use spatial knowledge. In this talk, I will discuss both some of my recent work and current experiments that center on three main themes: 1) how we learn new environments, 2) how the brain tracks spatial information, and 3) how individuals differ in their spatial abilities. More broadly, I will discuss how navigation lends insight into processes of human learning and memory. The behavioral and neuroimaging studies presented in this talk inform new frameworks for understanding spatial knowledge, leading to novel approaches to answering the next major questions in navigation, learning, and memory.

Jennifer Gelinas, MD, PhD
2022-11-09 16:00 - 17:00 | CA
EpiCenter Seminar Series
Join the UCI Epilepsy Research Center for a hybrid seminar featuring Dr. Jennifer Gelinas, Assistant Professor of Neurology from Columbia University.

Psychedelics and Neuroplasticity
2022-11-10 09:30 - 14:30 | Interdisciplinary Science and Engineering Building (ISEB) 1200, Irvine, CA, 92697, United States
Join the UCI Center for the Neural Circuit Mapping in a mini symposium, Psychedelics and Neuroplasticity .

Yongsoo Kim, PhD
2022-11-17 10:00 - 11:00 | Interdisciplinary Science and Engineering Building (ISEB) and Virtually Via Zoom, 419 Physical Sciences Quad, Irvine, 92697, United States
Neuronal and non-neuronal cell type mapping in the mouse brain
Join the UCI Center for Neural Circuit Mapping in a hybrid seminar featuring Dr. Yongsoo Kim, Associate Professor from the Department of Neural and Behavioral Sciences, College of Medicine from Penn State.

Daniel Vogt, PhD
2022-11-17 16:00 - 17:00 | CA
Join the UCI Epilepsy Research Center in a hybrid seminar featuring Dr. Daniel Vogt, Assistant Professor of Pediatrics and Human Development at Michigan State University.
