The Biological Basis of Psychiatric Disease
Monday April 28 - Tuesday April 29, 2008
8:30 am - 5:30 pm

Click here to view the Symposium webcasts

Mental illness represents a tremendous societal burden and a great challenge for modern neuroscience. Progress in developing better treatments has been hampered by incomplete understanding of the underlying causes, and by the lack of clear biomarkers or pathological signs within the brain. Fortunately, with the development of new technologies for neuroscience research, this picture is beginning to change. In this symposium, 17 leading international researchers will discuss recent progress in understanding the brain mechanisms underlying major psychiatric diseases such as schizophrenia, depression, bipolar disorder and anxiety disorders. The conference will be interdisciplinary in scope, and will cover human brain imaging, genetics, neuropathology, pharmacology and behavioral studies as well as animal models and implications for drug discovery.

This symposium is co-sponsored by the Martinos Imaging Center and by the Poitras Center for Affective Disorders Research at the McGovern Institute. Confirmed speakers include: James Blair (NIMH), Ed Bullmore (University of Cambridge & GlaxoSmithKline), Cameron Carter (UC Davis), Joe Coyle (McLean Hospital & Harvard Medical School), Guoping Feng (Duke University), Jay Gingrich (Columbia University), Maria Karayiorgou (Columbia University), Sonia Lupien (McGill University), Husseini Manji (NIMH), Ruth McKernan (Pfizer), Andreas Meyer-Lindenberg (Central Institute of Mental Health, Mannheim), Karoly Mirnics (Vanderbilt University), Greg Quirk (University of Puerto Rico), Trevor Robbins (University of Cambridge), Akira Sawa (Johns Hopkins University), Paul Thompson (UCLA) and David Zald (Vanderbilt University)

Attendees are invited to present posters, which will be on display throughout the symposium.

The symposium will take place at the McGovern Institute for Brain Research, 43 Vassar Street (building 46, room 3002) in Cambridge, Massachusetts [map/directions]. The event is free and open to the public, but registration is required. Lunch will be provided to those who register. There will also be a social gathering with drinks and hors d’oeuvres at the end of each day.

Click here for the full agenda or contact Keren Miller (kerenm@mit.edu or 617 324 2077) if you need more information.

REGISTRATION IS NOW CLOSED

Registration for this event is now closed – we are expecting a capacity crowd and will be using an overflow room next to the main auditorium with a video link once the main auditorium is full. We recommend you arrive early if you want to be seated in the main auditorium.

If you have registered but find that you are unable to attend, please let us know (email kerenm@mit.edu) so that we can plan accordingly.

If you want to present a poster but have not already indicated this, please notify us (as above) not later than Monday April 21.