Scientists, trainees share neurobiological discoveries

Neuroscience researchers shared scientific advances and forged new collaborations across disciplines at the Fralin Biomedical Research Institute at VTC Center for Neurobiology Research’s annual symposium.  

The event featured presentations from faculty laboratories across the center as well as a keynote address by Emory University neuroscientist and cell biologist Victor Faundez, whose research on rare genetic disorders has helped reveal broader principles of brain development and disease.

"The idea was to both build community with the existing members of the Center for Neurobiology Research, both the faculty and trainees, and to give everybody a sense of where everybody's work is at the beginning of each year," said Anthony-Samuel LaMantia, director of the center.

LaMantia said the symposium helps new graduate students, postdoctoral researchers, technicians, and faculty members understand the breadth of research taking place across the center and encourages collaboration among labs.

"My hope is that this will encourage everyone to consider the Center for Neurobiology Research is not just as a set of labs, but one great laboratory community where people can go in and out of each other's labs, ask for help, and really learn about the discipline by broadly being engaged by the people here who do it,” he said.

Faculty members recognize the symposium’s collaborative atmosphere.

"This is really one of the events that I look forward to the most because it allows us all to learn about the cool research that's going on in the labs at CNR and think about ways that we can collaborate and help move our projects forward,” said Shannon Farris.

The meeting highlighted research spanning brain development, genetics, neurodegenerative disease, behavior, trauma, and aging, reflecting the center's broad approach to understanding how the brain develops, functions, and becomes vulnerable to disease.

Michael Friedlander, executive director of the Fralin Biomedical Research Institute at VTC, said the symposium reflects a neuroscience enterprise that has helped define the institute since its founding.

“In the 16-year history of the Fralin Biomedical Research Institute, neuroscience has been an ever-present component of our growth,” Friedlander said. “We have a phenomenal strength in neuroscience here that goes from molecules and genes to interactions with society and policy.”

The scientific centerpiece of the symposium was a keynote lecture by Faundez, professor in the Department of Cell Biology at Emory University. His presentation explored how rare genetic conditions provide insights into fundamental biological processes.

Faundez focused on 22q11 deletion syndrome, a rare genetic disorder associated with developmental, psychiatric, and neurological conditions. He said the topic was especially relevant to the symposium because LaMantia has been a pioneer in studying the disorder and its effects on brain development.

Faundez said that rare diseases function as natural experiments, allowing researchers to uncover biological mechanisms that extend far beyond a single diagnosis. 

Quoting 17th-century physician William Harvey, he said, “The better way to advance is to give our minds to the discovery of the usual laws of nature by careful investigation of cases of rare forms of disease.”

In other words, learning how a biological system breaks down or acts “apart from the beaten paths” is often the fastest way to map out how a healthy system is supposed to function.

That philosophy closely mirrors work underway in LaMantia's laboratory, where researchers have used 22q11 deletion syndrome to better understand how genetic changes shape brain development and influence the risk of neurodevelopmental and psychiatric disorders.

Meike van der Heijden and Ryan Purcell, both assistant professors at the Fralin Biomedical Research Institute, organized the program, assisted by Center for Neurobiology Research administrative coordinator Katherine Martin.