Project Summary
The Sixteenth and Seventeenth International Symposia on Neurobiology & Neuroendocrinology
Aging will be held in Bregenz, Austria July 12-16, 2024, and in July 2026. The purpose of these
meetings is to bring together a group of investigators who made recent advances in the study of
mechanisms of aging, with particular emphasis on CNS aging, neuroprotection, and
neurodegenerative disease. Moreover, the endocrine system and metabolic dysfunction tie many
additional aging research areas together (genomic instability, mitochondrial dysfunction,
senescence, stem cell exhaustion, epigenetic changes, deregulated nutrient sensing,
inflammation). We are directly addressing several of these topics in this Symposium, many in
the context of neurobiology and endocrinology. Prominent among the scheduled lectures are the
continued search for mechanisms of age-related disease, increasing appreciation of concomitant
involvement of multiple interacting mechanisms, and attempts to evaluate their relative
importance. Recent studies increased appreciation of mediators of potential aging delay, and
modulation of health and disease including dietary interventions, drug interventions and
hormone deficiency. As the field continues to search for and study regenerative mechanisms,
talks devoted to reprogramming of aged tissue and rejuvenation are included. Several lectures
will integrate information in neurobiology with aging, redox state, plasticity, and mitochondrial
dynamics. Progressive changes in the age profile of human populations underlies enormous
significance of age-related neurodegenerative disease and cognitive impairment. The latest
breakthroughs in our understanding of Alzheimer's, Parkinson's, Down's, and ALS disease will
be covered in several lectures, further strengthening this link. Each of these topics will be
covered by investigators that recently made major advances in the corresponding areas of
investigation. We purposely include a wide range of topics and assemble a group of scientists
that may not normally attend the same meeting. The format of the meeting is modeled after
Gordon Research Conferences and encourages formal and informal discussions of the science
presented. Proceedings will be published as a special issue of Geroscience. We have always
strongly encouraged the participation of early-stage investigators, including graduate students
and postdoctoral fellows, and promoted diversity amongst our participants. This proposal seeks
funds for providing support to 16 US participants who are in training or are in new faculty
positions and who are planning to present their findings in either an oral or poster session. We
are also seeking partial support for the expenses of 7 invited speakers from the United States.