Time: Thursday May 5 at 13.15-14.45
Auditorium: Bartholin

Many brain disorders are characterised by dysfunction, damage or death of different types of brain cells. But it is rarely possible to take a tissue sample of the brain from living patients. This makes it more difficult to make accurate diagnoses of neurological disorders and to conduct research on human brain tissue from patients. The field of neuroimaging is therefore extremely important, as it allows researchers and clinicians to study the living human brain without the need for tissue samples. This session will cover some of the most modern, state-of-the-art scanning techniques to study the human brain in neurological disorders, and how these techniques can be used to develop  effective new treatments. 

Chair: 

Per Borghammer, Clinical Professor, Aarhus University  

Speakers:

David Brooks, Professor, Aarhus University
Imaging of Alzheimers and Parkinson’s Disease

Leif Østergaard, Clinical Professor, Aarhus University
The Small Blood Vessels: Key to Understanding Brain Disorders

Hartwig Siebner, Professor, University of Copenhagen
How Can Magnetic Resonance Imaging Contribute to Precision Medicine of Brain Disorders?


Flash talks by:

Tatyana Fedorova, PhD Student, Department of Clinical Medicine, Aarhus University

Christian Staehr, PhD Student, Department of Biomedicine, Aarhus University

Time: Thursday May 5 at 15.20-16.50
Auditorium: Bartholin

Memories – whether good or bad – represent a large part of our sense of self and consciousness. Precisely how and where memories are stored is still not known; but we do know that they hide somewhere in the brain. Aging, diseases of the brain and environmental stress factors can affect our ability to access past memories and create new ones. This session on ´Memory disturbances in neurological disease´ will explore how different diseases affect various kinds of memories, from vivid childhood recollections to where we put our keys, and how dementia-associated memory loss is diagnosed and differentiated from the normal memory loss associated with aging.

Chair: 

Poul Henning Jensen, Professor, Aarhus University  

Speakers:

Michael Kopelman, Emeritus Professor, Kings College London
Amnesia: Not What You See in the Movies  

Dorthe Berntsen, Professor, Aarhus University
Autobiographical Memory in Dementia  

Steen Hasselbalch, Professor, University of Copenhagen
Diagnosis of Dementia Disorders  


Flash talks by:

Laura Marsh, PhD-student, MRC Cognition and Brain Sciences Unit, University of Cambridge

Katrine Rasmussen, Postdoc, Department of Psychology and Behavioural Sciences, Aarhus University

Time: Friday May 6 at 10.30-12.00
Auditorium: Bartholin

Physical fitness, both current and past activity level, is a strong but often neglected brain protectant. How much and what kind of physical activity are needed to keep the brain young? What are the mechanisms behind better mental health and a younger-looking brain scan in physical active elderly patients? In experimental settings, preconditioning is a promising neuroprotective that seems to share the same intrinsic pathways as those activated during exercise. Preconditioning is attractive for people with a sedentary lifestyle and may result in better brain health; and it also has potential to be used in acute disease.  

Chair: 

Troels Staehelin Jensen, Professor, Aarhus University  

Speakers:

Carl-Johan Boraxbeekk, Professor, Copenhagen University Hospital
How Physical Activity Can Improve Brain Function 

Ulrik Dalgas, Professor, Aarhus University
Exercise as Medicine in Neurodegenerative Diseases – Lessons Learned from Multiple Sclerosis 

Grethe Andersen, Clinical Professor, Aarhus University
Physical Excercise Reduces the Risk and Severity of Stroke


Flash talks by:

Martin Langeskov Christensen, Postdoc, Department of Public Health, Aarhus University

Janne Kærgård Mortensen, Clinical Associate Professor, Department of Clinical Medicine, Aarhus University

Time: Friday May 6 at 13.15-14.45
Auditorium: Bartholin

Scientists across disciplines generally agree that consciousness is subjective, characterised by a kind of privileged first-person access. Consciousness research has proven to be a relevant, productive discipline able to provide meaningful and reproducible results. Nevertheless, it has as yet only scratched the surface in the attempt to solve some of its bigger challenges, such as why and how does consciousness exist? In this session, you will learn about aspects of consciousness and unconsciousness, for example unconsciousness in association with brain injury.