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MDG June 2008 Forum: What's New in Selected Fields: Neuroscience and Neurotechnology

Advances in neuroscience are revolutionizing our understanding of the human brain. The national economic burden from neurological disorders in the US alone is estimated at $500 billion. However, new research and new products are yielding a vastly improved understanding of brain disease and injuries, human cognition and behavior, creating an unprecedented ability to treat and heal those in need.

Please join us for a discussion on recent developments in neuroscience and neurotechnology from a panel of experts in neuroscience research, product development, and clinical application.

Dr. Charles Jennings joined McGovern Institute for Brain Research in 2006, as Director of the newly established McGovern Institute Neurotechnology (MINT) program. The goal of this program is to support collaborations between neuroscientists and researchers from other disciplines within and beyond MIT, with a view to developing new platform technologies for brain research. Dr. Jennings has a research background in developmental neuroscience. He obtained a PhD from University College London and was a postdoctoral researcher at Harvard and MIT. From 1993 to 2004 he was an editor with the Nature journals, where he founded Nature Neuroscience, one of the leading journals in its field.

Dr. Jason Harry is Executive VP and CTO of Afferent Corporation, a company developing medical device technologies to treat chronic neurologic dysfunction stemming from stroke, aging, and diabetes. He has worked in biomedical engineering and medical device entrepreneurial environments for over 20 years. Prior to founding Afferent, he was VP of Research Engineering at NMT Medical, Inc., Boston, MA, a company specializing in minimally invasive cardiovascular implants. He received his doctorate from Harvard University in 1988 and was on the faculty of Brown University for 5 years, where his research focus was functional neural stimulation and muscle mechanics.

Dr. Thorkild (Thor) Norregaard (MD) is a neuroscientist and neurosurgeon with broad training and experience in neurosurgery, neurology, orthopedic surgery and general surgery. In 2005 he transitioned from practice and teaching to working with technologists and investors to design, commercialize and finance medical devices and technologies in general. From 2002 to 2005 he was a staff neurosurgeon at Harvard Medical Faculty Physicians, and from 1988 to 2002 was both at Harvard Medical School as both an Assistant Professor and staff neurosurgeon. He obtained his MD from the University of Aarhus, Denmark.

The panel will be moderated by Paul Pyzowski, an entrepreneur with experience in the life sciences instrumentation, genetic testing, and semiconductor markets.

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Due to increasing popularity, you are urged to pre-register early. Registration is on a first come, first served basis. Pre-registration closes 12:00 noon on the day of the event (Wednesday) or earlier if room capacity is reached. Otherwise, walk-ins will be welcomed up to room capacity.

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