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w w w. i b r o . i n f o

Elsevier, The Boulevard, Langford Lane,

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© IBRO International Brain Research Organization

THE WORLD’S NEUROSCIENTISTS

TO CONVENE IN FLORENCE IN 2011
IBRO celebrates its 50th year with the 8th IBRO World Congress of Neuroscience

In this issue:
Funding 2
Fellows & Alumni 3
Neuroscience News 4-5
As IBRO celebrates its 50th year in 2011, the organization – along with the Italian Society of Neuroscience (SINS) – invites
the world’s neuroscientists to Florence, Italy, for the 8th IBRO World Congress, taking place July 14-18. Hosted once every Regions & Training 6-7
four years in collaboration with an IBRO member society, the IBRO World Congress of Neuroscience is a seminal, worldwide IBRO’S Initiatives 8
event reflecting IBRO’s core mission of promoting international collaboration and exchange of scientific information.
“IBRO is the major international society for neuroscience, as its The scientific content will span all aspects of international neuroscience, with
scientific interests are very broad and its core mission is to the following plenary lectures: Important Dates
diffuse neuroscience throughout the entire world, beyond Fifty Years of IBRO
national interests,” said Domenico Pellegrini, the executive Albert Aguayo (McGill University, Canada) IBRO Travel Grants
secretary of the 2011 IBRO World Congress. “We look forward application deadline:
to hosting neuroscientists from all countries at the IBRO World The neurobiology of pain and its control
Allan I. Basbaum (University of California, San Francisco, USA) February 1, 2011
Congress in Florence, one of the most historic and beautiful
cities in the world.” Molecular genetics of neurodegenerative dementias Abstract submission closed:
Christine van Broeckhoven (University of Antwerp, Belgium)
“The target participants are neuroscientists of every age and level, from all March 31, 2011
countries in the world,” said Dr. Pelligrini. “In particular, the IBRO meeting will Optical technologies for probing neural signals and systems
give the opportunity to scientists and students from countries with limited Karl Deisseroth (Stanford University, USA) Early Registration deadline
resources to present their scientific achievements, to meet their more expert and (with discounted rate):
Motivational value in the human brain
senior colleagues, to establish collaborations and to plan exchange visits.”
Ray J. Dolan (University College London, UK) March 31, 2011
To this aim, a large programme has been launched for young people to take the
Regulation and function of adult neurogenesis in the hippocampal formation
opportunity to spend one month in European Laboratories in the period of the Fred H. Gage (Salk Institute, USA)
Deadline for online
meeting. The Young Investigator Programme, organized by the IBRO Congress registration: June 15, 2011
Committee, will arrange visits of selected young scientists from countries with Defining the neuronal circuitry of fear
limited resources in European laboratories for one month in conjunction with the Andreas Lüthi (University of Basel, Switzerland)
IBRO meeting.
Visualizing circuits in the developing visual system
Joshua R. Sanes (Harvard University, USA)
“The Young Investigators Programme was a key factor in selecting Florence as Visit the IBRO
the site the IBRO World Congress in 2011,” said IBRO President Carlos Local control of synaptic function
Belmonte. “We are pleased with the Florence Organizing Comittee’s efforts in Erin M. Schuman (Max Planck Institute, Germany) World Congress
reaching out to regions of the world that need assistance, and interfacing with
Useful signals from the motor cortex
Web site:
laboratories across Europe to provide valuable training opportunities. In
addition, IBRO has also set aside a fund to help as many deserving
Andrew B. Schwartz (University of Pittsburgh, USA) www.ibro2011.org
neuroscientists as possible with travel to Florence to attend the IBRO World In addition, 20 symposia and 40 workshops will round out the educational
Congress.” programme, as well as poster presentations and satellite meetings.

Florence, a literal open-air museum that was the heart of the Italian
Renaissance, is regarded by many as the art capital of Italy and was declared a
World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 1982. Attendees will enjoy the beautiful
Carlos Belmonte elected for
skyline outlined by the domes of the many Florentine churches on the way to
the congress centre, strolling along the same streets Michelangelo and Dante
second term as IBRO President,
walked through in their time. The gardens and palaces, together with the Uffizi’s sets sights on formalizing
paintings, will provide a magnificent background for this meeting.
inter-regional activities
The IBRO 2011 World Congress will take place at the Fortezza da Basso, a
Medicean fortress located in the heart of Florence, within walking distance to The IBRO Governing Council has elected Dr. Carlos Belmonte, who ran
major hotels, the central train station, museums and tourist attractions. Most uncontested, for a second term as IBRO President. During his term in office as
Congress delegates will be accommodated within walking distance of the IBRO Secretary-General from 1998-2001, Dr. Belmonte made several lasting
fortress, ranging from 5-star hotels to budget/student accommodation. contributions, including the reorganization of IBRO into six regions based on
For more information on the meeting, please visit the IBRO World Congress
2011 Web site: www.ibro2011.org. Continued on page 8
Carlos Belmonte, IBRO President

w w w. i b r o . i n f o one
 IBRO’S FUNDING
2010 - 2011

New laboratory exchange programmes IBRO Travel Awards give hundreds Symposia &
strengthen regional collaboration an opportunity to network and Workshops
In the past year, several of IBRO’s regions have initiated laboratory exchange
present research abroad recipients 2010
programmes, either within their region or between regions. These exchanges One of the ways in which IBRO helps enhance the careers of promising
provide opportunities for young neuroscience researchers from diverse neuroscientists – as well as to connect researchers across borders and regions – Asia Pacific Region
geographic and scientific areas to broaden the scope of their training. is through the funding of travel grants. Through a competitive process, funds are Ghose (India): Third SERC School in
Funding is provided to defray the cost of travel and to subsidize living costs. awarded to high-quality neuroscientists from diverse geographic and scientific Neurosciences – Imaging the Nervous
Following are four IBRO regional exchange programmes currently running. areas who wish to participate at international meetings and events. System, December 2009
Applications are made online. Since the rules for each programme differ, McLachlan (Australia): Current
please refer to the IBRO Web site for the most up-to-date information and In the past two years, IBRO has provided funding support to more than 350 Neuroscience Research across the
application deadlines. neuroscientists through our various funding programmes. Through its International Asia-Pacific Region, February 2010
Travel Grant Programme alone, IBRO has funded the travel of more than 90 young
InEurope IBRO-APRC PROLAB IBRO-LARC neuroscience researchers in 2009-10 to present their research, gain valuable Latin America Region
Exchange Short Stays insights and connect with others in an international setting. Cardona Gomez (Colombia): VII
Fellowships
Encuentro Nacional de Neurociencias,
To facilitate within Europe within the Asia- among Latin normally within April 2010
laboratory (the Western Pacific Region American and the Latin Castelló (Uruguay): Workshop in
exchanges… Europe and Caribbean America Region Fluorescence Microscopy, March 2010
Central & Neuroscience Palacios (Chile): Latin American
Eastern Europe research groups Summer School in Computational
regions)
Neuroscience, January 2010
Available to… Ph.D. students Postdoctoral Ph.D. students Priority given Roque (Brazil): LASCON 2010,
and post- fellows, junior and post- to doctoral January 2010
doctoral faculty, and doctoral students and
fellows senior Ph.D. fellows postdocs Western Europe Region
students with a Martínez García (Spain): ECCN6:
good publication
Adaptive Function and Brain
record
Evolution, April 2010
Age Limit 35 45 No age limit 40 Sallet (United Kingdom): Motivational
and Cognitive Control, June 2010
Length of stay Up to four Four to Three to Not specified IBRO’s International Travel Grafts Programme awardees
weeks six months six months
cross the globe to participate in international meetings IBRO
Funding Up to 3000 Up to US Up to 3000 Up to 1000
available euros $8,500 euros euros
IBRO Neuroscience Schools announces its
expand around the world 2011 Research
IBRO (the International Brain Research Organization) is the
global neuroscience federation dedicated to the promotion of IBRO has unique expertise and experience in training programmes that focus on
Fellows
neuroscience and communication between brain researchers fostering international contacts in brain research. Since 2000 IBRO has organized
IBRO has awarded three promising
around the world, with special emphasis on assisting young more than 150 Neuroscience Schools, which create interactive networks among
young researchers with one-year
investigators in the developing world. Incorporated in students and teachers during training courses. As a result, IBRO Alumni total more
research fellowships in order to
1961, IBRO now counts 84 member societies in 61 countries than 4000, who keep in touch with each other via the IBRO Web site and their
broaden the scope of their
around the world, with a membership of more than Facebook page. The growth of the IBRO Schools Programme reflects the high
demand for neuroscience training in developing parts of the world. The ability to neuroscience training by working
75,000 neuroscientists. abroad in high-quality laboratories:
respond to this increasing demand is made possible due to the dedication and
generous spirit of IBRO’s volunteers and partners, which include UNESCO, SfN Cecilia Hanzel: 2011
FENS, NIH, ISN, and INMHA, among others. Many past participants of IBRO’s
International Brain training programmes are now established scientists and are giving back by serving
as faculty members in IBRO Schools, contributing to the development of the next
IBRO Research
Fellow
During her fellowship
Research Organization generation of neuroscientists in their region.
at McGill University

President Executive Director

IBRO Schools per year (Canada), Cecilia
Hanzel, from Argentina,
Carlos Belmonte (Spain) Stephanie de La Rochefoucauld will explore the role of the intracellular
stephanie@ibro.info A peptides in an early inflammation
Secretary-General process in Alzheimer’s disease.
Pierre Magistretti (Switzerland) Director of Programmes
& Communications Shruti Baijal: 2011
Treasurer Robynn Rockstad-Rex Rita Levi-Montalcini
Steve Redman (Australia) robynn@ibro.info Research Fellow
The fellowship will
Treasurer-Elect IBRO Webmaster & Head of IT allow Shruti Baijal,
Quentin Pittman (Canada) Ante Padjen from India, to get
ante.padjen@mcgill.ca extensive experience
Regional Committee Chairs with fMRI at the University of Miami
Abdul Mohammed (Africa) IBRO News Editor in Chief
(USA) and will advance her theoretical
Hitoshi Okamoto (Asia/Pacific) Robynn Rockstad-Rex
background on executive control.
Ryszard Przewlocki (Central & robynn@ibro.info
Eastern Europe) Yohannes Woldeamanuel,
Osvaldo Uchitel (Latin America) 2011 John G Nicholls
Gregory Quirk (U.S./Canada) Fellow
Juan Lerma (Western Europe) Yohannes Woldeamanual,
from Ethiopia, will
IBRO Secretariat perform research at the
255 rue Saint-Honoré
75001 Paris, France
For more information on IBRO's funding Albert Einstein College
of Medicine (USA) that he hopes will
Phone: +33 1 46 47 92 92 programmes: http://funding.ibro.info someday help to improve outcomes in
Fax: +33 1 46 47 42 50
neonatal status epilepticus.

two
 NEWS FROM OUR
FELLOWS AND ALUMNI
IBRO Alumni in the spotlight
The IBRO Alumni Committee has kept its alumni in the spotlight by continuing to organize symposia at regional
The IBRO
and international meetings. The symposia provide a showcase from which to highlight the achievements of
some of the young scientists who have benefited from IBRO support in the form of fellowships and travel
Return Home
grants and, in particular, those who have attended IBRO schools. These presentations focus on their scientific
achievements and also on how the school experience has impacted their careers and influenced the direction
Programme
of their research.
Many less affluent areas of the world
Last year at the Society for Neuroscience meeting in Chicago, USA, the IBRO community heard how their Cold have problems in retaining (or
Spring Harbor and Woods Hole School experience boosted the careers of four scholars who attended, through retrieving, after overseas training)
the generosity of the SfN International Affairs Committee/US National Committee. At this year’s meeting in their skilled biomedical researchers.
San Diego, the focus was on three young scientists: Valeria Della-Maggiore (Argentina), who has received Furthermore, they lack the resources
Return Home funding from IBRO, enabling her to establish her own laboratories in her home country after to support scientists who may wish
having spent several years of postdoctoral study abroad; and the other two – Musa Mabandla (South Africa) Michael Kihara, Samir Aboucha, Susan Sara, MS
to return home after training. The
Abubakar, Sunday Bisong, in Egypt.
and Jing-Ning Zhu (China) – who are alumni of the IBRO Schools Programme. This event was followed by a International Brain Research
party for friends of IBRO and all IBRO Alumni. Organization (IBRO) has been
In December 2009, IBRO Alumni from the ARC region contributed a symposium to the recent Society of Neuroscientists of Africa (SONA) meeting in Sharm el Sheikh, particularly concerned about this
Egypt. The symposium was entitled “Advances in the Diagnosis and Treatment of Neurological Disorders: Contributions of IBRO Alumni in the African Region.” issue in regard to neuroscience and
Contributors were MS Abubakar (Nigeria), Michael Kihara (Kenya), Sunday Bisong (Nigeria), and Samir Aboucha (Morocco). And at the Federation of European its application to brain diseases.
Neuroscience Societies (FENS) Forum in Amsterdam, in July 2010, the IBRO Alumni Symposium featured contributions from those who have attended FENS/IBRO
schools in Europe. The title of this event was "Encoding dynamic information in neuronal circuits," with contributions from Magor Lörincz (Portugal), Johannes Letzkus In 2006, IBRO launched its Return
(Switzerland), Claire Wyart (USA) and Paolo Massobrio (Italy). The educational programme was followed by a party held for all FENS/IBRO Schools Alumni. Home Programme to develop
policies and coordinate efforts with
“We are looking ahead to Florence and the 2011 IBRO World Congress of Neuroscience,” said IBRO Alumni Committee Chair Susan Sara. "There we will continue the
other organizations to provide more
tradition of showcasing the scientific achievements of our alumni through a symposium, and we are planning a special social occasion where faculty and students of
aid to those researchers trained
IBRO Schools around the world can meet, renew old friendships and make new contacts within our burgeoning Alumni community.”
overseas who wish return to their
home countries. In the first few years

IBRO Return Home funding recipient shares IBRO Research of the programme, IBRO partnered
with the Society for Neuroscience

challenges, successes from Argentina Fellow reports (SfN) to provide $15,000 return-
home grants – essentially, start-up
Alberto Javier Ramos returned to Argentina after his postdoctoral experience in Canada with just enough funds to cover on her progress funding – to high-potential young
essential equipment for his lab. At the time, he was obtaining exciting new results from working with several new molecular investigators identified through a
and cell biology techniques that he learned in Canada, which had Recent IBRO Research Fellow Parisa competitive application process.
never before been used in his institute, nor were these novel Gazerani, who is from Iran, writes about
her experience during her one-year
approaches common in Argentinean labs. But lack of additional research fellowship in 2008 and how Since then, the IBRO Return Home
funding had prevented Ramos from continuing using these this opportunity has helped further her Programme is now a part of IBRO’s
techniques in order to complete and confirm his results. career and research work in her new lab Fellowships & Travel Grants
in Denmark: Programme, fitting with that
“This extremely complicated situation was making me seriously
consider the possibilities of moving again to a foreign country to The IBRO Fellowship enabled me to committee’s philosophy that return-
fully develop my career,” said Ramos. “I really wanted to stay in take a postdoctoral position in Dr. Brian home funding is an integral part – as
E. Cairns' lab at the University of British well as the logical outcome – of the
Argentina and contribute somehow to the development of the Columbia, Vancouver, Canada, where I
country. IBRO helped me many times with travel grants and awards continuum through which IBRO
could obtain excellent knowledge and
that allowed me to travel and take part in several meetings around experience in basic animal pain supports the emerging careers of
the world, and so I thought getting this IBRO [Return Home] grant research and in vitro assays, which are young neuroscience investigators
would make an essential difference, allowing me to work essential components to conduct a full worldwide. In addition, the number
translational pain research. and size of IBRO’s return-home
independently in my own country.”
Dr. Cairns' excellent mentorship and awards have been increased.
“I feel that the synergy achieved by the the ultimate lab facilities greatly
enhanced my qualifications and
different IBRO programmes is largely expanded my understanding of the as] a venue to share ideas with experts
improving and modernizing the way of basic peripheral mechanisms in this field, which definitely enhanced
doing neuroscience in Latin America.” underlying craniofacial pain, which will my credibility and ultimately the quality
hopefully lead to better pain of my work. The fellowship assisted me
When Ramos received a $15,000 Return Home funding award from management in the future. to stay in another lab and work with an
IBRO, he used the money to buy equipment and reagents needed expert team towards my scientific
A summary of the data [obtained
progress as an independent scientist.
to continue his work, as well as to upgrade an old electron through my research] was presented at
Once again, I deeply appreciate IBRO
microscopy lab that he received. Ramos upgraded this space to a the 29th Annual Canadian Pain Society
and its wonderful award to encourage
multi-purpose laboratory where he and his students perform Conference in Quebec City, Canada,
Albert Ramos Javier, IBRO Return Home Fellow and support me towards gaining
and was awarded the best basic
different techniques from molecular biology to neuroanatomy. profession in the field of pain, which I
science research poster. Currently, I am
am passionate about.
“The IBRO Return Home funding really made an essential contribution to keep my lab up and running,” said Ramos. “In an assistant professor at the Center for
addition, travel grants from IBRO allowed my students and me to travel to meetings, to visit labs to learn techniques and to Sensory-Motor Interaction (SMI),
Department of Health Science and
participate in the Schools. I feel that the synergy achieved by the different IBRO programmes is largely improving and
Technology, Aalborg University,
modernizing the way of doing neuroscience in Latin America.” Denmark. My research area is basically
As a result of their research, Ramos’s research team at the Institute for Cell Biology and Neuroscience at the University of in the field of neuroscience, pain. We
Buenos Aires has recently published their second article, appearing in the Journal of Neurochemistry. In addition, Ramos investigate mechanisms that underlie
pain with a translational approach
learned last December that his research team just received their first large grant from ANPCyT, basically quadrupling the (forward translation and back-
funding he has received in the past. He believes that having received the Return Home grant from IBRO has helped him to translation) to achieve better insight
attract additional funding. into fundamental mechanisms of
“It is important to receive this kind of grant very early in one’s career because it means that an international, prestigious nociception, identify biomarkers of
pain and modulate pain
organization ‘believes’ in our potential even before we are able to demonstrate it,” said Ramos. pharmacologically. This could lead to
the development of novel drugs to
treat or prevent pain.
Join IBRO on The IBRO fellowship has played a
For the latest information on Funding, Schools, Alumni Events and other up-to-the-minute IBRO significant role in my career. It has not
only opened a new window in my
news, follow us on Facebook: www.facebook.com/InternationalBrainResearchOrg research in pain, but also [has served
IBRO Research Fellow Parisa Gazerani
works in pain research.

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 NEUROSCIENCE
NEWS FROM IBRO

IBRO Animals in Research Committee The Brain Campaign:

crosses the globe to promote ethics guidelines Increasing public awareness
in neuroscience, from
Committee Chair Sharon Juliano reports: In October 2009, a long-standing member of our team, Sarah Pallas, presented a
two-day workshop in Queretera, Mexico, as a part of the Miledi Neuroscience Training Program, which also included
Australia to Zimbabwe
presentations to faculty, students and other members of the university. She was accompanied by the Director of AAALAC
International (Association for Assessment and Accreditation of Laboratory Animal Care), Chris Newcomb. The workshop
included discussion of why the ethical treatment of animals in relation to research is important and the impact of international IBRO’s Public Education Committee, chaired by Elspeth McLachlan, aims to
guidelines on the use of experimental animals. In December 2009, members of our committee attended the SONA Congress improve and widen knowledge about research on the brain and its diseases to
(Society of Neuroscience in Africa) in Sharm el Sheikh, Egypt, where we presented a symposium discussing animal and people throughout the world. To achieve this, IBRO works in partnership with DABI
human ethics – “The Value of Ethics in (Dana Alliance for Brain Initiatives), SfN (Society for Neuroscience), EDAB
Conducting Research” – including (European Dana Alliance for the Brain) and FENS (Federation of European
Neuroscience Associations), encouraging and supporting brain awareness events
components necessary to begin an
through the Brain Campaign. Activities are held in schools and the wider
animal use program (presented by Kris
community, mostly during Brain Awareness Week in March of each year.
Turlejsk and myself) and the
importance of ethical behavior in
The IBRO Public Education Committee, which includes representatives from all
running a lab (presented by Beth
regions of the world, provides funding for events in Africa, Asia-Pacific and Latin
Fisher, Michael Zygmond and Willie
America that increase public awareness of the brain and attract young people to
Daniels). In June 2010, I presented a
study neuroscience and take up research careers. During 2009-10, support was
workshop on Research Ethics as part provided for 23 events in
of an IBRO school in Kinshasa, DR Africa, 16 in Asia-Pacific, and
Congo, “Diet, Toxins and the 9 in Latin America. Of the
Environment,” and a talk during the wide range of activities
APRONES meeting, also in Kinshasa, funded, several were local
on the ethics of using animals to study Brain Bee competitions,
degenerative disease. Also during which are proving increasingly
2010, Pedro Maldonado presented popular amongst high school
Research Ethics topics at an IBRO students.
school being held in the Dominican
Republic, for researchers in Haiti. IBRO has made the booklet
Finally, we are planning a workshop in Students at an IBRO School in Kinshasa, DRC, participate in a "Research Ethics" Neuroscience: Science of the
India in the near future. workshop led by Dr. Sharon Juliano. Brain available in 21
languages through the
Brain Campaign website
(www.braincampaign.org) and
New Chair for Western is currently seeking to assist Comparative brain display during Brain
Awareness Week 2010 in Perth, Australia.
others in undertaking further
Europe Regional Committee translations. The Committee also encourages people in all parts of the world to
improve the quality and availability of basic neuroscience information in languages
Professor Juan Lerma, Director of the Instituto de Neurociencias of Alicante, other than English through social media Web sites.
Spain, has been elected Chair of the IBRO Western Europe Regional Committee
(WERC). Prof. Lerma was elected to WERC in 2007 and was also the scientific
director of the First Kemali-IBRO Mediterranean School of Neuroscience, “The
Synapse from Beach to Bedside,” held in Naples, Italy, in September 2009. The
focus of his research is glutamate receptors in neuronal physiopathology. The
international impact of Prof. Lerma’s research has been very significant, and he
New members elected for
has been invited to participate in international meetings such as the British
Physiological Society, the European Foundation of Biochemistry Societies (FEBS),
CEERC and WERC
the prestigious Gordon Conferences and the Conferences Jacques Monod. In The results of the election of new members of IBRO’s Central and Eastern
addition, Prof. Lerma has been elected as an EMBO member and belongs to the European Regional Committee (CEERC) and Western Europe Regional
European DANA Alliance for the Brain (EDAB). He is an associate editor of Neuron Committee (WERC) are:
and a reviewing editor of Neuroscience. He succeeds Professor Monica Di Luca,
who served on WERC since 2001 and was its Committee Chair since 2006. CEERC: Chair Ryszard Przewlocki (Poland, re-elected), Pavla Jendelova
“During the years she was chairing WERC, Monica did a great job,” said Dr. (Czech Republic), Oleg Krishtal (Ukraine), Mihai Moldovan (Denmark, re-
Lerma. “All European neuroscientists recognize her effort, and we in WERC will no elected)
Juan Lerma, new WERC Chair
doubt miss her enthusiastic and professional drive.”
WERC: Joana Almeida Palha (Portugal), Micaela Morelli (Italy), Hans-

Women in World Neuroscience Committee Joachim Pflüger (Germany), Susan Sara (France, re-elected)

hosts events around the world The term of membership of IBRO’s Regional Committees is four years,
with half the membership replaced every two years. Members may be
re-elected once.
The IBRO Committee on Women in World Neuroscience (WWN) has supported a number of major initiatives around the world
this year to promote their mission, and to create training and networking opportunities for IBRO’s members. The following
faculty and trainees received WWN funding over the past year: Viji Ravindranath (Indian Institute of Science) for the panel
discussion “Indian Women in Neuroscience”; Fatima Shad Kaneez (University of Karachi) for the symposium “Connecting
Women’s Health and Neuroscience”; Illana Gozes (Tel-Aviv University) for the panel discussion “Opportunities for Women in
Neuroscience”; Anja Lanz (University of British Columbia) for the symposium “Women in the Pipeline”; and Katza Gazdik The IBRO Reporter
and Anastasia Kuzmin (University of British Columbia) for the symposium “Secrets of the Female Mind.”

WWN Committee member Kathie Olsen organized the workshop “Stress and the Brain: Effects on Addiction, Cognition and
For the latest news about our members,
Well Being” in Washington, DC, in celebration of Women’s History Month (March 2010). Additionally, the IBRO WWN events, programmes and funding – sent by email
Committee hosted a symposium during the 2010 Society for Neuroscience meeting in San Diego, USA, titled “Meet the
Editors: How to Get Published in Major Neuroscience Journals,” which was followed by a mentoring session. A needs
to our members.
assessment initiative earlier in the year in Washington brought together senior and junior women from China, Jamaica,
Vietnam, Spain, the United Kingdom, Norway, Haiti, Lebanon, Jordan, and Canada to share their scientific experiences Please keep your membership updated at
abroad. Many of the participants provided insights on managing and leading programs in resource-poor nations, and the www.ibro.info.
particular challenges facing women. Other needs assessments were performed in 2009 in India and in Egypt.

Connect to the expanding network of IBRO Women in World Neuroscience on Facebook.

four
 NEUROSCIENCE
NEWS FROM IBRO
Honours for distinguished neuroscientists
and IBRO members
Robert H. Wurtz, a pioneer and leader in the field of neurophysiology, is the
recipient of the 2010 Neuroscience Prize of the Peter and Patricia Gruber
Foundation. His research has led scientists to a deeper understanding of how the
brain is organized to produce behaviour. Dr. Wurtz was formerly the National
Academy of Sciences representative to the IBRO Governing Council.
Sten Grillner, of the Nobel Institute for Neurophysiology, Karolinska Institute,
Sweden, and Chair of IBRO's Memberships and Partnerships Committee, has
been elected to the National Academy of Sciences (USA) in recognition of his
distinguished and continuing achievements in original research.
Lourdes Cruz was named as one of the five exceptional women scientists from
around the world to receive the Award in the Life Sciences by the L’ORÉAL-
UNESCO For Women in Science partnership. A professor at the Marine Science
Institute at the University of the Philippines Diliman, Dr. Cruz has served on the
IBRO Symposia & Workshops Committee.
John G. Nicholls was presented the Award for Education in Neuroscience by the
Society for Neuroscience (SfN). The prize recognizes individuals with a
distinguished career who have made outstanding contributions to neuroscience
research and education. His collaboration with IBRO as the founding director of
the IBRO Visiting Lecture Team Programme (VLTP) has provided assistance to
promising researchers in more than a dozen countries.
Carol Barnes received the SfN Mika Salpeter Award, a prize recognizing individuals with outstanding career achievements
in neuroscience who have also actively promoted the professional advancement of women in neuroscience. Dr. Barnes, who
formerly served on the IBRO Governing Council, was selected to receive the award for her care and dedication as a researcher
and a mentor.
IBRO Governing Council
elects new treasurer
At the IBRO Governing Council (GC) meeting that took place on November 13,
2010, in San Diego, USA, IBRO Secretary-General Pierre Magistretti announced
that Quentin Pittman of the University of Calgary, Canada, has been elected by
the GC as IBRO Treasurer. His three-year term begins in 2011.
Dr. Pittman is currently a medical scientist at the Alberta Heritage Foundation for
Medical Research, a university professor and fellow of
the Royal Society of Canada. At the University of
Calgary, Dr. Pittman has been chairman of the
Neuroscience Research Group, assistant dean
(Medical Science) and is currently education director
of the Hotchkiss Brain Institute. He has been active in
review bodies for many scientific agencies, including
the MRC, CIHR, Heart and Stroke Foundation of
Canada, Human Science Frontiers Program and the NIH.
His involvement with IBRO goes back more than 30
years. Dr. Pittman has been an IBRO visiting lecturer,
New IBRO Treasurer
organized and taught in IBRO schools, trained IBRO
Quentin Pittman fellows and participated in many of the IBRO
congresses. In addition,
he is familiar with the workings of a number of national
or international organizations, with experience as a
councilor or member of the executive of the
International Neuroendocrine Federation, International
Union of Physiological Sciences, Canadian
Physiological Society and Canadian Association for
Neuroscience.
Dr. Pittman takes over from two-term IBRO Treasurer
Steve Redman (pictured, right), who will work closely
with Dr. Pittman during 2011 to ensure a smooth
transition of duties and continued careful
Steve Redman presents
management of IBRO's finances. his final Report from the
Treasurer to the IBRO
Both IBRO Secretary-General Pierre Magistretti and
Governing Council in
President Carlos Belmonte expressed their deep November 2010.
appreciation of Dr. Redman for his service to IBRO:
"Steve has been the leader of IBRO finances in very difficult times, and I must say
his work was done with a very high level of skill, so that after this big economic
crisis, IBRO has ended up having more money than before the crisis began," said
Dr. Belmonte. "We need to thank Steve for his dedicated work over the past six
years and his success in handling our finances very well."
w w w. i b r o . i n f o
Neuroscience, the journal
A message from the
Chief Editor
Stephen Lisberger reports: The core mission of Neuroscience is to publish
original scientific papers that have a high quality and are of interest to a
wide group of readers. Through rigorous editorial procedures, careful
monitoring of the speed of our editorial process, and the diligent work of our
editors and reviewers, Neuroscience accomplishes this goal. In the past
year, we have made a number of changes that we hope will solidify our core
mission and further improve the quality of papers. We have changed the
structure of the sections in the Journal to reflect the five main intellectual
areas in which we receive submissions, affording better visibility to the
papers we publish. With the advent of electronic publishing, we have found
that all papers are handled rapidly – moving from submission to first
decision with a median time of fewer than 28 days. This allowed us to stop
offering the “Rapid Communication” format while still providing rapid review
and publication. In an effort to place the relevant knowledge within the
published literature, we have informed our authors that we will no longer
John Nicholls, founding director of the
IBRO VLTP, teaching in Cameroon post “Supplementary Figures and Text” on our Web site. Neuroscience has
the freedom to publish long papers when necessary, and we encourage
authors to include all relevant material within the body of the paper. Of
course, we wish to encourage the use of alternative formats and we will
happily post supplementary material in formats that cannot (yet) be
embedded in a PDF, e.g. movies, sound clips, etc.
Imaging team win Neuroscience Cover
Competition
The winning cover of IBRO’s annual Neuroscience cover competition for
2009 is from an article by T. Tadi, L.S. Overney and O. Blanke, of the
Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience, Brain-Mind Institute, École
Polytechnique Federale de Lausanne, Switzerland. (Professor Blanke is
also with the Department of Neurology, University Hospital, Geneva,
Switzerland.) The article, "Three sequential brain activations encode
mental transformations of upright and inverted human bodies: A high
resolution evoked potential study,” was published in Neuroscience, Vol.
159 (2009), No. 4, 1315- 1325. The first author, Tej Tadi, described the
research behind the paper and the technique behind the image: "Research
at the Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience, EPFL is focused on the
investigation of functional and neural mechanisms of body perception,
corporeal awareness, and self consciousness in the normal brain and in
neurological and psychiatric disease. We combine techniques from
experimental psychology and cognitive science with Neuroimaging (high
density EEG and fMRI) and Virtual Reality. The cover illustration displays
brain activity in the temporo-parietal cortex, 220 milliseconds after
stimulus onset when participants were asked to imagine their body in the Neuroscience winning cover
position and perspective of the humanoid body presented on the computer
screen. The image was created using a combination of 3D modeling software (MotionBuilder; Autodesk, USA) and EEG
analysis software (Cartool, University of Geneva). The 3D environment and humanoid were created using the modeling
software. The brain activity from EEG data was then superimposed onto the image."
IBRO's Visiting Lecture Team Programme
Headed by Prof. Jack McMahan of Stanford University, USA, the IBRO Visiting Lecture Team Programme (VLTP) gave four
courses over the past year at the following sites: Qingdao, China; La Paz, Bolivia; Guatemala City, Guatemala; and
Yaoundé, Cameroon. The VLTP offers experiment-based lecture courses in economically developing countries that cover
a variety of topics of current interest in basic neuroscience. Courses are often held in remote parts of the world. The
lecture team consists of five members internationally recognized for their excellence as experimentalists and teachers.
The intense interaction between lecturers and participants throughout VLTP courses is a hallmark of this IBRO program,
which encourages a higher level of interaction and participation during the working sessions. In addition, the local faculty
benefit from their interaction with VLTP lecturers. In all, nearly 250 students were able to attend these courses offered by
the VLTP within the past year, which were co-funded by the Grass Foundation. During the VLTP course held in La Paz,
Bolivia, the Bolivian Society for Neuroscience was founded with the participation of the students and professors of
neuroscience who attended the course.
five
 NEWS FROM THE
REGIONS 2009-2010
Africa Regional Committee (ARC): Chair Abdul Mohammed. The
ARC organized four schools and a workshop in 2009 and eight
schools and courses in 2010. The First IBRO School of
Neuroscience in Cameroon: Infections and Brain Dysfunction:
Sleep, Epilepsy and Behaviour (organized by A.K. Njamnshi and K.
Kristensson) took place on August 25-30, 2009. UNESCO co-
sponsored the First IBRO School in Rwanda: Clinical
Neurophysiology and Disorders of the Nervous System (organized
by P. Luabeya, M. Arroyo and R. Kalaria) took place August 30 to
September 6, 2009. The 22nd African School in Neuroanatomy
Neurochemistry (organized by L. Dorbani-Mamine and N. Lakhdar-
Ghazal), also co-sponsored by UNESCO, took place in Algiers from
October 8-15, 2009. Largely supported by the International Society
for Neurochemistry (ISN), the 21st IBRO African Region
Neuroscience School on “Cell Death Mechanisms and
Neuroprotective Strategies in Neurological Disorders (organized by
R. Butterworth and R. Kalaria), took place in Al-Fayoum, Egypt, from
December 2-6, 2009. This School was held in parallel with the 2nd
Teaching Tools Workshop in Neurosciences in Africa (organized
by S. Juliano), which received partial funding from UNESCO.
Participants of the DRC School said they appreciated the
friendly interaction with faculty members, pictured above.
More than 500 young people from more than 30 African countries have
been trained in nine years since IBRO schools in Africa were initiated
in Petersburg, South Africa. The 22nd Advanced IBRO School in Africa
took place in Kinshasa, the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC),
from June 9 to 13, 2010, attracting 25 participants from four African
countries (the DRC, Cameroon, Ethiopia and Rwanda) who were all
post-graduate students involved in clinical or basic neuroscience
programs in their home countries. The objective of the course was to
provide the participants with recent advances on the role of toxins and
dietary habits in neurodegenerative diseases. Faculty members were
also assigned to share their research experience and career paths for
scientific development with the students. The faculty hailed from the
USA, Europe, and Africa and included active research neuroscientists
with a vast experience of teaching subjects in neuroscience at various
levels to a variety of students. They included course organizers D.
Tshala-Katumbay (USA/DRC) and J. Mwanza (USA/DRC), S. Juliano
(USA), J. Weeks (USA), K. Michels (USA), M. Bentivoglio (Italy), T.
Tylleskär (Norway), W. Daniels (South Africa), J. Tshibanda
(Belgium/DRC), R. Mukendi (Belgium/DRC), P. Luabeya
(Belgium/DRC), D. Kambangu (France/DRC), P. Kayembe (DRC), T.
Kayembe (DRC), J. Muyembe (DRC), D. Mumba (DRCo), and D.
Musibono (DRC).
The First IBRO/ILAE Neuroscience School: Fundamentals on
epilepsy: Neurobiological, clinical and therapeutic approaches
(organized by G. Avanzini and M. Bentivoglio, with local organizers
A.K. Akpalu and S.K. Ohene) was held in Accra, Ghana, on January
16-22, 2010, and received funding from UNESCO. The 3rd Annual
Kinshasa Aprones Congress (organized by P. Luabeya and T.
Kayembe) covering cerebral malaria and degenerative diseases,
took place June 14-15, 2010, and was partially supported by
UNESCO, FIC and NIEHS. The Association of Neurological Sciences
of Ethiopia joined with IBRO to put on the 2nd Regional Teaching
Course in Sub-Saharan Africa (organized by G. Zenebe), taking
place June 24-27, 2009, in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. The 22nd
Advanced IBRO School: Diet, Toxins and Neurodegeneration
(organizers: J-C Mwanza and D Tshala-Katumbay), was held in
Kinshasa, DRC, on June 9-13, 2010. The 3rd Regional Teaching
Course in Sub-Saharan Africa (organized by R. Kalaria) was held
from July 8 to 10, 2010, in Abidjan, Cote d'Ivoire. The 25th
IBRO/ISN Neuroscience School in Africa: Onslaughts on the
central dopaminergic system (organized by W. Daniels) was held
October 24-28, 2010, in Durban, South Africa. The first ARC-WERC
inter-regional collaboration, the 23rd IBRO-UNESCO School of
Neuroscience: Neurobiology of Infectious Diseases: A View for
Global Neuroscience (organized by R. Bruzzone, M. Dubois-Dalcq,
P. Gasque and K. Kristensson) was held November 27 to December
six
6, 2010, in St. Denis, La Reunion Island. The 26th IBRO-ARC
Advanced School of Neuroscience: Comparative Neuroanatomy
and Behaviour (organized by N. Patel) was held from December
11-18, 2010, in Nairobi, Kenya.
In addition, the Society of Neuroscientists of Africa (SONA) 2009
Meeting (organized by N. Patel, Y. El-Wazir and A. El-Gohary), with
support from IBRO and other organizations, was held in Sharm el
Sheikh immediately following the ISN-IBRO School in Fayoum,
Egypt. This allowed the IBRO School students to attend the SONA
Meeting and contribute posters of their work.
Asia Pacific Regional Committee (APRC): Chair Hitoshi
Okamoto. In 2009, APRC ran three schools: 1) 10th IBRO School
of Neuroscience (Kolkata, India): December 29, 2008, to January
8, 2009 [Organizer: K. Mohanakumar, Indian Institute of Chemical
Biology]. 2) 11th IBRO School of Neuroscience (Hong Kong,
China): January 7-17 [Organizers: W-H. Yung, the Chinese
University of Hong Kong, and K. Yung, Hong Kong Baptist
University]. Twenty-four participants also presented their own
research work at the 6th Asian Biophysics Association Symposium
at the Annual Scientific Conference of The Hong Kong Society of
Neurosciences (January 12-15). 3) ANS-IBRO Australiasian-Asia-
Pacific Summer School on Neuroethology (ANU Kioloa Coastal
Campus, Australia): January 20-27 [Organizers: J. Hemmi and J.
Zeil, Australia National University], co-sponsored by the Australian
Neuroscience Society. Participants also had the chance to present
their own research work at the Australian Neuroscience Society
Annual Conference held at Canberra (January 27-30).
In 2010, APRC will have run five neuroscience schools: 1) Associate
School of Neuroscience (Bangkok, Thailand): January 27 – 31
[Organizer: K. Tilokskulchai], which had been rescheduled several
times since 2008 due to political turmoil in Bangkok. 2) Advanced
School of Neuroscience (Okazaki, Japan), February 15 – 26
[Organizer: K. Imoto]. 3) School of Neuroscience (Hong Kong), May
31 - June 11 [Organizer: W-H Yung]. 4) Bioimaging, Behavior and
Functional Genomics (Selangor Darul Ehsan, Malaysia) October 3
- 15 [Organizer: 1. Parhar]. 5) Study of Human Brain Structure and
Function using Magnetic Resonance Imaging and Spectroscopy
(Manesar, India) November 29 - December 10 [Organizer: N.
Chatterjee Singh].
In addition, APRC sponsored four researchers (from China, Hong
Kong and India) for exchange fellowships to spend four to six
months in a host laboratory within the Asia Pacific region.
Laboratory experience at the Minokoshi Lab, Japan.
The two-week Advanced School of Neurosciences was held in
Okazaki, one of oldest cities in Japan, from February 15-26, 2010.
Fourteen students from eight countries participated in the Advanced
School designed for young researchers (including faculty, doctoral and
postdoctoral students) interested in neuroscience research. The
School focused on novel methods and techniques in neuroscience
research, and the two weeks of training included nine special lectures
and 14 courses of laboratory experiences. In particular, emphasis was
placed on imaging techniques and in vivo electrophysiological
recordings. The Advanced School provided an excellent opportunity
for young researchers to experience performing cutting-edge
experimental methods by themselves.
Central and Eastern Europe Regional Committee (CEERC):
Chair Ryszard Przewlocki. In 2009, CEERC supported the
Hungarian Neuroscience Meeting, January 22-24 in Budapest, and
the 9th International Congress of the Polish Neuroscience Society,
September 9 in Warsaw. In addition, the following regional
neuroscience conferences were supported by CEERC: SiNAPSA
Neuroscience Conference 2009 with an educational workshop on
memory, September 26-29 in Ljubljana, Slovenia; the 5th “Gheorghe
Marinescu” Symposium of the National Neuroscience Society of
Romania, October 1-3 in Bucharest; “Molecular view of a synapse
and its proteolytic remodeling in neuronal plasticity” Symposium,
September 1-6 in Wierzba, Poland; "Neurogenomics and
Neuroimaging of Developmental Disorders" Symposium, April 30-
May 5 in Dubrovnik, Croatia; and the 5th International Workshop,
“Sleep: a window to the world of wakefulness,” September 20-22 in
Rostov-on-Don, Russia. The conference support was directed
mainly to young scientists and to special CEERC-IBRO sponsored
sessions.
Poster session at cellular neuropathology
training school, in Kiev
CEERC partially funded a training school, “Cellular neuropathology: in
vitro model,” in Kiev, Ukraine, from June 3 to 7, 2010. Forty-two
scholars from sixteen countries attended the school, including eleven
outstanding scientists as invited speakers: M. Bentivoglio (Italy), G.
Burnstock (UK), C. Giaume (France), O. Krishtal (Ukraine), C. Matute
(Spain), A. North (UK), O. Petersen (UK), R. Pochet (Belgium), G. Skibo
(Ukraine), A. Verkhratsky (UK), and N. Voitenko (Ukraine). The program
comprised eleven lectures in various topics of neuropathology, two
poster sessions and eight laboratory sessions, including the
immunohistochemical study of glial reaction and using neuronal stem
cells in the hippocampus after ischemic injury. In addition, there were
three dinner socials and two excursions, including a visit to the
Ethnographic Museum, an introduction to Ukrainian cuisine,
sightseeing in Kiev, and a river cruise.
In addition, 2009 saw the launch of a novel program called
InEUROPE (the IntraEuropean Mobility Project), originated by
CEERC and WERC. The program funds short visits to European
laboratories for young neuroscientists to learn new techniques or
methods required for their studies. Three applicants from Poland,
Georgia and Romania were awarded funds to visit laboratories in
Hungary, England and Germany, respectively. CEERC also
supported the First IBRO-Kemali Mediterranean School of
Neuroscience, in order to stimulate networking among young
scientists within the Mediterranean Sea region.
So far in 2010, CEERC has supported three meetings and
workshops: The International Workshop 2010, January 21-23 in
Pécs, Hungary; “Cellular Neuropathology: In Vitro Models”
Symposium, June 3-7 in Kiev, Ukraine; and the 9th International
Conference on “Brain Energy Metabolism: Mitochondrial-Cytosolic
Interactions: From Energetics to Pathogenesis” at Semmelweis
University, July 7-10 in Budapest, Hungary. CEERC also funded
travel grants to attend the FENS Forum in Amsterdam in July 2010
for 44 post-docs and PhD students as well as supported the FENS-
IBRO Alumni Symposium and Social, in addition to the Media
Training Workshop.
Latin America Regional Committee (LARC): Chair Osvaldo
Uchitel. Local institutions (universities, research institutes, national
research councils, private foundations) and international scientific
organizations co-sponsored the activities promoted by LARC over
the past year. The following activities took place within the region in
2009: A. Schools. 1) 14th Latin American School of Neurosciences
(organized by O. Macadar), a well-established school on several
aspects of neuroscience, Uruguay. 2) Neurotransmitter Receptors:
Signaling and Stimulus-Transcription Coupling (organized by A.
Ortega), Mexico. 3) Advanced School of Neuroethology (organized
by D. Tomsic), Argentina. B. Courses/workshops. 1) Motivated
Behavior, Stress and Addiction. From molecules to behavior
 NEWS FROM THE
REGIONS 2009-2010
(organized by M.E. Andrea Coke), Chile. 2) III Latin-American
Summer School on Epilepsy (LASSE) – Epileptogenesis in the
developing brain: basis for treatment and prevention (organized by
E.A. Cavalheiro), Brazil. 3) Advanced Graduate Course: Molecular &
Cellular Mechanisms of Neuronal Damage - Therapeutical
Approaches (organized by J. Segura-Aguilar), Chile. 4) Molecular
Basis of Neurodegeneration (organized by L.L. Velazquez Perez),
Cuba. 5) Psychotropic, recreational and therapeutic drugs
(organized by N. Weisstaub), Argentina. 6) 15th International
Symposium on Chromaffin Cell Biology (organized by A. Hernandez-
Cruz), Mexico. 7) Mother-child relationships (organized by A.
Ferreira), Uruguay. 8) New trends in motor learning and brain
plasticity (organized by V. Della Maggiore), Argentina. 8) Plasticity
and Regeneration of the Nervous System (organized by E. Del Bel),
Brazil. C. Travel. Financial aid was granted to 17 graduate students
and postdocs to carry out research/training stays in foreign
laboratories (nine selected applicants) or to present their results at
international scientific meetings. D. Federation of Neuroscience
Societies of Latin America and the Caribbean (FALAN). This
federation was created with the strong commitment of LARC at a
foundational meeting in Uruguay, supported by a special grant from
IBRO. Representatives from LARC, Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Uruguay,
Colombia, Mexico, Cuba and Costa Rica signed the founding
document.
The following activities took place in 2010: A. Schools. 1) The Latin
American Summer School in Computational Neuroscience and
Biomedical Applications (organized by A. Palacios), Chile. 2)
PABSELA Stem Cell Research Training 2010: Mining the Cancer
Transcriptome in the CNS (organized by B. Caputto Argentina. 3)
Signal transduction in the Central Nervous System: Facts and
Principles (organized by A. Ortega), Mexico. B. The ProLab
Programme was launched to promote cooperative research by
laboratories from two different Latin American and Caribbean
countries. C. Intra-regional exchange: A total of 14 travel grants
and 14 short research stays were awarded. D.
Courses/workshops. Nineteen courses, workshops and symposia
were supported by LARC.
The IBRO-LARC Advanced
School of Neuroscience,
"Neurotransmitter Receptors:
Signaling and Stimulus
Transcription Coupling," took
place in Mexico City, Mexico,
from October 26 to November
6, 2009, in the Zacatenco
Campus of the Centro de
Investigación y de Estudios
Avanzados del Instituto
PolitécnicoNacional (Cinvestav-
IPN). The School was
co-directed by Arturo Ortega A group lab during the Advanced
and José Aguilera. A total of 20 School in Mexico City, 2009
graduate students from Perú,
Brazil and Mexico attended the lectures and the work in the
laboratories. The School covered the modern concepts of
neurotransmission, placing a strong emphasis in ligand-receptor
binding, intracellular signaling cascades and gene expression
regulation, both at the transcriptional as well as the translational levels.
Activities were divided into four-hour morning lectures and afternoon
experimental work. Lectures included Neurotransmitter Receptor
Binding Techniques, Signaling Principles, Post-translational
Modifications (phosphorylation, ubiquitination, acetylation), Epigenetic
Control of Gene Expression, Inducible Transcription Factors,
Translational Control and Activity-dependent Gene Expression
Regulation. Students and teachers were lodged in the same hotel and
shared every meal, resulting in a good interaction in the academic and
social realms.
a Hispaniola School of Neuroscience on “Trauma and the Brain,”
held in Santiago, Dominican Republic, from September 30 to
October 9, 2010. IBRO North American Schools: The committee
continues to work with IBRO’s Board of Schools and the Marine
Biological Laboratory (MBL) and Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory
(CSHL) to identify highly qualified research trainees (IBRO alumni)
to participate in summer neuroscience courses there. Five students
(from Brazil, Chile, India, Mexico and Romania) were awarded grants
in 2009. Students from Argentina, Brazil, Colombia, Cyprus, India,
Mexico, Sri Lanka and Uruguay were awarded fellowships for 2010.
Students are encouraged to visit the USCRC web site and consider
applying for 2011 fellowships. The 3rd Canadian IBRO School in
Neurodegeneration and Regeneration was held in Vancouver, from
May 24 to June 3, 2009. Twelve students from seven different
countries attended the course, with students from the Asia Pacific
region enrolling for the first time since the school began. Ottawa,
Canada, was the site of the 4th Canadian IBRO School of
Neuroscience, held May 15-24, 2010, which brought twelve
students from Africa, Latin America and the Asia-Pacific to Canada.
The Canadian School is unique in that instead of the faculty
travelling to the students' geographic area, the students come to
the faculty.
Dr. Gregory Quirk leads a workshop on research tools
during the Hispaniola School.
This year’s international activity was the Hispaniola School of
Neuroscience: Trauma and the Nervous System, which took place
from September 29 to October 8, 2010, in Santiago, Dominican
Republic (organized by G. Maestre). This school aimed to enhance the
capacity of Haitian and Dominican participants to understand, teach,
and respond to the mental health consequences of a disaster, such as
the earthquake that occurred in Port au Prince, Haiti, in early 2010.
Therefore, everything was taught from the point of trauma, from basic
neuroscience to neuroethics, treatments and research with trauma
victims. This was the first-ever IBRO School in Hispaniola (Haiti and
Dominican Republic), and it was supported by the NIH grant to NAS-
USCRC, and IBRO's Latin America Regional Committee (LARC), with
additional funds from IBRO. The School's 20 students were medical
students, psychologists, psychiatrists, neurologists, neurosurgeons and
other physicians, mostly from Haiti, some of whom had lost close family
members in the earthquake. The eight faculty members came from the
U.S., Haiti, Africa and Latin America.
Western Europe Regional Committee (WERC): Chair Juan
Lerma. In 2009-2010, WERC supported a number of high quality
scientific educational programs through awarding students’
fellowships. First, continuing a fruitful tradition, WERC supported
the Sevilla School in Neuroscience, organized by Jose-M. Delgado-
Garcia, a European programme officially included in the
Postgraduate Programme of the Universidad Pablo de Olavide.
The postgraduate programme welcomes Latin American students,
providing a nice scenario for exchanges among European and non-
European students. WERC also shared activities directed at Latin
American students with the French Society of Neuroscience (SdN).
It was a novel initiative of the SdN to award travel fellowships to
young Latin American neuroscientists during the last year of their
doctoral degree or during their early postdoctoral stage, to allow
them to attend the SdN meeting and to visit French laboratories in
their quest for a post-doctoral position.
To further support intra European mobility, WERC launched the
InEurope project in 2009 as a joint activity with CEERC, which now
is fully operative; supported young neuroscientists in participating in
the Amsterdam FENS Forum; and cooperated with CEERC and
FENS in the FENS/IBRO European Neuroscience School
Committee. Finally, in 2009, WERC also supported the First Kemali-
IBRO Mediterranean School of Neuroscience, entitled “Synaptic
Transmission and Plasticity,” held in the Stazione Zoologica “A.
Dohrn” in Naples, from September 21 to 30, 2009. Students from
twelve Mediterranean countries attended the School. In 2010,
WERC also provided a total of 33 travel fellowships to the FENS
Forum in Amsterdam. In addition, WERC joined with ARC to
organize an inter-regional school, with participation from APRC, at
La Réunion, an EU region in the Indian Ocean, on November 22-25,
2010. The topic of the school was “Pathogenic and neuroprotective
mechanisms in CNS infections.”
FENS-IBRO European
Neuroscience Schools
Programme
The Western Europe Regional Committee (WERC) , the Central &
Eastern Regional Committee (CEERC) and the Federation of
European Neuroscience Societies (FENS) continued their successful
collaboration in the organization of the FENS-IBRO European
Neuroscience Schools Programme. Nine schools took place during
2010: Brain evolution and its consequences for brain pathology (an
SfN School), Naples, Italy, March 21-26; Looking Back at Mount
Ararat: diversity and cross-fertilization among approaches to
memory, Yerevan, Armenia, April 5-10; European Pain School:
translating pain science into pain medicine, Siena, Italy, May 30-
June 6; Cognition and Action: systems neuroscience approaches to
understanding complex behaviour, Dubrovnik, Croatia, June 5-11;
Neuroproteomics in Animal Models for Neurodegenerative
Disorders, Smolenice, Slovakia, June 20 - 26; Advanced Course on
Computational Neuroscience, Freiburg, Germany, August 2 - 27;
Imaging Neural Function, Lausanne/Geneva, Switzerland, August
22 - September 10; Visual Neuroscience: from spikes to awareness,
Rauischholzhausen, Germany, August 29 - September 10;
Translational Research in Basal Ganglia Disorders, Mallorca, Spain,
September 20 - 24, 2010.
The FENS-IBRO European Neuroscience Schools
Programme aims to enrich the neuroscience education of
students and young investigators throughout Europe.
Faculty from around the world participate.
http://fens.mdc-berlin.de/fens-ibro-schools

US/Canada Regional Committee (USCRC): Chair Dr. Gregory

Quirk; Vice-Chair Dr. Janis Weeks. The IAC-USNC separated into
two committees in May 2009. The IBRO programmes and activities
supported by the IAC-USNC are now carried out by the US-Canada
Regional Committee. The USCRC and the Society for
Neuroscience–International Affairs Committee (IAC) maintain close
ties and have three joint committee members. Financial support for
the committee’s activities is provided by the National Institutes of The Kemali-IBRO School fostered networking across borders in countries of the Mediterranean basin.
Health Neuroscience Blueprint for Research via the U.S. National
Academy of Sciences, the Society for Neuroscience, and IBRO. The First Kemali-IBRO Mediterranean School of Neuroscience closed on Wednesday, September 30, 2009, after ten days of intense learning and
Courses and workshops: The USCRC supported the “Teaching exchange of ideas about the synapse and its plastic mechanisms. It was held at the Stazione Zoologica "A. Dohrn" in Naples, Italy. The school comprised
Tools Workshops: A Call for Integrated Neuroscience Education in 26 students from 12 Mediterranean countries (Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia, Egypt, Israel, Palestinian Authority, Turkey, Greece, Croatia, Italy, France and
Spain) and 14 faculty members who were mostly but not only from European countries. This school was the first event marking the new partnership
Africa.” The December 2009 Teaching Tools Workshop took place
between IBRO and the Dargut and Milena Kemali Foundation, which will jointly organize a school every two years, bringing together young
in conjunction with the Society of Neuroscience in Africa (SONA)
neuroscientists across the Mediterranean basin. This "inter-regional" event involved three Regional Committees of IBRO (ARC, CEERC and WERC). The
meeting in Egypt. The 2010 Teaching Tools Workshop was held School scientific director was Juan Lerma (Alicante Neuroscience Institute), and the managing director was Kathy-Ann Koralek.
September 11-15 in Nairobi, Kenya. The committee also supported

w w w. i b r o . i n f o seven
 IBRO’S INITIATIVES KINDLE
NEUROSCIENCE DEVELOPMENT

A word from Marina Bentivoglio, Meeting in Beirut netted plans for possible
past IBRO Secretary-General Middle East Chapter of IBRO
I have been participating in IBRO activities for many years before my office as On April 14, 2010, IBRO Secretary-General Pierre Magistretti and President Carlos Belmonte met with several neuroscientists
Secretary General. My 2007-2009 term in office has represented an exciting from the Middle East in Beirut, Lebanon, to explore ways in which IBRO could play a role in helping to promote further
parenthesis of my collaboration with development of neuroscience within the Middle East as well as throughout the Arab-speaking world. The neuroscientists
IBRO, as these past three years have attending from Lebanon, Yemen, the Emirates and Saudi Arabia provided an overview of neuroscience training and research
given me the wonderful opportunity to from within their respective countries
expand my views on IBRO activities
beyond the African continent.

One of my most vivid memories of

IBRO activities is my first visit to
Kinshasa, DR Congo, in 2006. There
were riots in the city, and a workshop
and IBRO School had been planned. I
was in close contact with one of the
organizers, Pierre Luabeya, who told
me that the situation was under
control. However, I consulted on behalf
of my colleagues with Albert Aguayo, Marina Bentivoglio
at that time President of IBRO. Albert
told me “I would go. My thoughts will be with you”. We went. We found there a
large group of smiling and friendly students waiting for us. At the workshop which
preceded the School, we could not close the hall doors because of the crowd.
Every morning to reach the School site, we passed between rows of tanks, waving
at the soldiers.

“Relying on human power, creativity and generosity,

IBRO does not represent any national strategy or Left to right: A. Al-Hayani, A. Adem, H. Lashuel, C. Belmonte, P. Magistretti, O. Mukhtar El-Agnaf, A. Abyad (not pictured: K. Kallab)
policy, and truly gathers all of them.”
“Conditions seem to be ripe at the moment for catalyzing some emerging initiatives to help Middle East countries gain a
In my office as Secretary General, I have had a unique opportunity to appreciate stronger foothold for the benefit of neuroscience research, not only within each individual country, but also throughout the
how effective IBRO is as a really worldwide organization in neuroscience, highly Middle East,” said Professor Magistretti. During the meeting, a consensus was reached for starting with a concrete activity
flexible and with minimal bureaucracy. Relying on human power, creativity and to demonstrate IBRO’s seriousness in investing in the Middle East region and to bring together key people – a network of
generosity, IBRO does not represent any national strategy or policy, and truly those from the region as well as Middle East expatriates currently living abroad – who can drive future initiatives for the region.
gathers all of them. Despite fantastic progress and technological and scientific
achievements in brain research, the global village of neuroscience is still far from The 1st IBRO Neuroscience Conference in the Middle East will take place from February 7 to 9, 2011, at the United Arab
being global. Lots of work is needed. Emirates University in Al Ain. In addition to featuring the latest breakthroughs in neuroscience, the conference will provide
local scientists the opportunity to network and establish collaborations with expatriate neuroscientists from the region. The
To the hundreds of young investigators from disadvantaged countries who attend conference will follow an IBRO neuroscience school, which will take place from January 30 to February 5, 2011.
IBRO Schools in the South of the world, I wish to repeat what I tell them in person:
the competition is tough, and research in neuroscience requires funds that are
difficult to obtain, even in rich countries. There is no reason for you to compete with
young investigators working in laboratories of the highest standards. But with
Celebrating 50 Years: From the IBRO Archives
training, dedication and motivation you can contribute unique knowledge. Build
bridges at home; build bridges, especially when you leave home to work in foreign
countries; build bridges for a better world of neuroscience and, ultimately, for a
better world. Please DO and KEEP DOING!

Carlos Belmonte (Continued from page 1)

geographic, social and economic criteria. This structure has succeeded in giving
neuroscientists in different parts of the world a direct voice in defining their own
needs and priorities in research and science education. In his current role as IBRO
President, Dr. Belmonte is championing the formalization of an inter-regional
programme for bringing together brilliant neuroscience students from two or more
regions and offering them the possibility of building mutual personal knowledge
and teamwork around scientific activities, with the aim of establishing long-term
ties and collaboration.
Photo courtesy of Piergiorgio Strata
Already, several of IBRO’s regional committees have taken the initiative to
collaborate on the organization of schools. The 2009 Kemali-IBRO Mediterranean
The photo above was taken of the speakers at the First IBRO World Congress in Pisa, Italy, in 1961. Front row: J.L. O’Leary,
School of Neuroscience held in Naples, Italy, comprised 26 students from 12 J.C. Eccles, G. Moruzzi, D. Albe-Fessard, F. Bremer, P. Anokhin, A. Fessard, R. Granit, K. Lissak, W.R. Adey. Second row: R.
countries (Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia, Egypt, Israel, Palestinian Authority, Turkey, Jung, W. Grey Walter, H.H. Jasper, J.M. Brookhart, H.W. Magoun, G.F. Rossi, M. Carreras, O. Pompeiano. Third row: M. Jouvet,
Greece, Croatia, Italy, France and Spain). This inter-regional school, which now K-E. Hagbarth, A. Hugelin, P. Buser, P. Dell, A. Arduini, A. Zanchetti, R. Naquet, G.F. Ricci.
will be held every two years, involves three IBRO Regional Committees: the Africa
(ARC), Central Europe (CEERC) and Western Europe (WERC) regional committees.
schools and other educational activities. In early 2011 Governing Council members
The 23rd IBRO-UNESCO School of Neuroscience, recently held in La Reunion
will vote on the specific structure of this plan, which includes establishing a central
Island, was a collaboration between ARC and WERC, with participation from the
IBRO Asia-Pacific Regional Committee (APRC).
team to support IBRO’s individual regions in organizing inter-regional schools and IBRO members:
provide logistics for these and other activities. Please update your
In addition, a second level of inter-regional interaction has emerged from the
organizers of upcoming IBRO World Congress in Florence: the idea of creating a “The idea here isn’t only about the scientific training, it is about bringing together details in the IBRO
Young Scientists Visiting Programme around major neuroscience meetings. With the future leaders of neuroscience regardless from where they come,” said Dr. Members database for
Belmonte. “We hope that 20 years from now, as a result of our efforts, they will still
this programme, those traveling from afar to international meetings can gain the latest information
additional benefit from a month-long stay at a local laboratory – receiving training be in contact as friends and collaborating with each other. This has very favourable
implications for not only the advancement of neuroscience research, but also for about IBRO's activities:
and building relationships – before returning home.
world peace.” www.ibro.info
At the IBRO Governing Council meeting in San Diego, USA, on November 13,
2010, Dr. Belmonte and IBRO Secretary-General Pierre Magistretti encouraged “I really see this as the future of IBRO, and IBRO is the perfect organization to
IBRO’s Regional Committee members to continue organizing inter-regional make this happen,” he added.

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