Top: (From left) Dr. Larry Zipursky, Steven Gordon and Laurie Gordon. Second: (From left) Ralph Shapiro, Dr. Kelsey C. Martin and Carol Block. Bottom: (From left) Drs. Mayank Mehta, Susan Bookheimer and Alcino Silva. Photos: Jessie Cowan
On November 29, 2018, UCLA physicians and neuroscientists shared their research on memory at Grey Matters: The Lifetime of a Memory, an event held at the Dr. S. Jerome and Judith D. Tamkin Auditorium in Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center. Grey Matters was presented by the UCLA Neuroscience Research Theme, a priority of the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA, comprising scientists and physicians from across the UCLA campus who collaborate to accelerate discoveries about the nature of the brain and brain-related diseases and disorders.
Dr. Larry Zipursky, Jerome J. Belzer Chair for Medical Research and chair of the UCLA Neuroscience Research Theme, welcomed the attendees and made opening remarks. Dr. Kelsey C. Martin, dean of the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA and Gerald S. Levey, M.D., Endowed Chair, served as the moderator of a panel discussion with three UCLA scientists who study memory from unique perspectives: Dr. Susan Bookheimer, Joaquin M. Fuster Chair in Cognitive Neuroscience, who uses brain imaging to study memory; Dr. Mayank Mehta, professor of physics and astronomy, who studies the electrical signals that neurons use to communicate with each other; and Dr. Alcino Silva, Distinguished Professor in the Departments of Neurobiology, Psychiatry and Biobehavioral Sciences and Psychology, and director of the UCLA Integrative Center for Learning and Memory, who studies the relationship between genes and memory.
Topics included how each panelist became interested in brain and memory research, where memory is located in the brain and if it can be measured, the techniques used in the panelists’ labs to study memory, the study of genes in scientific models and in humans and what science can teach about a person’s ability to improve how they learn and remember. A question-and-answer period followed the panel discussion. The program concluded with Dr. Elaine Hsiao, assistant professor of integrative biology and physiology, speaking about the UCLA Neuroscience Scholars program, an undergraduate summer program that trains aspiring neuroscientists.
Faculty members, program directors and department chairs were on hand at “Meet the Experts” stations during the reception that followed to field questions on memory and the teenage brain, memory and sleep, and memory and post-traumatic stress disorder.
For more information, contact Karen Colimore at: 310-267-0496
