Professor Nick Draper, Stefan Henley and Danyon Stitt - March 2023

Kicking off the festivities for Brain Awareness Month we headed to Christchurch for a discussion about concussion in Rugby. Professor Draper and his team have been studying the effects of impacts during NZ's most popular game. Researching strictly in youth teams, Professor Draper and his team shared how they collected their data and some preliminary findings. Be sure to check this one out!

Distinguished Professor Dame Jane Harding, Dr Sian Williams and Dr Nike Franke - February 2023

Hosted by our Head of Research Dr Sarah Schonberger, and our very first event for 2023, this event kicked off our Women in Science event series for the third exciting year! This event was an enlightening discussion featuring three amazing wāhine working in the field of neuroscience at Auckland University's Liggins Institute.
Check out the video where you'll hear about amazing projects the team are working on to help improve outcomes for premature babies and their whānau. If you're looking for inspiration and advice about a career in neuroscience or any of the health sciences then this video is for you! We hope you enjoy.

Professor Cliff Abraham, Associate Professor Stephanie Hughes and Dr Shane Ohline, October 2022

Hosted by our Head of Research Dr Sarah Schonberger, this event featured presentations from three of Otago's leading researchers focussing on Memory. Professor Cliff Abraham, Associate Professor Stephanie Hughes and Dr Shane Ohline discussed their work on memory impairment, neurogenesis and Alzheimer's Disease.

Dr Victor Dieriks, August 2022

Parkinson's disease and multiple system atrophy are neurological disorders affecting over 10 million people worldwide. In both of these conditions, toxic clumps of a protein called alpha-synuclein form in the brain. Previous research suggests that the building blocks of these clumps are the same but that the 3D structure can vary, giving rise to unique alpha-synuclein 'strains'. Dr Dieriks and his team think that these different 'strains' are responsible for the different types of Parkinson's disease and that future treatments will need to be specific for each strain. Dr Dieriks' is investigating this in brain tissue from patients who died with these diseases.

During this event, Dr Dieriks discusses some of the causes of these diseases, his recent findings and how understanding these strains could offer new hope for developing effective treatments.

As an emerging leader in Parkinson's disease research, he focuses on the biology of neurodegeneration with the ultimate goal of finding a therapy that will delay or stop the onset of these chronic conditions.

Angela Caughey, June 2022

There are not many people, without formal medical training, that know as much about dementia as Angela Caughey. Through years of research followed by three books on the subject, Angela has an incredible ‘all-rounded’ knowledge of this devastating disease.

Dementia is a degenerative disease that slowly results in the loss of cognitive functions to the extent that it interferes with daily life. Its prevalence means that it affects more than 70,000 Kiwis. That’s nearly 1.5% of our population. But it also affects many more: the partners of the people with dementia, their children, their siblings, their friends, and so on. During this event, author Angela Caughey will be discussing her latest book A Better Brain for Life, as well as content from her previous dementia-related books, from caring for and communicating with someone who has dementia, to preventing the condition itself.

Angela’s books are available through calicopublishing.co.nz or most major booksellers.