Cajal Club at FENS 2012
Cortex and Thalamus: Mechanisms of Development and Function (9am – 5pm)
Date: Friday, July 13, 2012
Venue: AC Hotel Barcelona Forum by Marriott, Paseo Taulat 278, Barcelona, Spain
Overview: The cortex and thalamus are prominent components of the mammalian brain that underlie sensory perception, motor skills, and cognitive functions. This symposium, which is subdivided into two sessions (an am session on thalamus and a pm session on cortex), will present the current studies of renowned speakers on development, structure and function of thalamus and cortex. In addition to four talks, the pm session will feature the Krieg Lifetime Achievement Award and the Pinckney J. Harman Memorial Lecture. Coffee will be provided at brief breaks midway in each session, and an open break will occur between the am and pm sessions.
Morning session (9am - Noon): "The Thalamus"
This symposium honors Edward G. Jones, past president, long-standing board member, and ardent supporter of the Cajal Club. Ted, who passed away last year, was a preeminent investigator of thalamocortical structure and function, and author of the scholarly and voluminous book, “The Thalamus”. Networks of connections between thalamus and cortex underlie functions for thalamus in controlling the flow of sensory information, and its role in sensory perception, selective attention and visuomotor behavior. The speakers will present their recent findings on thalamocortical networks and a significant role for thalamus in perception and behavior. A coffee break will occur midway in the am session.
Speakers:
Javier DeFelipe, Cajal Institute (Madrid, Spain)
Introduction to symposium in honor of Ted Jones
Murray Sherman, University of Chicago (Chicago, USA)
A new role for thalamus in cortical functioning
Jon Kaas, Vanderbilt University (Nashville USA)
The evolution of the pulvinar complex in primates
Vivien Casagrande (and Purushothaman), Vanderbilt University (Nashville, TN, USA) The impact of the pulvinar on primary visual cortex
Ray Guillery, MRC (Oxford UK)
The ubiquity of efference copies in the thalamocortical pathways
Robert Wurtz (and N. Berman), National Eye Institute (Bethesda, MD, USA) Internal Signals conveyed by the pulvinar to visual cortex
Afternoon session (1:30pm – 5pm): "Cortical Development and Connectivity"
The Cajal Club will honor Ramon y Cajal in Barcelona, one of his hometowns, with four talks focused on mechanisms of cortical development and connectivity, issues deeply rooted in Cajal's contributions over a century ago. The session will begin with presentation of the Krieg Lifetime Achievement Award to Tomas Hökfelt and conclude with the Pinckney J. Harman Memorial Lecture, presented by Larry Swanson. A coffee break will occur midway in the session.
Speakers:
Javier DeFelipe, Cajal Institute (Madrid, Spain)
Cajal, the neuron theory and cortical plasticity
Pasko Rakic, Yale University (New Haven, CT, USA)
New insights into mechanisms of cortical migration
Dennis O'Leary, Salk Institute (La Jolla, CA, USA)
Regulation of area patterning in the developing neocortex
John Rubenstein, University of California San Francisco (San Francisco, CA, USA)
Patterning of the telencephalic progenitors
Pinckney J. Harman Memorial Lecture
Larry Swanson, University of Southern California (Los Angeles, CA, USA)
Title: Neural circuits coordinating motivated behavior
FENS Special Event Sponsored by the Cajal Club:
The Falck-Hillarp histofluorescence method: 50 years in perspective
A panel discussion on the impact of the first neuroanatomical method that allowed studies of neurotransmitters at the cellular level.
Program Committee: Anders Björklund, Tomas Hökfelt, Pasco Rakic and Larry Swanson
