The most important function of a diaper is to expand – massively. It is a function many parents have appreciated when changing a heavy morning diaper. The fantastic ability of the diaper is due to polymers that can expand and grow several hundred times their original size. And that particular ability can revolutionise how much we know about the brain. Even the best microscopes cannot see the smallest neurons and connections in our brains, but MIT Professor Ed Boyden saw an opportunity to use the polymer and its expanding abilities in brain research.

“My group invented expansion microscopy, a technique in which we infuse a brain specimen with a swellable polymer.  Add water, and we can make the brain 100, or 1000, or 10000 times bigger in volume!  This is important because the wiring of the brain is nanoscale, but by physically magnifying the brain, through our polymeric expansion method, we can make the wiring of the brain visible.  By mapping the brain, we can analyse how information is conveyed, transformed, and computed,” he explains.

And the brain is one of the great unsolved mysteries of today, that’s why brain research and the quest to know more is so important, says Ed Boyden:

“Our brains mediate our thoughts and feelings and make us who we are.  Understanding how the brain does such incredible feats, is one of the great mysteries of the universe.  Understanding our brain may help us achieve more enlightened states and help us address brain disorders that affect over a billion people around the world.”

The diseased brain is the area of expertise for Professor Jonathan Rosand’s from the McCance Center for Brain Health in Boston. In his research he focuses on what happens – and why it happens – when patients suffer from disease in the small-caliber arteries and arterioles in the brain:

“My focus is on what I call the work horses of the brain. These are the vessels that ensure that the different regions of the brain receive the proper amount of blood flow when they are active and need it most, in parallel turning down the blood flow where it is not immediately needed. It is very common for the small vessels to become diseased as we age. When cerebral small vessel disease becomes very severe, the vessels rupture, causing haemorrhagic strokes, which have severe consequences for the patients,” he explains.

For several years, Jonathan Rosand has studied the genetics of cerebral small vessel disease, its appearance on brain imaging, and the epidemiology of why it progresses in some people but not others. But today he has turned his attention to the social determinants of health.

“Understanding the interplay between our biology and the social determinants of our health is vital not only for discovering treatments that can arrest and reverse cerebral small vessel disease, but also ensuring that the health disparities in the clinical course of small vessel disease are eliminated.”

But when asked about why the brain is so fascinating, Jonathan Rosand point to its resilience:

“I am continually impressed by the degree to which our brains can change in response to experience and injury. We are all capable of learning new things, growth and change for the better. We take this for granted when we are young and growing. When cared for, our brains continue to evolve, especially after injury or trauma. “

The WOW-factor

The brain offers an abundance of fascinating details whether your research focuses on consciousness and emotions or molecules and neurons. However, for Ed Boyden the most fascinating thing about brain research is the big unknowns and when a great new discovery is made:

“I love seeing something for the first time!  Seeing our first light-activated neurons, early in the morning one day in 2004, was life-changing.  Seeing the first expanded brain specimen, which was blown up by a factor of 100 in volume, was thrilling.  Now both toolsets are in use by perhaps thousands of scientists.

The fact that we – hopefully -  are on the brink of solving some of the great challenges faced by patients and doctors today, is what Professor Jonathan Rosand’s finds most thrilling.

“We already have the knowledge to prevent a substantial proportion of the dementia, depression and stroke that occurs every day. Translating that knowledge into practice is the urgent challenge we must solve.”

And more and better treatment and prevention of diseases in the brain is one thing Professor Rosand would like to see happen:

”Translating the knowledge we have into effective prevention of dementia, depression and stroke depends on integrating effective brain care into primary care. I would like to see brain care become a cornerstone of primary care across the lifespan. Effective brain care would ensure that patients have all the resources necessary to control their risk factors for brain disease and prevent it from ever happening in the first place.”

And while Ed Boyden has developed a technique that enables us to zoom in and see entirely new details of the brain, there are still unknow brain mysteries he would like to be able to answer:

“I wish we could measure consciousness.  Right now, we cannot measure subjective experience, the feeling associated with a thought or emotion”

MatchPoints focuses on the brain in four tracks

During the scientific conference from May 5^th to May 6^th, the fascinating brain of ours will be debated in four different tracks: The Plastic Brain, The Molecular Brain, The Emotional Brain and The Diseased Brain. Through workshops, Keynote presentations and flash talks leading Danish and International researchers will share the newest research, debate the unknowns and discuss the opportunities of future brain research.

And the sharing of information and knowledge by a diverse group of researchers is what Professor Jonathan Rosand looks most forward to, when he travels to Aarhus to participate in MatchPoints:

“It is an opportunity to learn from others with diverse training and perspectives, and at different career stages in a beautiful and stimulating setting. I have no doubt I will emerge from MatchPoints with new and better ideas!”

Learning more both about the latest research and the challenges researcher’s are faced with is also what Professor Ed Boyden looks forward to at the conference.

“I'm always excited to hear about big unsolved problems, and to share our tools so that people can solve them!  Our tools are in use by thousands of research groups all over the world, and it's always exciting to hear that someone used one of our technologies to understand, or potentially create a treatment for, a condition like Alzheimer's disease or blindness.”

Four Keynote Speakers have been invited to share their knowledge at the conference. In addition to Professor Jonathan Rosand and Professor Ed Boyden, MatchPoints will be presenting Professor of Psychology at NorthEastern University in Boston Lisa Feldman Barrett and Professor of Neuroscience and rehabilitation at the University of British Columbia, Vancouver Canada, Lara Boyd.

I alt fire keynote er inviteret til konferencen. Ud over professor Ed Boyden og Professor Jonathan Rosand, får MatchPoints besøg af professor i psykologi, Lisa Feldman Barrett fra Northeastern University i Boston og Lara Boyd professor i neurovidenskab og genoptræning ved University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada.