GW SMHS hosted its inaugural Brain Research Retreat on Tuesday, October 15th at the University Student Center. This event brought together researchers, medical staff, trainees and more to hear from prominent neuroscientists in our GW community. Participants were able to listen to a series of lightning talks given by GW and CNH research staff, engage with new and familiar colleagues, and view poster presentations during a networking reception. 

Dr. Alison Hall, Senior Associate Dean for Research at SMHS, played a key role in planning this event with the hope to bring together neuroscientists across clinical and translational departments. “Neuroscience has been a rich area of research at GW for some time, and our submission of research grants, highly-cited research, and existing collaborations identify brain science as one of our key strengths. Building on this, Drs. Bethea and Colonnese recently submitted a predoctoral NINDS T32 application in Integrative Neuroscience that involved dual mentorship to strengthen our growing Neuroscience program.” 

In total, there were over 140 participants representing 20 different departments and presenting 18 research posters between GW and CNH. Shown above, the GW Integrated Biomedical Sciences program was well-represented, with students from multiple cohorts in Neuroscience, Cancer Biology, and Genomics/Bioinformatics programs. Dr. Hall believes that “PhD trainees already form the “glue” between research programs and institutions, but more needs to be done to involve postdoctoral fellows, residents and medical fellows as well.” 

With all that said, stay tuned for more exciting neuroscience opportunities coming soon! I am excited to say that IBS is partnering with Society for Neuroscience DCMA to host our annual member meeting on GW campus on Saturday, November 23rd, so please reach out if you’re interested in attending! We are also currently working on using existing journal clubs to develop more opportunities for trainees to present their research in progress.

Contact me at gwsobs@gwu.edu with any questions!