Welcome to the Abcam blog

Our event organized by Gerd Kempermann (Center for Regenerative Therapies, Dresden) and Abcam was held on Frauenchiemsee island, Germany, during May.

I enjoyed the size of the conference; fairly small so it could be kept specific, but large enough for enough aspects to be looked at.

Location, organization, networking opportunites were all good.

- Delegate quotes

The meeting was chaired by Gerd Kempermann, from the Center of Regenerative Therapies, Dresden. Adult neurogenesis is a particular and extraordinary example of plasticity in the adult and aging brain. "Plasticity" in general can be defined as the reciprocal relationship between structure and function.

Numerous talks were held over the three day event, including:

• Pasko Rakic (Yale University School of Medicine, US) Limits of neurogenesis in primates: timetable and evolutionary considerations
• Jenny Hsieh (UT Southwestern Medical Center, US) Regulation of adult neurogenesis from the inside out: the essential role of NeuroD in the survival and maturation of newborn neurons
• Elly Hol (Netherlands Institute for Neuroscience, The Netherlands) Neurogenic astrocytes in the human brain have a specialized cytoskeleton
• Noriko Osumi (Tohoku University, Japan) Fatty acid signals in neurogenesis: for potential prevention and treatment of psychiatric diseases
• Brad Aimone (Salk Institute for Biological Studies, US) Neurogenesis, neuromodulation, and memory: the computational effects of new neurons on hippocampal processing
• Federico Calegari (Center for Regenerative Therapies Dresden, Germany) Controlling the expansion of neural stem cells in the adult mammalian brain

There were around 180 delegates attending, from 28 different nationalities. The small island provided a great opportunity to network as the participants, including delegates and Abcam staff, had breakfast, lunch and dinner together.

There were almost 100 posters on show in our marquee, along with our marketing table which was frequented by many delegates picking up our latest pathway cards. The poster prize was won by Maria Georgina Sala from Leloir Institute, Argentina, for her abstract titled 'Intinsic electrical activity regulates neuronal maturation in the adult dentat gyrus'.

Please visit our calendar of upcoming scientific conferences, for events that may relate to your field.