Join NIA at the GSA and SfN November conferences
October 18, 2023

Amy KELLEY,
Deputy Director, NIA,
Office of the Director (OD).

Eliezer MASLIAH,
Director,
Division of Neuroscience (DN).

November is shaping up as a bustling month for aging research conferences! NIA will participate in both the Gerontological Society of America (GSA) annual meeting, Nov. 8-12 in Tampa, Florida, and in the Society for Neuroscience (SfN) meeting, Nov. 11-15 in Washington, D.C.

Check out the following highlights of key NIA presentations scheduled at these events:

GSA lineup

Here are just a few samples from an exciting slate of scheduled conversations. Dates and times are subject to change, so please be sure to check the GSA 2023 website for the latest updates. Throughout the conference, be sure to explore poster sessions by NIA investigators in the exhibit hall and stop by NIA’s booth #303 to meet with program staff from across the institute.

Tuesday, Nov. 7

• 8 a.m.-5 p.m. ET: Bringing Focus on Minoritized and HBCU-Trained Scholars and Practitioners in the Field of Aging. Melissa Gerald, Ph.D., program director, Division of Behavioral and Social Research, will be presenting as part of this pre-conference workshop.
   
• 9 a.m.-5 p.m. ET: Building an Interdisciplinary Workforce in Geroscience: Aligning Perspectives and Educational Goals. This NIA-supported, full-day, pre-conference workshop will outline how to build and train an interdisciplinary and diverse workforce in geroscience and aging research.

Wednesday, Nov. 8

• 2:30-4 p.m. ET: Hearing Intervention to Reduce Cognitive Decline: Design and Findings of the ACHIEVE Randomized Controlled Trial. NIA Scientific Director Luigi Ferrucci, M.D., Ph.D., will be a discussant at this session.

• 2:30-4 p.m. ET: Emerging Scholar and Professional Organization (ESPO) and Butler-Williams Scientific Symposium: Career Development to Promote Diversity, Discovery, and Aging. NIA’s Butler-Williams Scholars Program and the GSA’s ESPO Section will host this Butler-Williams alumni panel on the importance of understanding racial and socioeconomic diversity and disparities in health and health care access among older adults.
   
• 4:15-5:30 p.m. ET: NIA Butler–Williams Scholars Alumni Networking Event. This event will connect 2023 Butler-Williams Scholars with their peers, alumni from previous Butler-Williams cohorts, NIA staff, and faculty who contributed to their career development.
   
• 6-7:15 p.m. ET: Poster Session

Thursday, Nov. 9

• 12-1:30 p.m. ET: Career Development (K) Awards at NIA: Programs, Peer Review, and Setting You Up for Success. Learn the ins and outs of K awards, one of NIH’s top career development grants.
   
• 12-1:30 p.m. ET: Muscle Up: What Aging Looks Like From the Inside Out. Dr. Ferrucci will moderate this session.
   
• 2-3:15 p.m. ET: Poster Session
   
• 4:30-6:30 p.m. ET: Causal Effects of Early-Life Adversity and Mid/Late-Life Behavioral Intervention on the Pace of Biological Aging. Dr. Ferrucci will be a discussant at this symposium.

Friday, Nov. 10

• 8-9:30 a.m. ET: Building Bridges, Catalyzing Research, Empowering All Ages: A Chat With NIA Senior Leadership
   
• 10-11:30 a.m. ET: Building Bridges, Catalyzing Research, Empowering All Ages: NIA Session for Early-Career Researchers
  
  These back-to-back sessions will offer an overview of NIA research and career training activities and priorities. In addition to Drs. Ferrucci and Gerald, speakers include:
  • Richard J. Hodes, M.D., NIA director
  • Amy Kelley, M.D., M.S.H.S., NIA deputy director
  • Alexis Bakos, Ph.D., M.P.H., R.N., program director, Division of Geriatrics and Clinical Gerontology
  • Basil Eldadah, M.D., Ph.D., supervisory medical officer, Division of Geriatrics and Clinical Gerontology
  • Patricia Jones, Dr.PH, M.P.H., M.S., M.B.A., director, Office of Special Populations
  • Ron Kohanski, Ph.D., director, Division of Aging Biology
  • Jennie Larkin, Ph.D., deputy director, Division of Neuroscience
  • Lis Nielsen, Ph.D., director, Division of Behavioral and Social Research
  • Ken Santora, Ph.D., director, Division of Extramural Activities
     
• 2-3:15 p.m. ET: Poster Session
   
• 4:30-6 p.m. ET: Examples of Engaging Hard-to-Reach Populations in Clinical Research. Dr. Gerald will be a discussant for this symposium.

Saturday, Nov. 11

• 12-1:30 p.m. ET: Findings From the National Social Life, Health, and Aging Project: Social Connectedness, Health Indicators, Medication Effects, and Predicting Mortality. Amelia Karraker, Ph.D., health science administrator, Division of Behavioral and Social Research, will be a discussant.

• 2-3:15 p.m. ET: Poster Session

Spotlight on SfN

NIA also looks forward to joining many of our fellow NIH colleagues at one of the world’s largest gatherings of neuroscience researchers! We hope you’ll keep the following options in mind, and check out the SfN event website for the latest conference session details, as times and dates are subject to change.

Sunday, Nov. 12-Wednesday, Nov. 15

• 9:30 a.m.-5 p.m. ET: NIA program officials at the NIH booth #3401. NIA program officials from the Division of Neuroscience, the Division of Behavioral and Social Research, and the Division of Extramural Activities’ Training and Career Development Team will be available to answer your questions.

Monday, Nov. 13

• 9:30 a.m.-12 p.m. ET: Cellular Endolysosomal Trafficking Defects Relevant to Parkinson’s Disease Models. Mark Cookson, Ph.D., senior investigator, Laboratory of Neurogenetics, will present as part of a symposium on Novel Mechanisms of Endolysosomal Function in Health and Disease.
   
• 2-3 p.m. ET: Informal “Meet the PO” Session for Early Career Researchers, NIH booth #3401. NIA program officers and training staff will be available to chat with students, postdocs, or early career faculty and answer questions about NIA’s fellowships, career development awards, and early career research awards.

Tuesday, Nov. 14

• 1-5 p.m. ET: AlzPED: An Open Science Tool Raising the Standards for Preclinical Testing of Candidate Therapeutics in Alzheimer’s Disease Animal Models. Jaya Viswanathan, Ph.D., health specialist, Office for Strategic Development and Partnerships, will present on behalf of the AlzPED team.

Wednesday, Nov. 15

• 8-10 a.m. ET: Divergent Patterns of Aging Across Human Brain Regions at Single-Cell Resolution Reveals Links to Neurodegenerative Disease. Megan Duffy, Ph.D., postdoctoral fellow, Laboratory of Neurogenetics, will be one of the presenters.

Hope to see you next month!

Both the GSA and SfN conferences promise stimulating scientific dialogue and networking opportunities. We hope to see you at one or both events! If you have questions, visit the event websites linked above or leave a comment below.