The M.R. Bauer Colloquium Series Summaries

Introduction

"What is essential is invisible to the eye." The beauty of these words from Antoine de Saint-Exupery is in their universal applicability to all aspects of the human existence, including our growing understanding of the machinations of the human body. How do the smallest parts, those that are invisible to the eye, affect the working of the whole?

Signals on the skin can lead either to feelings of reward or feelings of constant pain. The time of day can change the response of a cell to a stimulus. Changes in small molecules can change the activity in an entire network of neurons. Very small differences can have enormous ramifications on how the brain works, how brain systems can become dysfunctional, and how dysfunction and disease can be treated.

The eight distinguished speakers who participated in the 2021-22 M.R. Bauer Colloquium Series are exploring how the invisible is essential, building an understanding of how changes at the level of ion channels, neuromodulators and proteins can have major behavioral ramifications as far-ranging as an awareness of social rank and the initiation of long-term memory formation. Each speaker presented a summary of their work, which is preceded by a brief introduction set in italics, explaining in a more general framework the focus of the speaker's work.

Jamie Maguire, PhD
Kenneth and JoAnn G. Wellner Professor
Department of Neuroscience
Tufts University School of Medicine
(Sept. 14, 2021)

Erik Jorgensen, PhD
Distinguished Professor
School of Biological Sciences
University of Utah
Investigator
Howard Hughes Medical Institute
(Nov. 30, 2021)

Scott Prescott, MD/PhD
Professor
Department of Physiology
University of Toronto
Senior Scientist, Neurosciences & Mental Health
Hospital for Sick Children
(Dec. 7, 2022)

Nancy Padilla Coreano, PhD
Assistant Professor
Department of Neuroscience
Principal Investigator
Evelyn F. & William McKnight Brain Institute
University of Florida
(March 15, 2022)

Ishmail Abdus-Saboor, PhD
Assistant Professor
Department of Biological Sciences
Principal Investigator
Zuckerman Mind Brain Behavior Institute
Columbia University
(March 29, 2022)

Matthew Kayser, MD/PhD
Assistant Professor, Physician-of-Record
Department of Psychiatry
Perelman School of Medicine
University of Pennsylvania
(April 24, 2022)