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Elsevier, The Boulevard, Langford Lane, Kidlington, Oxford OX5 1GB, UK

IBRO

International Brain Research Organization

IBRO WORLD CONGRESS WELCOMED 4000+ PARTICIPANTS IN FLORENCE, ITALY

Meeting celebrated IBROs 50 years of promoting international collaboration and exchange of scientific information
The 8th IBRO World Congress of Neuroscience began with a warm and traditional Tuscan welcome at the Opening Ceremony on Thursday, July 14, kicking off the five-day meeting held in Florence, Italys Fortezza da Basso. Not only did 2011 mark the 50th anniversary of IBRO, but it was also the 150th anniversary of the Italian Unification, making the setting and timing for this World Congress even more noteworthy. This time, the IBRO World Congress attracted 4,200 attendants, one of the highest-ever number of participants at an IBRO meeting. Approximately 1500 came from economically disadvantaged countries, underlining IBROs effectiveness as an organization that promotes and supports neuroscience worldwide. The IBRO World Congress continued with four full days of scientific meetings, poster presentations, social events and other opportunities to promote, in the words of IBRO President Carlos Belmonte, a better scientific knowledge of the brain and to extend to the societies in all countries of the world the values of rationality and a committed search for truth that govern scientific research. The site of the Congress, in the center of Florence with its Renaissance palaces, churches and monuments provided an added value to the quality of symposia and plenary lectures, as well as the excellent on-site organization. Hosting the successful 8th IBRO Congress was the Local Organizing Team from the Societa Italiana di Neuroscienze (SINS, or the Italian Society of Neuroscience), which held its joint meeting with the Socit des Neurosciences (the French Society of Neuroscience) during the IBRO Congress. A sense of openness and respect permeated the meeting and was commented upon by many participants: The level of science was very good, which is necessary for a successful meeting, said IBRO Secretary-General Pierre Magistretti, but what stood out at this Congress, for me, was the truly international atmosphere and the fact that there were so many young people coming from countries outside of North America and Europe, whose scientists normally dominate neuroscience meetings. Neuroscience research is very competitive, said Micaela Morelli, the Chair of the Young Investigators Programme. This meeting, by offering the opportunity of exchanging scientific information to researchers from 86 different countries in the world, paved the path for a more efficient exchange of information, growth of scientific knowledge and eventually a more inclusive world.

In this issue:
Funding Career Development Outreach Activities 2 3 4-5

News from the Regions 6-7 IBROS New Logo 8

The 8th IBRO World Congress opened with traditional Florentine fanfare, celebrating both Italian heritage and IBRO history.

Amidst the more than 80 scientific lectures, symposia and workshops that took place during the 2011 IBRO World Congress, two sessions were devoted to IBROs 50-year history of promoting neuroscience research around the world. At the Opening Ceremony, past IBRO President and Secretary-General Albert Aguayo provided a highly insightful and enlightening retrospective on IBROs past 50 years, starting with the world and scientific events leading up to IBROs founding in Montreal, Canada. He recounted key milestones, including the launch of the journal Neuroscience, the first IBRO Congress, the establishment of six regional IBRO Committees, and the development of the IBRO training Past IBRO President and Secretary-General programmes, the IBRO Schools and Albert Aguayo opened the Congress with the Visiting Lecture Team Programme. a look back upon 50 years of IBRO Following Dr. Aguayo, current IBRO history and key milestones. President Carlos Belmonte invited past IBRO officers on-stage: Albert Aguayo, Marina Bentivoglio, Masao Ito, Jennifer Lund, Steve Redman, Piergiorgio Strata and Torsten Wiesel. Then on Saturday, July 16, in a symposium led by Gordon Shepherd, with opening remarks by Masao Ito, five eminent neuroscientists highlighted the ways in which IBRO has contributed to world neuroscience from within their region: Tams Freund (Europe), Omar Macadar (Latin America), Sharon Juliano (the United States and Canada), Hitoshi Okamoto (Asia-Pacific), Raj Kalaria (Africa). A very worthwhile, new initiative launched at the IBRO meeting provided additional training for many young neuroscientists who traveled a long way to Italy: the Young Investigator Programme (YIP) allowed 83 young researchers from economically disadvantaged countries to spend one month in European laboratories before participating at the IBRO meeting. (See page 3 for more information on this programme).

Sten Grillner elected as IBROs next Secretary-General

The IBRO Governing Council has just elected its next Secretary-General: Sten Grillner, Professor and Director of the Nobel Institute for Neurophysiology, Department of Neuroscience, at the Karolinska Institutet in Stockholm, Sweden. Professor Grillner will serve as IBROs SecretaryGeneral Elect in 2012, and will begin his three-year term as IBRO Secretary-General in 2013. Currently, Professor Grillner is the Chair of IBROs Memberships & Partnerships Committee, as well as IBROs Governing Council member for the Sten Grillner, IBROs Royal Swedish Academy of Science. In addition, next Secretary-General he currently serves as the President of FENS (the Federation of European Neuroscience Societies), until mid-2012, and is the Chair of the Governing Board of INCF (the International Neuroinformatics Coordinating Facility), of which he is a founding member. I feel very honored to have been elected as Secretary-General, and I very much look forward to furthering IBROs role in promoting neuroscience on a global scale in interaction with the regional and national neuroscience societies, said Professor Grillner. This should include not only cuttingedge neuroscience but also, as importantly, different aspects of training in all parts of the world.

Rio de Janeiro chosen as the site of the next IBRO World Congress, in 2015
Prior to the start of the 2011 Congress, the IBRO Governing Council met to consider three outstanding proposals for hosting the 2015 IBRO World Congress. After listening to the three presentations, the Council members held a vote, ultimately selecting Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, as the site for the next IBRO World Congress. The 9th IBRO World Congress, to be held for the first time in Latin America, will be an excellent opportunity for fostering neuroscience in the region and also for attracting neuroscientists from around the world to interact with the local neuroscience community, which amounts almost 4,000 members, said Professor Roberto Lent, Universidade Federal do Rio de
Continued on page 8

Current IBRO President Carlos Belmonte welcomed past IBRO officers to the stage at the start of the 8th IBRO World Congress.

Fifty Years of

1960
IBRO Council established on July 10, 1960
Geoffry W. Harris, First Secretary

1961
IBRO officially founded on February 16, 1961, in Montreal, Canada
Senate of Canada Bill S-9

1961
First IBRO meeting in Pisa, Italy

1965
NAS-NRC forms Committee on Brain Sciences to provide a U.S. liaison to IBRO, which evolves into the Society for Neuroscience

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IBROS FUNDING 2011 - 2012

IBRO provides return-home funding to scientists after fellowships abroad
To help counteract brain drain and promote the growth of quality neuroscience research in developing countries, IBRO established the Return Home Programme in 2006. This Programme has already aided 17 young researchers who were trained overseas at high-quality laboratories in returning to their home countries and establishing laboratories there. This year, IBRO granted four more Return Home awards of $20,000 each: Maria-Elena Avale, who completed postdoctoral fellowships at the Pasteur Institute in Paris (France) and at King's College-MRC Centre for Neurodegeneration (UK), will return to Buenos Aires, Argentina, to study gene therapy approaches for neurodegenerative diseases, at the Instituto de Investigaciones en Ingeniera Gentica y Biologia Molecular. Jos Donato, a post-doctoral fellow at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center (USA), will return to Brazil as an assistant professor at the University of So Paulo, furthering his research in the field of obesity/neuroendocrinology. Juan Ferrario, who completed post-doctoral home country of Argentina fellowships at INSERM (France) and at King's College-MRC Centre for Developmental Neurobiololgy (UK), will return to Buenos Aires, Argentina, to perform research in the area of plasticity of the injured adult brain, at the Instituto de Investigaciones Farmacologicas. Francisco Sotres-Bayon, who completed his doctorate at New York University (USA) and was a post-doctoral research associate at the University of Puerto Rico, will return to Coyoacan, Mexico, as a professor at the Instituto de Fisiologa Celular of the Universidad Nacional Autnoma de Mxico, continuing his research into how the prefrontal cortex integrates hippocampal and amygdala input to signal fear.
Maria-Elena Avale returns to her

IBRO Research Fellow Rufus Akinyemi reports on his work in Newcastle, UK

IBRO announces its 2012 Research Fellows

IBRO has awarded three promising young neuroscientists with one-year research fellowships in order to broaden the scope of their training by working abroad in high-quality laboratories: Dekel Taliaz (Israel): 2012 Outstanding Research Fellow During his fellowship at the Hospital for Sick Children (Canada), Dekel Taliaz will study the effect of noradrenaline on activation of cAMP/Ca2+ response element binding protein, and its implications on learning and memory. Sunday Bisong (Nigeria): 2012 John G Nicholls Research Fellow Sunday Bisong will go to Dalhousie University (Canada), where he will explore the future of rauwolfia vomitoria (a small African tree) in the management of neurodegenerative disorders. Oluwole Akinola (Nigeria): 2012 IBRO Research Fellow The fellowship will allow Oluwole Akinola to perform research at the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences (USA), with an aim to studying the question: Does a link exist between chronic exposure to petrochemical pollutants and neurobehavioral aberrations?

Nigerian Rufus Akinyemi, recent recipient of an IBRO Research Fellowship, reports on his year-long project at the Institute for Ageing and Health, Newcastle University, UK: "Bedside to Bench: Post-stroke cognitive dysfunction mechanisms, profile and determinants": Stroke is a leading non-communicable disease all over the world, and current reports suggest that it is assuming epidemic proportions in middle- and low-income countries. About 30% of stroke survivors ultimately develop vascular dementia even though the exact mechanisms are yet poorly understood. Moreover, much of what is known about the epidemiology, natural history and neurobiology of post-stroke cognitive dysfunction have had little contribution from sub-Saharan Africa. With this background and my training in clinical neurology as well as being a witness of the evolving epidemiology of stroke and its short- and long-term consequences in sub-Saharan Africa, I took up the prestigious IBRO Research Fellowship under the tutelage of Professor Raj Kalaria, Professor of Cerebrovascular Neuropathology and Deputy Director of the MRC Newcastle Centre for Brain Ageing and Vitality at the Institute for Ageing and Health, Newcastle University, Newcastle upon Tyne, United Kingdom.

IBRO (the International Brain Research Organization) is the global neuroscience federation dedicated to the promotion of neuroscience and communication between brain researchers around the world, with special emphasis on assisting young investigators in the developing world. Incorporated in 1961, IBRO now counts 84 member societies in 61 countries around the world, with a membership of more than 75,000 neuroscientists.

International Brain Research Organization

Secretary-General Pierre Magistretti (Switzerland) President Carlos Belmonte (Spain) Treasurer Quentin Pittman (Canada) Regional Committee Chairs Tadaharu Tsumoto (Asia-Pacific) Abdul Mohammed (Africa) Ryszard Przewlocki (Central & Eastern Europe) Osvaldo Uchitel (Latin America) Gregory Quirk (U.S. & Canada) Juan Lerma (Western Europe) Chair of the IBRO Fellowships, Travel Grants & Return-Home Funding Programme Marta Hallak (Argentina) Chair of the IBRO Inter-Regional Initiatives Committee Monica Di Luca (Italy) IBRO Secretariat 255 rue Saint-Honor 75001 Paris, France Phone: + 33 1 46 47 92 92 Fax: +33 1 46 47 42 50 Executive Director Stephanie de La Rochefoucauld stephanie@ibro.info Director of Programmes & Communications Robynn Rockstad-Rex robynn@ibro.info IBRO Webmaster & Head of IT Ante Padjen ante.padjen@mcgill.ca IBRO News Editor in Chief Robynn Rockstad-Rex robynn@ibro.info IBRO Web site: www.ibro.info

I look forward to making significant contributions to neuroscience research, education and capacity building in Africa and beyond in the years ahead.
My work, in the course of the fellowship, centered on investigating the cellular and molecular mechanisms of cerebral injury and cognitive impairment after stroke. The results suggest that hippocampal neurodegenerative and vascular pathologies interact with synaptic densities, neuronal volumes (and possibly other yet to be identified variables) to determine the cognitive trajectory after stroke, and that higher hippocampal synaptic density and neuronal volumes (possibly signatures of higher cognitive reserve) may protect against or delay the onset of dementia after stroke. With the research fellowship, I also spearheaded the setting up of a longitudinal study to investigate the profile, determinants and outcome of cognitive dysfunction in a cohort of Nigerian stroke survivors in collaboration with the established Newcastle COGFAST Project. The pilot study revealed cognitive dysfunction in 28% of 42 stroke survivors, while the main study is currently in progress. In addition, the fellowship period afforded me the opportunity of effective networking and contribution to the growth of African Neuroscience. The IBRO Alumni-Nigeria group was inaugurated to network and coordinate young Nigerian neuroscientists who have participated in IBRO programmes. I also served as editor, and contributed two review articles to an IBRO-sponsored special Neuroscience Edition of a growing African journal Archives of Ibadan Medicine. In all, the fellowship period has been a great leap in my development and progress as a neurophysician-scientist, and I look forward to making significant contributions to neuroscience research, education and research capacity building in Africa and beyond in the years ahead.

Important Funding Deadlines

IBRO International Travel Grants (July December 2012): Feb. 1, 2012 SfN-IBRO Travel Grants: Feb. 1, 2012 IBRO Fellowships, 2013: Feb. 1, 2012 IBRO International Travel Grants (January June 2013): September 1, 2012 IBRO Return Home Programme, 2013: September 1, 2012 Check online at http://funding.ibro.info for the deadlines of IBROs Regional Funding Programmes: IBRO-Asian/Pacific Exchange Fellowship InEurope Short Stay Grants Latin America Region: Short Stay Fellowships and Travel Grants International Fellowships to Marine Biological/Cold Spring Harbor Laboratories, USA

1970s
The IBRO Visiting Lecture Team begins courses in parts of the world where no established neuroscience programmes exist

1976

1982

1985
IBRO forms six regions, with representation on the IBRO Executive Commitee

Neuroscience journal launched

First IBRO World Congress in Lausanne, Switzerland

1987

IBRO membership reaches 5000

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IBROs WORLD CONGRESS HELPED BOOST CAREERS OF YOUNG NEUROSCIENTISTS

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Young Investigators benefited from month-long stays at European laboratories

On the occasion of the 8th IBRO World Congress in Florence, Italy, the meetings organizers launched the IBRO Young Investigators Programme (YIP) that allowed 83 young researchers from countries with limited resources to spend one month at a European laboratory before participating in the IBRO meeting. Selected participants came from Latin America (29), Africa (19), Asia (31) and Eastern Europe (4). According to the chair of the YIP Committee, Micaela Morelli, the Programme provided PhD students and post-docs an excellent opportunity to establish collaborations and learn new techniques, and offered a wonderful opportunity to western European researchers to expand their view on neuroscience research in the world.

IBRO Alumni celebrated during the 2011 IBRO World Congress in Florence
During the 8th IBRO World Congress, alumni of IBROs training and funding programmes enjoyed several opportunities to share their research and connect

Sharing their YIP Experience:

Joan David spent four weeks in the laboratory of Pierre Magistretti at the Ecole Polytechnique Federal in Lausanne, Switzerland. Research Focus: Neurons and their various circuits, especially in relation to vision. How was your host laboratory suited to your immediate research goals? My host lab (Laboratory of Neuroenergetics and Cellular Dynamics - LNDC) taught me quite some things about brain energy metabolism using a variety of technical approaches ranging from cell cultures to in vivo experiments. During my stay in the lab, I had the opportunity to follow the work of different members of the lab and became familiar with different techniques and assays such as neuronal cell culture, biochemical assays, quantitative PCR and collection of brain tissue extracts. These skills are invaluable in my young scientific experience and my research is definitely benefiting from my time at the EPFL, Switzerland.

Joan David, from the University of Ilorin, Nigeria

Alumni lecturers at the IBRO World Congress Alumni Symposium, Florence, Italy

What will you remember the most from your Young Investigators Programme experience? The day I was able to independently carry out a series of experiments to determine the effect of insulin on glycogen storage in cultured astrocytes without any assistancethat felt good. Another memory was the day a member of the lab got his research work published in the Journal of Neuroscience and the entire lab, including Prof. Magistretti, all came out to attend a party at the lab to celebrate the success. Such team spirit is commendable, and I could see the unity of purpose that exists within the lab members. After your short-stay visit, how was your experience at the IBRO World Congress in Florence? The IBRO World Congress was superb, the biggest congress I have ever had the privilege of attending, with so many great and senior researchers in attendance and diverse scientific sessions and symposia of the most outstanding research I had ever seen. The World Congress was the icing on the cake of the YIP experience. Jitendra Sinha spent a month at Marina Bentivoglios laboratory at the University of Verona, Italy, and since then with YIP participant Shampa Ghosh has created a Facebook page for all the IBRO Young Investigators to stay connected. Research Focus: DNA oxidation lesions, oxidative stress, magnetic resonance spectroscopic studies, neuronal and glial profiling and IGF1 and BDNF signaling pathways involved in ageing What were your first impressions of your host lab and the research team, when you first arrived? I was very excited to visit a foreign lab related to my research focus. On the first day, Prof. Jitendra Sinha, from the National Institute of Nutrition in Hyderabad, Marina introduced me to all the lab members India, with his host, Marina Bentivoglio. and spent a lot of time with me discussing in details regarding the research work to be done. She even arranged a brain-storming session for my research work on the WNIN obese mutant rats that have reduced longevity, which helped me in designing future experiments. What did you learn at your host lab that will be helpful to your current or future research? I learned preparation of brain tissues for immunohistochemical examination under compound and confocal microscopy. I also learned to create LPS-induced inflammatory mice model and basics of MRI, and got the opportunity to learn how to write scientific abstracts and papers. What impact do you think you may have made upon the staff at your host lab? The staff at my host lab was very cooperative and well-trained in the techniques. They taught me each technique in detail and helped me a lot in troubleshooting, also. They showed a lot of interest in the unique animal model that I am working on. Through interactive scientific discussions, we all benefitted in one way or the other. They became like an extended family to me.

with others from all over the world, at all career levels and within all areas of neuroscience. On July 15, 2011, a special symposium featuring IBRO Alumni took place, titled "Molecular and systems neurobiology in development and disease: contributions from IBRO Alumni worldwide," which was chaired by IBRO Alumni Committee Chair Susan Sara and IBRO Secretary-General Pierre Magistretti. Four IBRO Alumni presented their research and highlighted how their training and support received from IBRO has made a difference so far in their career: Bence Racz, St. Istvan University, Budapest, Hungary (CEERC) Molecular architecture of the hippocampal dendritic spine Elisabeth Ngo Bum, University of Ngaoundere, Cameroon (ARC) Herbal compounds in the treatment of psychiatric disorders: The aqueous extract of leaves of Piliostigma reticulatum possesses anxiolytic and antipyretic activity in mice Abbas Haghparast, Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran (APRC) Herbal compounds in the treatment of drug abuse: Fruit essential oil of Cuminum cyminum attenuates morphine-induced conditioned place preference Cristina Guatimosim Fonseca, Federal University of Minas Gerais, Brazil (LARC) In search of organizing principles during synapse elimination: Correlation between motoneuron size and position at spinal cord and motor unit innervation patterns.

Chilean neuroscientist Pedro Maldonado (second from right) catches up with young researchers from Latin America at the IBRO Alumini Party in Florence, Italy.

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Later in the evening, more than 350 IBRO Alumni and Friends gathered at The Loft, a stylish indoor/outdoor venue in Florences Piazza del Carmine, for a very pleasant evening of socializing and enjoying regional Tuscan cuisine, wine and prosecco. Each year, IBRO organizes an Alumni Party to provide a casual and fun way for IBRO Alumni who perhaps met through an IBRO School to reconnect and to meet others with whom they could potentially collaborate in doing future research, as well as for IBRO volunteers and friends to see familar faces and to meet many of the inspirational young researchers whose careers IBRO has touched through its funding and educational programmes. In addition, an IBRO Alumni Poster contest took place during the IBRO World Congress to acknowledge and reward the first-authors of the best posters and research projects coming from IBRO Alumni, across all of the IBRO regions. Out of 96 entries, the four finalists were Shaimaa Amin (Egypt), Aline Campos (Brazil), Narges Hosseinmardi (Iran) and Giulio Pergola (Germany).

1987
2nd IBRO World Congress in Budapest, Hungary

1990
Neuroscience journal acquired by Elsevier Publishing

1991
3rd IBRO World Congress in Montreal, Canada

1993
IBRO expands to 25,000 members worldwide

1995
4th IBRO World Congress in Kyoto, Japan

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IBRO REACHES OUT THROUGH ITS COMMITTEES AND ACTIVITIES

IBROs Ethics in Neuroscience Research Committee educates, motivates
Committee Chair Sharon Juliano reports: This year the Ethics in Neuroscience Committee (formerly the Animals in Research Committee) changed its mandate to include all aspects of ethics related to neuroscience research. The committee now addresses features of ethics related to animals, human research, research guidelines, publishing, etc. To help us reach needs of the IBRO audience our committee created a survey, which is available on the IBRO website. We hope that the results of this survey will assist in developing programs that are of use to the IBRO community. On other fronts, we continued our involvement with the Ricardo Miledi Neuroscience Training Program by providing lectures and workshops on the ethics of animals in research; this year the Program was held in Montevideo, Uruguay, and provides Neuroscience education to students in Latin America. Our committee was involved with several sessions occurring during the IBRO World Congress in Florence. We organized a symposium entitled How to properly use animals in research: Consideration of levels of pain, genetic background, transgenics, and behavior. The symposium covered a number of topics that researchers have difficulty with, or have little knowledge of, related to working with animals The following people contributed to an animal ethics symposium but are extremely important in the current research during the IBRO World Congress (left to right): Hans Peter Lipp environment. These include managing pain, (standing), Fernando Benevides, Sharon Juliano, Silvina Diaz, William understanding the effect of the strain of an animal on Flecknell and Amy Starociak. experiments, distinguishing types of transgenic animals, and using behavior to assess function. Our committee also participated in a special event during the IBRO World Congress that highlighted worldwide concerns about animals in research. We are organizing a workshop in Bangalore, India, that will focus on the ethical use of animals in research; this will help the community learn how to organize an animal care and use committee, run an animal vivarium, as well as learning strategies about how to write appropriate protocols. Finally, we will participate in an IBRO school in Nigeria (Basic and Clinical Neurosciences in West Africa: Focus on toxicological, traumatic, degenerative and vascular disorders of the Brain) by including discussions about ethics in research with the participants.

IBRO Women in World Neuroscience (WWN) Committee initiates educational and mentoring opportunities
The IBRO Committee on Women in World Neuroscience (WWN) has been active in its mission to improve career development, mentoring and networking opportunities for women neuroscientists around the world, with special attention to women in disadvantaged regions. The Committee experienced a change in leadership in early 2011 and bid farewell to Dr. Judy Illes, founding member and first Chair of the committee. Dr. Illes passed the torch to Dr. Emmeline Edwards, Director of Division of Extramural Research, National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine (NCCAM), a component of the National Institutes of Health, USA. The following faculty and trainees received WWN funding over the past year: Professor Nouria Lakhdal-Ghazal for conducting the African Neuroscience Emmeline Edwards, chair of the School titled Brain Function and IBRO WWN Committee Dysfunction; Professor Elaine A. Del Bel for organizing a Satellite WWN meeting of the Brazilian Neuroscience Society; Professor Fatima Shad Kaneez for sponsoring a symposium titled Role of Female Neuroscientist in Telemedicine in Brunei; Professor Liliana Francis Turner for developing the course titled Experimental Neuroscience course of Tolima; Drs. Rae Silver, Kathie Olsen & Emmeline Edwards for organizing a WWN Forum titled Roadmap for Addressing Sex Differences in Pain Management; Professor Zalina Ismail for support of a workshop for female neuroscientists in Malaysia titled Transdisciplinary Workshop in Neurosciences : The Impact of Women Neuroscientists within the Community; Professor Illana Gozes & Professor Orly Weinreb for holding a WWN Mini-symposium in Israel at the International VIPPACAP Symposium; Dr. Jean King & Professor Orly Weinreb for organizing a workshop at the IBRO 8th World Congress titled Funding Opportunities for international Collaborations and Fellowships. Additionally, the IBRO WWN Committee will be hosting its second Mentoring Circle during the 2011 Society for Neuroscience meeting in Washington, USA, which provides a networking and mentoring venue to the IBRO travel grant awardees. Also during SFN 2011, WWN will co-sponsor some events on career advancement with the Society for Neuroscience Professional Development Committee. The Committee has continued to stay connected to the expanding network of IBRO Women in World Neuroscience on Facebook and by frequent updates on the WWN webpage.

Neuroscience booklet now available in 22 languages

Neuroscience: Science of the Brain, an Introduction for Young Students is a public education booklet designed to inform the general public and includes short, explanatory chapters on different subjects from development to drug addiction written by experts in each topic. The original booklet was published in 2004 by the British Neuroscience Association and the European Dana Alliance for the Brain. IBRO has commissioned members of our organization to translate the booklet into many languages, which are available online: Arabic, Armenian, Chinese, Croatian, English, Farsi, French, German, Greek, Hindi, Italian, Japanese, Nepali, Polish, Portuguese, Russian, Serbian, Slovene, Spanish, Swahili, Thai and Turkish.

This public education booklet may be downloaded, free-of-cost, on the IBRO Web site.

The purpose of this booklet is to improve public understanding and awareness of the brain and the importance of brain research. Via the IBRO Website, chapters may be downloaded for all 22 translations, and full versions of the translations are also available online. For free access, go to www.ibro.info, and click on Brain Campaign in the left column.

IBRO Alumni Committee creates visibility and connections for young neuroscientists
Committee Chair Susan Sara reports: The major initiative of the Alumni Committee in the past year has been to organize a series of alumni symposia within regional and international meetings. At the 2010 Society for Neuroscience meeting in San Diego, USA, the IBRO community heard how their Cold Spring Harbor and Woods Hole School experience boosted the careers of three scholars who attended, through the generosity of the SfN International Affairs Committee/ US-Canada Regional Committee. Contributors were JingLing Zhu (China), Valeria della Maggiore (Argentina) and Musa Mabandla (South Africa). The symposium was followed by a reception for Alumni and IBRO volunteers. IBRO Alumni from the ARC region contributed a symposium at the Society of Neuroscientists of Africa (SONA) meeting in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia: Fleur Howells (South Africa), Samson Gwer (Kenya), Musa Mabandla (South Africa) and Rufus Akinyemi (Nigeria). Alumni of IBRO Schools in the APRC region competed for poster prizes at the Federation of AsianOceanian Neuroscience Societies (FAONS) meeting in Lucknow, India. Prizes were awarded to Preethi Hegde (India), Hossein Azizi (Iran), Mohammad Javan (Iran), Pretty Garg (India) and Proshanto Saha (India). At the 8th IBRO World Congress of Neuroscience in Florence, Italy, a symposium consisting of four speakers, one each from the ARC, LARC, APRC and CEERC, was presented to an audience of about one hundred. (See IBRO Alumni celebrated during the 2011 IBRO World Congress in Florence, on page 3.) At the NEURONUS 2011 Conference in Krakow, Poland, the IBRO Alumni Committee contributed financial support to invite two outstanding Alumni from FENS-IBRO Schools as plenary lectures: Johannes Letzkus (Switzerland) and Alexandra Constantinescu (Romania). The IBRO Alumni Committee also funded Adriadna Cubo, from Cuba, to attend the FENS-IBRO Development and plasticity of cortical representation School in Bertinoro, Italy, where she was named top student by the faculty. In the same manner, Olowabli Rotimi from Nigeria, attended the FENS-IBRO Metabolic aspects of chronic brain diseases School in Gunzburg, Germany. With the help of the Schools organizer, Patrick Weydt, he will investigate ways in which his European school contacts might be used to impact neuroscience in Nigeria.

At the 2011 SONA meeting, IBRO Alumna Fleur Howells (South Africa) presented on the topic "Neural patterns of childhood trauma: An electroencephalographic study of healthy controls.

1999
IBRO Schools Programme launched

1999

5th IBRO World Congress in Jerusalem, Isreal

2001
Launch of the IBRO website

2002
The re-launched IBRO Visiting Lecture Team Programme holds its first course in Tehran, Iran
John Nicholls teaching VLTP course in Cameroon

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NEUROSCIENCE NEWS & INITIATIVES

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School and conference aimed IBRO Inter-Regional Activities Initiative to strengthen neuroscience already connecting future leaders in world network in Middle East and neuroscience North Africa
Despite an aging population and increased prevalence of neurological disease such as Alzheimers, there remains a huge shortage of specialized neurologists and neuroscientists in the Middle East. To help improve this situation, IBRO has collaborated with the United Arab Emirates University Neuroscience Group, other Universities in the region, and Arab Expatriate neuroscientists on several initiatives aimed at promoting and supporting the training of neuroscientists and neuroscience research in the region. The first of these included the organization of a neuroscience school and conference at the Faculty of Medicine & Health Sciences, UAE University. The IBRO-UAE Neuroscience School Fundamentals of Basic and Clinical Neuroscience, which took place from January 30 to February 5, 2011, brought together 32 students, clinicians, and expatriate scientists from different countries in the region, including Algeria, Egypt, Iraq, Libya, Jordan, Lebanon, Morocco, Oman,

At the IBRO Governing Council meeting held on November 13, 2010, in San Diego, USA, IBRO President Carlos Belmonte and Secretary-General Pierre Magistretti announced plans for the "IBRO Inter-regional Activities Initiative." The time is now ripe, in our increasingly globalized neuroscience community, for the development of an Inter-Regional Activities Program with the specific goal of promoting the creation of personal and scientific ties between the new generations of scientists, said Professor Belmonte. Professor Monica Di Luca, the former Chair of the IBRO Western Europe Regional Committee, was appointed as the chair of this emerging committee. In addition to facilitating inter-regional collaboration for IBRO Schools, Prof. Di Luca will also oversee future Young Scientists Visiting Programmes, organized around major neuroscience meetings, to put PhD students from lessfavored countries into contact with centers in other regions, in which intensive and high quality brain research is performed. Within the past year, the inter-regional strategy has been carried out in two neuroscience schools: the IBRO Advanced Neuroscience School held on Reunion Island in November 2010, involving the AsiaPacific, Western Europe, and Africa Regional Committees; and the 2nd UAE-IBRO Neuroscience School in the Middle East (February 2011), involving the Africa and Asia-Pacific Regional Committees. Also, the launch of the IBRO Young Investigators Programme in connection with the 8th IBRO World Congress in Florence, Italy, earlier this year provided a basis upon which to build short-stay laboratory-visit programmes in the future.

IBRO Advanced Neuroscience School, held on Reunion Island (November 2010).

"While several of IBROs regional committees have already been working together to organize inter-regional schools and laboratory exchanges, this new initiative will aim to promote inter-regional activities from IBRO Central, with the schools activity being most important," said Professor Magistretti. "We want to bring brilliant students together so that they can interact at a global level and work collaboratively in the future."
The neuroscience school held prior to the 1st Middle-East Neuroscience Conference assembled students and faculty from throughout the Middle East and Northern Africa, including several expatriate faculty members from abroad.

Palestine, Saudi Arabia, Tunisia, UAE, and Yemen. Following the School, the 1st IBRO Middle-East Neuroscience Conference was held from February 7 to 9, 2011, at the Al Ain Hilton Hotel, drawing more than 400 researchers and other scientists.
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Electron tomography of cultured hippocampal neurons is subject of 2010 Neuroscience Cover Competition winner
The winning cover of IBROs annual Neuroscience cover competition for 2010 is from an article by CP Arthur, C. Dean, M. Pagratis, M. Chapman and MH Stowell. The article, titled Loss of synaptotagmin IV results in a reduction in synaptic vesicles and a distortion of the Golgi structure in cultured hippocampal neurons, was published in Neuroscience, Volume 167 (2010), Issue 1, pp 135-142. The winning cover featured surface rendering of the full three-dimensional tomographic reconstruction of SytIV -/- synapse generated using the IMOD software program (presynaptic membrane [blue], postsynaptic membrane [yellow], mitochondria [red], synaptic vesicles [green]). Dr. Stowell, from the Molecular, Cellular and Developmental Biology (MCD Biology) program at the University of Colorado, USA, describes the research behind the paper and the technique behind the image: The work presented in [this] paper examines the structural nature of synaptic transmission and the proteins involved in neurotransmitter release. The study was conducted using electron tomography of cultured hippocampal neurons. Tomographic reconstructions of the hippocampal synapse were modeled (segmented) using the software package IMOD. The cover image was created by exporting the segmented and meshed geometry of the synaptic cleft from IMOD as a VRML file. Graham Johnson, a medical illustrator, imported the VRML file into the professional 3D software application Cinema 4D. He used this software to add a 6nm thickness to the cell membranes to insinuate bilayers and to make their cut edges clearly visible. He created transparent colored textures for each organelle, applied lights to the scene, and rendered the model with a technology called ambient occlusion to clearly define the organization of the vesicles in 3D space.

Neuroscience, the journal: A message from the Chief Editor

Stephen Lisberger reports: The core mission of Neuroscience is to publish original scientific papers that bear directly on the development, function, and malfunction of the brain. The Journal seeks high quality papers that make a substantial conceptual advance and are of interest to a wide group of readers. In the past year, we have seen a continued stream of quality submissions along with an increase in the quality of the papers we are publishing. We continue to achieve high levels of author satisfaction with a combination of short times from submission to first decision (a median time of fewer than 28 days), rapid on-line and print publication of accepted papers, and fair treatment by a dedicated board of Section Editors who give each paper a hearing on the basis of expert knowledge. We solicit opinions from an enormous number of expert reviewers across the world, and our authors report repeatedly that the feedback they receive is invaluable in improving the quality of their publication. Neuroscience also publishes Special Issues that are commissioned by hand-picked Guest Editors. In the next few months, we will publish Special Issues on topics as varied as Neuroscience Disease Models, Signal Processing in the Basal Ganglia, and Endocannabinoids and Stress. We continue to strive to represent the international neuroscience community broadly, and to involve neuroscientists from around the world as authors, reviewers, members of the Advisory Editorial Board, and Section Editors.

The IBRO Reporter

For the latest news about our members, events, programmes and funding sent by email to our members. Please keep your membership updated at www.ibro.info.

2003
6th IBRO World Congress in Prague, Czech Republic

2003

IBRO surpasses 40,000 members

2003
Launch of the IBRO Brain Campaign

2004
The FENS-IBRO European Neuroscience Schools Programme is launched

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NEWS FROM THE REGIONS 2011

Asia-Pacific Regional Committee (APRC)
Chair: Tadaharu Tsumoto. In the last quarter of 2010 and the first half of 2011, APRC ran two IBRO Schools and one Advanced School (described below). The IBRO School of Neuroscience 2010, was held from October 4 to 14, 2010, at the Monash University Sunday Campus, Malaysia, drawing 22 faculty members from Australia, Japan, Malaysia, Singapore, Hong Kong and Korea, and 39 students from Malaysia, India, Iran, Korea, Thailand, Bangladesh, Pakistan, Indonesia and Sri Lanka. Organizer: I. Parhar. The IBRO School on Neuroimaging: Structural and Functional Analysis of the Human Brain took place from November 29 to December 19, 2010, at the National Brain Research Centre, Manesar, India. This School was held in association with the FAONS Congress at Lucknow, India, drawing 17 faculty members from India, the United States, Japan, Korea and Switzerland, and 29 students from India, Iran, China, Australia, Malaysia, Nepal and Sri Lanka. Organizer: P.K. Roy. The First IBRO-KIST Advanced School of Neuroscience was held from June 28 to July 8, 2011, at the Korean Institute of Technology, Seoul, Republic of Korea. This Advanced School attracted 17 faculty members from Korea, Singapore and Japan, and 15 students from Korea, China, Singapore, Japan, Iran and Germany. Organizer: H. Shin. In addition, four young researchers were selected for the APRC Exchange Fellowship Programme in 2011 (from Sri Lanka to India, from India to Japan, from India to Australia, from Iran to Japan). This programme sponsors young APRC neuroscientists (under 40 years old) to spend 4-6 months in a host laboratory within APRC. Applicants must provide strong evidence of intention to return to the home country after the exchange. The IBRO Africa Symposium at the World Congress of Neurology (WFN) took place in Marrakech, Morocco, from November 12-14, 2011. ARC featured a symposium on communicable and non-communicable diseases research in Africa. Organizers: R. Kalaria (UK-Kenya), C. Newton (Kenya).The 2nd Annual Neuroscience Meeting in East Africa Neuroscience will be held in Mombasa, Kenya, from December 4-6, 2011. Organizers: C. Newton, M. Kihara, A. Mohammed (Kenya). The 27th IBRO School in Ibadan, Nigeria, Basic and Clinical Neuroscience in West Africa: Focus on toxicological, traumatic, degenerative and vascular disorders of the brain, will take place December 5 to 9, 2011. Organizers: S. Ogunniyi, R. Akinyemi, J. Olapade (Nigeria) and R. Kalaria (UK-Kenya). The 2nd Inter-Regional IBRO School: Theoretical and Computational Neuroscience, with focus on learning and memory will take place in Cape Town, South Africa, from December 12-23, 2011. Organizers: H. Markram (Switzerland), L. Kellaway (South Africa), V. Srivastava (India). A regional workshop titled Infections of the CNS will be held in Gaborone, Botswana, from January 26 to 28, 2012. Organizers: S. Vento (Botswana) and K. Kristensson (Sweden). CEERC members were also involved in the IBRO-FENS European Neuroscience Schools Committee in organizing European Neuroscience Schools. Travel Grants: CEERC funded travel grants to 44 post-docs and PhD students to attend the FENS Forum in Amsterdam in July 2010. In 2011, CEERC founded 30 travel stipends for young scientists to attend the IBRO World Congress in Florence. The selected researchers represent Armenia, Croatia, Czech Republic, Estonia, Georgia, Hungary, Poland, Romania, Russia, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia and Ukraine. In addition, the IntraEuropean Mobility Project originated by CEERC and WERC funded five young researchers (from Georgia, Romania, Poland, Slovakia and Croatia) for short visits to European laboratories in Germany, England and Hungary in order to learn new techniques or methods required in their recent studies.

Latin America Regional Committee (LARC)

Chair: Osvaldo Uchitel. In the past year, the Latin America Regional Committee funded the following Neuroscience Schools: 1) PABSELA Stem Cell Research Training 2010: Mining the Cancer Transcriptome in the CNS; organized by B.L. Caputto (Argentina), Oct. 22-Nov. 1. 2010. 2) Signal transduction in the Central Nervous System: Facts and Principles; organized by A. Ortega, (Mexico), Oct. 26-Nov. 5, 2010. 3) 1st Caribbean School of Neuroethology; organized by E. Mora (Cuba), May 9-19, 2011. 4) Calcium signaling, regulation and Cytoskeleton in the Nervous System; organized by J. Sotelo (Uruguay), Sept. 18-Oct. 1, 2011. 5) Third INF Summer School in Neuroendocrinology; organized by A. Franci Janete (Brazil), Aug. 14-27, 2011. 6) Inter regional School: Probing Normal and Pathological Neural Cell Functions; organized by J.R. Rodriguez Medina (Puerto Rico), Oct. 31-Nov. 13, 2011. The following courses and workshops were supported during the first semester of 2011: 1) Course: Neurobiological basis of drug addiction; organized by M. Antonelli (Argentina), April 4-10. 2) II International Workshop on Neuroimmunology; organized by A. Robinson (Cuba), June 26-30. 3) Emerging Concepts on Neuronal Cytoskeleton; organized by C. Gonzalez-Billault (Chile), April 24-27. 4) Neuroanatoma y neurofisiologa de los ritmos circadianos/XI Simposio Latino Americano en Cronobiologa; organized by R. Aguilar-Roblero (Mexico). May 5-9. 5) V Latin American Summer School on Epilepsy; organized by E. Cavalheiro (Brazil). Feb. 20March 1. 6) The Neuroscience of Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism; organized by R. Pautassi (Brazil), March 3-4. 7) Herramientas de

Marina Bentivoglio, Pierre Magistretti, Abdul Mohammed and Krister Kristensson, at the 2011 SONA meeting in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.

Central and Eastern Europe Regional Committee (CEERC)

Chair: Ryszard Przewlocki. In the past year, several initiatives, meetings, symposia and workshops have been supported in order to increase exchange and networking between neuroscientists within the Central & Eastern Europe region. These include: an international symposium titled One hundred years of Ivan Djajas Belgrade School of Physiology, which took place in Belgrade, Serbia, from September 10 to 15. 2010; the 13th Meeting of the Hungarian Neuroscience Society, a multi-disciplinary biennial meeting that took place in Budapest, Hungary, from January 20 to 22, 2011; the Sinapsa Neuroscience Conference, Central European FENS Featured Regional Meeting, held in Ljubljana, Slovenia from September 22 to 25, 2011; the 5th International Congress of Ukrainian Society for Neuroscience: In memory of Platon Kostyuk, held in Kiev, Ukraine, from June 6 to 11, 2011; the 10th International Congress of the Polish Neuroscience Society, which was held from September 21 to 24, 2011 in in Lodz,

The First IBRO-KIST School of Neuroscience in Seoul, Korea, allowed participants to explore the latest techniques in systems neuroscience.

Africa Regional Committee (ARC)

Chair: Abdul Mohammed. The 10th International SONA (Society of Neuroscientists of Africa) 2011 Conference was held in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, from February 9 to 11, 2011. The conference was a unique platform for the prospective collaboration for the betterment of neuroscience and neurology in Africa. Participants came from Africa (Ethiopia, Morocco, Kenya, Rwanda, DR Congo, Nigeria, Cameroon, South Africa, Uganda, Zimbabwe) as well as other regions (Yemen, Switzerland, Italy, Sweden, UK, USA, France). ARC members were involved in organizing several symposia and the IBRO Alumni symposium was well attended. Local Organizers: M. Zebenigus and Y. Woubishet (Ethiopia), with the ARC Chair as one of the international organizers. APRONES the Association for Promoting Neuroscience Education and Research in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) organized a two-day symposium on Epilepsy in Lubumbashi, DRC, from May 30 to 31, 2011. Organizers: P. Luabeya and T. Kayembe (DRC). The 4th Regional Teaching Course (RTC), sponsored by EFNS-WFN-IBRO, took place at the University of Yaound, Cameroon, from July 6 to 9, 2011. During the RTC, a workshop on publishing manuscripts was held by faculty and sponsored by Wiley-Blackwell. The RTC continues to be a very successful joint activity with the EFNS and WFN to build up neurological research in Africa. Organizers: J.M. Vallat (France), R. Kalaria (UK-Kenya), A.G. Diop (Senegal). The 4th Teaching Tools Workshop was held in Accra, Ghana, from September 12 to 16, 2011. Organizers: S. Juliano (USA), A.G. Diop (Senegal). The course Models for approaching brain health and disease: from knockout mice to non-human primates, took place in Rabat, Morocco, from October 30 to November 9, 2011. Organizers: N. Lakhdar-Ghazal (Morocco), R. Butterworth (Canada).

Participants and leaders organize the field work at night during the 1st Caribbean School of Neuroethology, an IBRO-LARC School, held in Havana, Cuba, in May 2011.

Alexandra Constantinescu (left), from the Carol Davila Medical School in Bucharest, Romania, and Tea Speljko (right), from the Croatian Institute for Brain Research, have traveled to UK laboratories in Oxford and Manchester, respectively, through IBRO's InEurope short-stay programme.

Poland; and the 6th International Workshop, "Sleep as a Window to the World of Wakefulness," organized by the Russian Somnological Society in Moscow, Russia, from October 17 to 19, 2011. CEERC, along with the IBRO Alumni Committee, was involved in planning the first IBRO Young Neuroscience Forum Neuronus in Krakow, Poland, April 15-17, 2011, organized by students for students.

Protemica Avanzada aplicada a Estudios del Sistema Nervioso; organized by O. Alzate (Colombia), April 12 -16. 8) Designing and building microscopes for neuroscience research; organized by C. Morgado Valle (Mexico), March 28 -April 1. 9) LIV Congreso Nacional de Ciencias Fisiolgicas; organized by C. Escobar (Mxico), Sept. 10-14. 10) Neural Basis of Maternal Motivation: Relationship and coordination with other social motivational systems; organized by D. Olazabal (Uruguay), Sept. 3-5 . 11) Bases de la electrofisiologa y del imaging: de la teora a la prctica; organized by G.Lanuza (Argentina), Oct. 19-20. 12) Molecular tools for the study of integrative neurophysiology; organized by M.Cambiasso (Argentina), Dec. 5-8. 13) (Re) consolidacao da memoria e suas nuances: uma janela para a plasticidade; organized by L. Alvares (Brazil), August 24. LARC also awarded up to 1000 each for intra-regional exchanges and travel grants within the Latin America region. In

2007
7th IBRO World Congress in Melbourne, Australia

2008

IBRO forges link with the Dargut and Milena Kemali Foundation and holds first Inter-regional School in Dargut Kemali (left) and Naples, Italy
Carlos Belmonte (center)

2008
Formation of IBRO Women in World Neuroscience (WWN) Committee
Judy Illes, founding chair of WWN

2010

The IBRO Inter-Regional Activities Initiative is launched to further enhance crossregional collaboration

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NEWS FROM THE REGIONS 2011

w w w. i b r o . i n f o
2010 a total of 14 travel grants and 14 short research stays were awarded, and in 2011, 7 travel grants and 14 short-stays were funded. Finally, Prolab was launched in 2010 to promote cooperative research by laboratories from two different Latin American and Caribbean countries during two years. Its main goal is to set up collaborations with emerging groups and also open a space for horizontal collaboration among established groups within the region. Two grants have been awarded for the two-year project: R. Buijs (Mexico)-R.P. Markus (Brazil), and C.L. de Oliveira (Brazil)C.F. Centurin (Paraguay).

Western Europe Regional Committee (WERC)

Chair: Juan Lerma. Over the past year, committee members have preserved the role of WERC in supporting young neuroscientists and strengthened educational programmes in Western European countries. To this end we used a range of different measures involving as much as possible European regions and the continuous exchange with other IBRO regional committees. WERC supported a number of high quality scientific educational programs through the award of students fellowships: The Sevilla School in Neuroscience, organized by Jose-M. Delgado-Garcia, a European programme officially included in the Postgraduate Programme of the Universidad Pablo de Olavide. In 2011, WERC funds fully supported six LatinAmericans and helped with small stipends for six more students coming from Spain. The 6th International Meeting on Steroids and Nervous System, held in Torino, Italy (February, 2011), for which WERC supported the participation of young investigators coming from the East and less favoured countries. The French Society of Neuroscience (SdN), which pioneered a program in which young Latin American and South

IBRO's APRC elects new chair

Professor Tadaharu Tsumoto has been elected by the IBRO Asia-Pacific Regional Committee (APRC) as its new chair, taking over from Prof. Hitoshi Okamoto, whose term in office officially ended in 2010. Prof. Tsumoto works as the Senior Team Leader for the Laboratory for Cortical Circuit Plasticity at the RIKEN Brain Science Institute, in Wako, Japan, where his research interest is synaptic and Professor Tadaharu circuit plasticity in the visual cortex. He Tsumoto has served on the IBRO APRC since 2004 and was the president of the Japan Neuroscience Society from 2005 to 2010. Prof. Tsumoto was the principal researcher of the Human Frontier Science Program Research Grant "An Integrative Approach to the Study of Visual Cortical Plasticity: From Molecular Mechanisms to Modeling." He was the Berger Lecturer at the 10th International Congress of EMG and Clinical Neurophysiology in Kyoto, Japan, and was the Plenary Lecturer at the 4th Congress of the Federation of Asian-Oceanian Neuroscience Societies in Hong Kong and at the 19th Iranian Physiology and Pharmacology Congress in Tehran. In addition, he served as a regional corresponding editor of NeuroReport, was the editor-in-chief of Neuroscience Research from 2000-2009 and currently serves as a member of its Advisory Board.

United States & Canada Regional Committee (USCRC)

Chair Gregory Quirk: In 2011, the USCRC has maintained successful programs (such as the IBRO Fellows School), continued productive collaborations with the Society for Neuroscience International Affairs Committee (such as the Teaching Tools Workshops in Africa), and has initiated new programs that are particularly relevant to the IBRO

The 4th Teaching Tools Workshop took place in Cape Coast, Ghana, in September 2011, drawing participants from 11 African countries.

mission (such as the Hispaniola School). The US-Canada Regional Committee is dedicated to the dissemination of knowledge to the world's neuroscientists; the promotion of research and professional training activities across international borders; and the enhancement of public awareness of neuroscience worldwide. The goal of the committee is not to duplicate activities of the other IBRO Regional Committees, but to provide new opportunities and activities not currently offered by other parts of IBRO. The USCRC worked with the Marine Biological Laboratory (MBL) and Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory (CSHL) course instructors to identify and encourage highly qualified and motivated research trainees from developing countries to apply for admission to summer neuroscience courses at the MBL and CSHL. This initiative is referred to as the IBRO Fellows Program. In 2011, five MBL fellowships and four CSHL fellowships were awarded. The 5th Canadian School of Neuroscience on Neurodegenerative Disorders and Brain Trauma took place in Montreal and Quebec City from May 23 to June 4. This North American/Canadian School of Neuroscience supports the idea that developed countries should become the base for international neuroscience education. The Schools organizing committee, in consultation with members of the IBRO Regional Committees for Africa (ARC) and Latin America (LARC) selected 12 students from over 125 applicants. The students included graduate students, postdoctoral trainees and junior staff and originated from Cameroon, Morocco, Nigeria, South Africa, Argentina, Cuba, Costa Rica, and Mexico. The USCRC has focused much of its international efforts on the Teaching Tools Neuroscience Workshops in Africa, with 2011 Teaching Tools Workshop held at the University of Cape Coast, Ghana, from September 12 to 16. The course was directed by Sharon Juliano, in collaboration with the ARC. After the success of the 2010 Hispaniola School of Neuroscience "Trauma and the Brain," in Santiago, Dominican Republic the USCRC, along with the Society for Neuroscience and the NIH Blueprint for Neuroscience Team, decided to support a follow-up Advanced Workshop. Participants were the committed alumni of the 2010 Hispaniola School of Neuroscience. This workshop went into depth on topics related to neurobiology that will allow the enhancement of the current teaching activities and the development of materials to be used in teaching and dissemination in Haiti. In addition, a mentored practicum that will involve collection of data related to neurotoxic exposure will be extremely useful in exposing students to what research is about, and the resources available to them.

New members elected for APRC, ARC and LARC

The results of the election of new members of IBROs AsiaPacific Regional Committee (APRC), Africa Regional Committee (ARC) and Latin America Regional Committee (LARC) are:
Young Investigator Rabiu Abdussalam Magaji (center), from the Ahmadu Bello University, Nigeria, gained valuable experience working in the laboratories of Juan Lerma (right) and Carlos Belmote (left) of the Instituto de Neurociencias de Alicante, University Miguel HernandezCSIC, in Spain, just prior to the IBRO World Congress in Florence.

Mediterranean neuroscientists, in their last year of their Doctoral degree or during their early post-doctoral stage, can attend the Society meeting and visit French laboratories in their quest for a post-doctoral position. This year, WERC assisted in the funding of three fellowships to students from Brazil and Argentina, and seven students from Morocco, Tunisia and Egypt. To further support intra-European mobility, WERC continued the InEurope Programme as a joint activity with CEERC; supported young neuroscientists with travel grants to participate in the IBRO World Congress in Florence; and cooperated with CEERC and FENS in the FENS-IBRO European Neuroscience Schools programme. At the end of 2010, an Inter-Regional activity of the Africa and the Western Europe regional committees, with the participation of Asian/Pacific Regional Committee, took place on Reunion Island: the IBRO School of Neuroscience Neurobiology of Infectious Diseases: A View for Global Neuroscience. Finally, WERC supported the initiative by Micaela Morelli (WERC member), Laurent Fagni and Marina Pizzi to arrange, on the occasion of the 8th IBRO World Congress in Florence in July 2011, short stays in European laboratories of young investigators from countries with limited resources. This program has been very successful and is providing the opportunity for young investigators to participate in laboratory work to gain knowledge of innovative techniques and establish personal contacts with researchers of the WERC region.

APRC Shigang He (China) Nancy Ip (Hong Kong) Keiji Tanaka (Japan) Shubha Tole (India) ARC Musa Mabandla (South Africa) Paul Manger (South Africa) Adesola Ogunniyi (Nigeria) Nilesh Patel (Kenya) LARC Luis Aguayo (Chile) Jaime Eugenin (Chile) The term of membership of IBROs Regional Committees is four years, with half the membership replaced every two years. Members may be re-elected once.

IBRO members:
Please update your details in the IBRO Members database for the latest information about IBRO's activities: www.ibro.info

2011
1st IBRO Middle East Neuroscience Conference, held in Al Ain, UAE

2011
Future endeavours: IBRO joins Global Advocacy Project
Al Ain, United Arab Emirates

2011
8th IBRO World Congress in Florence, Italy

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IBROS GLOBAL REACH CONTINUES

IBROs Visiting Lecture Team brings expertise and experience to developing neuroscience programmes
In the final months of 2010, IBRO's Visiting Lecture Team Programme held experiment-based lecture courses in Ethiopia and Chile, covering a variety of topics of current interest in basic neuroscience and exposing potential research scientists to neuroscience opportunities, both locally and abroad. October 25 November 2, 2010: Arba Minch University, Arba Minch, Ethiopia. Forty-eight students from 9 Ethiopian universities attended this course, organized by Biniam Wondale (Arba Minch University, Ethiopia) and U.J. McMahan (Texas A&M University, USA). The 28 lectures covered principles of neural signaling; structure, function and formation of synapses; physiology and pharmacology of channels and receptors; mechanisms of sensory transduction and signaling in the auditory system; structural and functional organization of and signal processing in the visual system; neural development, degeneration and regeneration; and mechanisms of plasticity. Research equipment and resources comparable to those enjoyed by students in countries having better economies are in short supply in Ethiopia, but as evidenced by the nature and quality of the 10-minute student talks, imagination and effort can overcome the lack of wealth in generating useful scientific information, as attested to by the course lecturers: Jonathan Ashmore (University College London, UK), Alisdair Gibb (University College London, UK), U.J. McMahan, and John Nicholls (Department International School for Advanced Studies, Italy). November 29 - December 7, 2010: University of Santiago, Santiago, Chile. This VLTP course, open to students throughout Chile, provided an opportunity not only to expose University of Santiago students to a detailed overview of problems in modern neuroscience, but also to introduce the new programme to the broader Chilean academic community. Thirty-seven students from 5 Chilean universities attended this course, organized by Jaime Eugenin (University of Santiago, Chile) and U.J. McMahan. The 35 lectures included the principles of neural signaling; structure, function and formation of synapses; physiology and pharmacology of channels and receptors, mechanisms of sensory transduction; structural and functional organization of and signal processing in

Rio de Janeiro

IBRO leads off its 50th year with a new logo

New image for IBRO commemorates a half century of promoting neuroscience globally
The dawn of modern neuroscience in the second half of the 20th century is when the International Brain Research Organization (IBRO) also had its beginnings. Formally established in 1961, IBRO was formed in response to the growing demand from neuroscientists in many countries for a central organization that would cut across world boundaries and improve communication and collaboration among brain researchers. Today, IBRO is the global neuroscience federation dedicated to the promotion of neuroscience and communication between neuroscientists around the world, with special emphasis on assisting young investigators in developing regions. IBRO now counts 84 member societies in 61 countries around the world, with a total membership of more than 75,000 neuroscientists. I truly believe that IBRO should be viewed as a reference point for neuroscientists around the world, and that its members should share a sense of community and belonging, said IBRO Secretary-General Pierre Magistretti. To help mark IBROs 50th anniversary, a new logo has been designed to emphasize IBROs truly global reach and forward motion. A graphic representation of nerve cells replaces the brain image in the former logo, to be more consistent with todays nomenclature of neuroscience, versus brain research, and to better encompass the various research domains of IBROs members. In addition, the nerve cells reach around the globe represents the many ways in which IBRO connects people around the world, sparks new cross-regional initiatives, builds awareness of neuroscience and creates synergies that help accelerate the progress of neuroscience research. Over the past half century, IBRO has evolved to become the meeting point of neuroscientists from around the world and, indeed, almost all neuroscientists are members of IBRO, said IBRO President Carlos Belmonte. I am proud to be associated with this organization, which is perceived as the natural link between scientists working in less-developed countries and those working in high-income regions of the world.

Continued from page 1

Janeiro, who presented the winning bid. In addition, Rio de Janeiro will have hosted the FIFA World Cup in 2014 and will be preparing for the Olympics in 2016 world-class events which will provide the city with the infrastructure needed to reach a record number of participants." Rio de Janeiro, the second largest city of Brazil, is the third largest metropolitan area in South America and boasts an extensive network of hotels and hostels as well as myriad touristic and cultural opportunities. The Brazilian Society for Neuroscience and Behavior (SBNeC) is a 35-year-old association with nearly 4000 members working in the various fields of neuroscience. SBNeC has organized an annual meeting since its foundation and was responsible for coordinating the First IBRO-LARC Congress of Neurosciences for Latin America, Caribbean and Iberian Peninsula (I NeuroLatAm) in 2008, which congregated more than 2,400 attendees from 30 different countries. During this meeting, a Latin-American Federation for Neuroscience (FALAN) was created, officially formalized in 2009. FALAN now counts 10 countries from Latin America and the Caribbean as founding members, and Portugal and Spain as associate members. Neuroscience in Brazil benefits from an increasing national investment in science in the last decade that has positioned Brazil as the 13th country in number of papers published in international journals. This progressive scenario provides a fertile environment for young students interested in science, in general, and neuroscience, in particular.

FENS-IBRO Schools serve to increase quality of neuroscience education in Europe

Since 2004, IBRO has joined forces with the Federation of European Neuroscience Societies (FENS) to increase the quality of neuroscience schools and courses throughout Europe. The FENS-IBRO European Neuroscience Schools Programme, currently chaired by Ryszard Przewlocki, brings together educational activities previously sponsored by FENS through its Schools Committee and by IBRO's Regional Committees for Europe: Western Europe Regional Committee (WERC) and Central and Eastern Europe Regional Committee (CEERC). Starting in 2009, the Society for Neuroscience has joined to further its professional development activities within Europe. Among the goals of this Programme are decreasing the gaps between different European neuroscience curricula and between Europe and the rest of the world while maintaining regional research priorities and increasing the mixing and collaboration of young European neuroscientists. A recent addition to this Programme has been the training of promising students coming from disadvantaged regions outside of Europe, made possible through travel grants. The following Schools have been held in 2011: (1) Development and plasticity of cortical representation, Bertinoro, Italy, June 5-10, 2011. Organizers: Z. Molnar (UK), P. Rakic (USA). (2) European Pain School 2011: Bridging molecules and mind, Siena, Italy, June 12 19, 2011. Organizer: M. Zimmermann (Germany). (3) Causal Neuroscience: Interacting with neural circuits, Bertinoro, Italy, June 19 24, 2011. Organizers: G. Buzsaki (USA) and M. Hausser (UK). (4) Metabolic aspects of chronic brain diseases, Gnzburg, Germany, July 20 26, 2011. Organizer: P. Weydt (Germany). (5) Advanced course in computational neuroscience, Bedlewo, Poland, August 1 26, 2011. Organizer: P. Latham (UK). (6) Lausanne & Geneva Training Centre: Imaging brain function in animals and humans, Lausanne/Geneva, Switzerland, August 22 September 9, 2011. Organizer: S. Bolea (Switzerland). (7) European synapse summer school, Bordeaux, France, September 4 23, 2011. Organizer: C. Mulle (France). In early 2012: Neural coding in sensory systems, Obergurgl, Austria, January 8 - 15, 2012. Organizer: M. Bethge (Germany).

Middle East Initiatives

Continued from page 5

The aim of the Conference was to bring together neuroscientists from the Middle East, North Africa and the rest of the world to discuss the advances in the field of basic and clinical neuroscience, presenting a balance between the recent advances in basic neuroscience research and treatments of psychiatric and neurological disorders. The conference provided local scientists with the opportunity to network and establish collaborations with leading international scientists in the field as well as expatriate neuroscientists from the region. According to IBRO Secretary-General Pierre Magistretti and the organizers of the Middle East School and Conference, the neuroscience community that exists within the Middle East, while fragmented, is highly dedicated and eager to help pave the way for improved infrastructure and development programs for future generations of neuroscientists. A milestone meeting took place on the eve of the Conference, forming the First Transitional Committee for the IBRO Middle East & North Africa Chapter. Additionally, the second IBRO MiddleEast Neuroscience Conference is being planned for 2013, in Beirut, Lebanon.

the visual system; neural development, degeneration and regeneration; and mechanisms of plasticity. The students, from undergraduates to graduates to post-docs and regardless of their university, were eagerly immersed in the struggle to grasp the breadth and depth of neuroscience faced by all beginners. The lecture team consisted of Professor U.J. McMahan, Kenneth Muller (University of Miami School of Medicine, USA), John Nicholls, Richard Rotundo (University of Miami School of Medicine, USA), and Shlomo Rotshenker (Hebrew University Medical School, Israel).

The IBRO Visiting Lecture Team at Arba-Minch University, Ethiopia, in November 2010.

2011
IBRO now counts 84 member societies in 61 countries around the globe, with a membership of more than 75,000 neuroscientists

Fifty Years of

IBRO

1961

2011