The program is set and registration is open for the 11th annual Sanders-Brown Markesbery Symposium on Aging and Dementia. The event is named in honor and memory of the late William R. Markesbery, M.D., founding director of the Sanders-Brown Center on Aging and Alzheimer's Disease Research Center. Markesbery's legacy of groundbreaking research formed the bedrock for the center’s quest to understand and treat Alzheimer's disease and to improve the quality of life of older adults. 

In the sessions for both the scientific and community audience, attendees will have the opportunity to hear clinicians and researchers from the University of Kentucky and other institutions share current findings, trends, and latest updates on dementia and aging disorders, particularly as related to Alzheimer's disease.

This year’s community session is scheduled for Saturday, Nov. 20. The event will take place virtually on zoom from 9 a.m. until 11:30 a.m. The keynote speaker is Allan Levey, M.D., Ph.D., of Emory University. He will be joined by Greg Jicha, M.D., Ph.D.; Erin Abner, Ph.D.; and Marie Smart, all from the University of Kentucky. Discussion by Jicha and Abner will focus on the recent controversy surrounding the approval of a new drug.

The scheduled program topics are:

• Accelerating Progress for Treatmentsfor Alzheimer’s Disease?
  • Allan Levey, M.D., Ph.D., director, Emory Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center; chair, Department of Neurology; Betty Gage Holland Professor, Emory University
• Panel Discussion — Q&A Moderated by Donna Wilcock, Ph.D.
  • Allan Levey, M.D., Ph.D., director, Emory ADRC
  • Greg Jicha, M.D., Ph.D., clinical core director, University of Kentucky ADRC; professor of neurology
  • Erin Abner, Ph.D., co-director, Data Management and Statistics Core, University of Kentucky ADRC; professor of epidemiology
  • Marie Smart, social worker, Breckinridge and Christian Care Communities
• Aducanumab/Aduhelm: The Controversial New Treatment for Alzheimer’s Disease
  • Greg Jicha, M.D., Ph.D., clinical core director, University of Kentucky ADRC; professor of neurology
  • Erin Abner, Ph.D., co-director, Data Management and Statistics Core, University of Kentucky ADRC; professor of epidemiology

Registration for the community session is available here.

Organizers are excited to host the scientific session in person on Nov. 22 from 8:30 a.m. until 12:30 p.m. inside the Lee T. Todd Jr. building on the UK campus. Hosting this session in person allows the return of a traditional poster session for graduate students and postdocs. Guest speakers are all from the University of Kentucky and include Frederick Schmitt, Ph.D.; Josh Morganti, Ph.D.; and Maj-Linda Selenica, Ph.D.

The scheduled topics are:

• 35 Years of the University of Kentucky Alzheimer’s Disease Center: Past Discoveries and Future Directions
  • Frederick A. Schmitt, Ph.D., professor of neurology and director of Outreach, Recruitment and Education Core, ADRC
• Diversity and susceptibility of microglial responses in a mouse model of mixed etiology dementia
  • Josh Morganti, Ph.D., assistant professor of neuroscience, Sanders-Brown Center on Aging
• Investigating the role of hypusinated eIF5A in AD and related TDP-43 proteinopathy disorders
  • Maj-Linda Selenica, Ph.D., assistant professor of molecular and cellular biochemistry, Sanders-Brown Center on Aging

Registration for the scientific session is available here.