Catch our past guest, Dr. Larry Goldstein discussing Stem Cells and Alzheimer’s, Multiple Sclerosis and Lou Gehrig’s Disease (ALS).

Wednesday, March 23, 2011   : :   12:00 - 1:30 pm

Frontiers in Science & Technology: Understanding Alzheimer’s: The Promise of Stem Cells

Sponsored by Morrison & Foerster

presents: Understanding Alzheimer’s: The Promise of Stem Cells

This month, renowned researcher, scientific political activist and author of Stem Cells for Dummies, Dr. Larry Goldstein, will shed light on the future of treating neurodegenerative disorders, and the recent advances that have been achieved through innovative stem cell research. These diseases, such as Alzheimer’s, Multiple Sclerosis and Lou Gehrig’s Disease (ALS), affect millions of people and are among the most devastating and emotionally wrenching of human ailments. Due to the complexity of the central nervous system, scientists are still struggling to understand the mechanisms that cause neuronal failure, and therefore, current treatment options are limited. 

As Director of UC San Diego’s Stem Cell Program, Dr. Goldstein and his team have been studying the use of stem cells to create neurons that are predisposed to these disorders. By growing these neurons from stem cells, researchers believe these cells hold the key to boosting our understanding of the brain and nervous system. Ultimately, this research may lead to new predictive diagnostics and novel directions in drug development for these diseases.

PRESENTED BY:
Dr. Lawrence Goldstein
Investigator, Howard Hughes Medical Institute
Professor, Department of Cellular and Molecular Medicine
Director, UC San Diego Stem Cell Program
Chair, Scientific Steering Committee, Sanford Consortium for Regenerative Medicine

WHO SHOULD ATTEND

Scientists, engineers, physicians, healthcare leaders, venture capitalists, technology and life sciences professionals, services providers and business leaders.

ABOUT THE SPEAKER

Dr. Goldstein is a Distinguished Professor of Cellular and Molecular Medicine at the University of California, San Diego (UC San Diego), School of Medicine and Director of the UC San Diego Stem Cell Program. He is also an Investigator with the Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI). He has been with the UC San Diego School of Medicine since 1993. A UC San Diego alumnus, he received his B.A. degree in biology and genetics in 1976, and his Ph.D. degree in genetics from the University of Washington, Seattle in 1980. Dr. Goldstein did postdoctoral research at the University of Colorado at Boulder from 1980 to 1983 and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 1983-1984. He was assistant, associate, and full professor at Harvard University in the Department of Cellular and Developmental Biology from 1984 to 1993, before moving to UC San Diego and HHMI. His awards include a Senior Scholar Award from the Ellison Medical Foundation, an American Cancer Society Faculty Research Award, the Loeb Chair in Natural Sciences when he was at Harvard University, election to the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, and the 2009 Public Service Award from the American Society for Cell Biology.

Dr. Goldstein’s work is supported by funding from HHMI, the National Institutes of Health (NIH), the Ara Parseghian Medical Research Foundation and the California Institute for Regenerative Medicine. His research is focused on understanding the molecular mechanisms of movement inside brain cells and how failures in the movement systems may lead to neurodegenerative diseases. His laboratory has discovered important links between transport processes and diseases such as Alzheimer’s and Huntington’s diseases.

Dr. Goldstein has had an active role in national science policy, having served on many public scientific advisory committees, in addition to serving as an expert commentator on the issue of stem cell research and biomedical research policy by print and broadcast media. He has testified on a number of occasions in the U.S. House of Representatives and the Senate about NIH funding and stem cell research. Dr. Goldstein also served as co-chair of the scientific advisory committee to the campaign for the Proposition 71 stem cell research initiative, which authorizes $3 billion in tax-free state bonds to fund stem cell research in California over 10 years. As a co-founder and consultant of the biotechnology company Cytokinetics, he has also had an active role in private industry where he has gained experience in translating scientific insights to new therapeutic approaches. Public understanding will be considerably improved with his recent well received book, Stem Cells for Dummies.

http://register.connect.org/index.php/FiST_032311_Goldstein