Marc A. Dichter, MD, PhD, Professor of Neurology & Director, Mahoney Institute of Neurological Sciences.   University of Pennsylvania, Department of Neurology - 3 West Gates, 3400 Spruce Street, Philadelphia, PA  19104

Rachel E. Locke, PhD, Project Director, Mahoney Institute of Neurological Sciences.   University of Pennsylvania, Inst. of Neuro. Sciences, 215 Stemmler, 35th & Hamilton Walk, Philadelphia, PA  19104

• Steve Arnold - Psychiatry – Neuropathology in psychiatry, Aging and dementia
• Marc Dichter – Neurology and Penn Institute of Neurological Sciences
• Jacqueline French - Neurology - Epilepsy
• Susan Herman - Neurology - Epilepsy
• Scott Kasner - Neurology - Stroke
• Russell Katz – U.S. Food and Drug Association
• Dennis Kolson - Neuro-AIDS
• Rachel Locke - Penn Institute of Neurological Sciences
• Michael McGarvey - Neurology - Critical cCare
• Tracy McIntosh - Neurosurgery - Traumatic brain injury
• Robert Neumar - Emergency Medicine – Cardiac Arrest, Global brain ischemia
• Mickey Selzer - Neurology - Neurorehabilitation
• Matthew Stern - Neurology - Parkinson's Disease
• Gihan Tennekoon – Neurology - Child Neurology
• John Trojanowski - Neuropathology - Director, Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases

PROGRAM DESCRIPTION

The aim of the conference is to address the question of how better to evaluate pharmacological agents that protect the brain from injury under a variety of different, but closely related conditions.

The key issues driving the conference are: a) the fact that considerable promising animal research has yet to yield effective neuroprotective agents; and b) the belief that many of the underlying mechanisms of neural tissue damage are similar across a wide variety of conditions.

The conference will take a multi-disciplinary approach by bringing together clinical researchers and basic scientists from academic programs in multiple clinical and basic science areas, along with members of the pharmaceutical industry, the NIH, and the FDA. Rather than focus on one neurodegenerative disorder, the conference will aim to identify commonalities among a number of disorders and discuss how these commonalities can be exploited to devise new neuroprotective strategies and new clinical trial designs.

This conference will be unique in two aspects: a) it will comprise people with backgrounds in a variety of acute and chronic neurodegenerative conditions/diseases; b) it will be focused on integrating information gained from previous clinical trials in many areas of neuroprotection and using that to develop new trial strategies.

The neurodegenerative conditions to be addressed at the conference include: acute conditions such as stroke, spinal cord injury, brain trauma, epilepsy, perioperative hypoxia, neonatal hypoxia; chronic conditions such as Alzheimer's, Parkinson's, ALS; the degenerative components of psychiatric diseases like schizophrenia and depression; the issues encountered by allied medical specialties that interface or deal directly with brain or spinal cord injury, (e.g. emergency medicine, anesthesiology, cardiac, vascular and neonatal surgery). Of course the chronic neurodegenerative conditions (AD, PD, ALS) each have their own set of disease-specific pathologies that do not have counterparts in the acute degenerative disorders. However, it is possible that the chronic and acute conditions do share common degenerative mechanisms, such as oxidative injury or excitotoxicity, which could form the basis for common strategies for clinical evaluation of potential new drugs with neuroprotective properties. Thus, it is possible that simplified clinical trials, at least at the “proof of principle” level, could be designed to facilitate the development of new neuroprotective drugs.

Unfortunately, no systematic correspondence has been developed between mechanism of action and the model system on which to test an agent with a given mechanism. Similarly, there is no systematic way to know, given an agent with a specific mechanism of action, which disease or neurodegenerative condition would be most responsive to the given agent. Hence, academic and pharmaceutical company researchers are not always able to choose the best patient population to test a putative neuroprotective agent. In addition, the mechanics of the trial design, such as how to define an homogeneous population, whether to use surrogate markers and if so, which ones, trial duration and proper outcomes measures, are not generally agreed upon and will be discussed here.

Through a series of 20-30 minute summary talks, the conference will begin by briefly reviewing the latest research on basic studies of mechanisms of brain injury and protection. These talks will be delivered in such a way that conference participants not involved in basic research will be able to grasp the information and integrate it into their thinking about neurodegeneration and repair. The conference will then review the various animal models commonly used to assess neuroprotective agents, as well as the design and results of clinical trials that have been conducted in a variety of acute and chronic degenerative brain disorders, (which were undertaken often as a result of the data from the animal models). One full day will be spent integrating the lessons learned from the disorder-specific experiences and discussing new strategies for clinical trials in neuroprotection. Talks will be interspersed by formal discussion periods and ample time is planned for informal discussion.

Key aims:

1. Identify and integrate issues shared by various neuroprotection paradigms.
2. Identify common cellular and molecular targets among the acute and chronic neurodegenerative conditions.
3. Identify models that are appropriate for analyzing neuroprotection and for assaying putative neuroprotective agents.
4. Develop a feasible proof-of-principle model(s) that can serve as an initial indicator of neuroprotective activity and is generally agreed upon by most participants.
5. Enhance the training of young investigators such that they will be inspired and equipped to continue to work in the field of neuroprotection.
6. Encourage relationships between the academic community, pharmaceutical industry and regulatory agencies.
7. Develop a dialog with regulatory agencies about realistic goals and step-by-step approaches.
8. Educate researchers in various fields about progress made in other areas and problems that have been identified so that solutions to common problems can be found.
9. Educate clinical researchers about the mechanics of neuroprotection trials.
10. Encourage “out of the box” creativity about neuroprotection by bringing together researchers from different disciplines.
    
11. Formulate working groups and an appropriate forum to continue development of the field.

GO TO:   Overview of topics  |  Conference program
 

PUBLICATION OF CONFERENCE PROCEEDINGS

Summaries of each presentation and discussion will be posted on this website following the conference.
 

DISCLOSURE POLICY

It is the policy of the University of Pennsylvania to ensure balance, independence, objectivity and scientific rigor in all its educational activities. All faculty participating in this activity are expected to disclose to the audience any significant financial interest or other relationship he/she has with the manufacturer(s) of any commercial product(s) discussed in an educational presentation.
 

QUESTIONS?? Contact Us:
Rachel Locke:  rlocke@mail.med.upenn.edu (215) 898-8708
Marc Dichter:  dichter@mail.med.upenn.edu (215) 349-5166