Nora Bengoa-Vergniory’s research focuses on alpha-synuclein aggregation and neuroinflammation in neurodegeneration, specifically in Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s diseases. Although it is known that aggregation and neuroinflammation are key features of Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s disease progression, many unanswered questions persist. Where does the aggregation begin? How does it spread? Which cells respond to it? How do they respond? And, importantly, how can we prevent these processes? Dr. Bengoa-Vergniory’s laboratory leverages genetic models, patient-derived induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cells, human tissue, and PLA-based assays for the detection of early aggregation to provide novel insights into the role of aggregation and glial activation in Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s diseases. In 2022, Dr. Bengoa-Vergniory established her research laboratory at Achucarro Basque Center for Neuroscience, Spain, with the support of Ikerbasque, IBRO, MJFF, and the Spanish Ministry for Science and Innovation while remaining a Research Visitor at Oxford University. She completed her PhD in 2014 at the University of the Basque Country, where she studied the role of Wnt signaling during early neuronal differentiation in human stem cell models. Dr. Bengoa-Vergniory joined the Wade-Martins laboratory at Oxford University in 2015 for her postdoctoral training on the role of alpha-synuclein aggregation in Parkinson’s disease. In 2018, she became an Oxford-BMS/Celgene Research Fellow studying alpha-synuclein aggregation and glial activation in Parkinson’s. Through the years, she has been supported generously by MJFF, ARUK, PDUK, the Guarantors of Brain, the Center of Excellence in Neuroscience, BMS, Ikerbasque, IBRO, the Basque Government, and the Spanish Ministry for Science and Innovation.

Jeffrey Cummings, MD, ScD, is the Joy Chambers-Grundy Professor of Brain Science, Director of the Chambers-Gundy Center for Transformative Neuroscience, Co-Director of the Pam Quirk Brain Health and Biomarker Laboratory, Department of Brain Health, School of Integrated Health Sciences, University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV). Dr. Cummings is globally recognized for his contributions to Alzheimer’s research, drug development, and clinical trials. He has been recognized for his research and leadership contributions in the field of Alzheimer’s disease through the Henderson Award of the American Geriatrics Society (2006), the Ronald and Nancy Reagan Research Award of the national Alzheimer’s Association (2008), the Lifetime Achievement Award of the Society for Behavioral and Cognitive Neurology (2017), the Distinguished Scientist Award of the American Association of Geriatric Psychiatry (2010), the Leadership and Achievement Award by the International Society of CNS Drug Development (2018), the Bengt Winblad Lifetime Achievement Award from the Alzheimer’s Association (2019), the International Psychogeriatric Association Distinguished Service Award (2019), and the Alzheimer’s Drug Discovery Foundation’s Melvin R. Goodes Prize. He was featured in the GQ (formerly Gentleman’s Quarterly) June 2009 issue as a “Rock Star of Science™.”  Dr. Cummings’ interests embrace clinical trials, developing new therapies for brain diseases, and the interface of neuroscience and society. He was formerly Augustas Rose Professor of Neurology and Professor of Psychiatry at UCLA, Director of the Mary S. Easton Center for Alzheimer’s Disease Research at UCLA, Director of the Deane F. Johnson Center for Neurotherapeutics at UCLA, and Director of the Cleveland Clinic Lou Ruvo Center for Brain Health. Dr. Cummings is past president of the Behavioral Neurology Society and of the American Neuropsychiatric Association. He has authored or edited 43 books and published more than 800 peer-reviewed papers. Dr. Cummings completed a Neurology residency and a Fellowship in Behavioral Neurology at Boston University followed by a Research Fellowship in Neuropathology and Neuropsychiatry at the National Hospital for Nervous Diseases, Queen Square, London.

Bradley Hyman is the John B. Penney, Jr. Professor of Neurology at Harvard Medical School and Massachusetts General Hospital and the Director of the Massachusetts Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center at the MassGeneral Institute for Neurodegenerative Disease (MIND). His laboratory studies the anatomical and molecular basis of dementia in Alzheimer’s disease and dementia with Lewy bodies. Dr. Hyman has received the Metropolitan Life Award, the Potamkin Prize, a National Institute on Aging Merit award, and an Alzheimer Association Pioneer Award. He received his MD and PhD from University of Iowa.

Karl Kieburtz is a founder and Managing Principal of Clintrex Research LLC. He is a Professor of Neurology at the University of Rochester School of Medicine and an advisor to the Michael J. Fox and Silverstein Foundations. At the University of Rochester, he served as the inaugural Robert J. Joynt Professor in Neurology, Director of the Clinical & Translational Science Institute, and as Senior Associate Dean for Clinical Research. Dr. Kieburtz is the former chair of the Parkinson Study Group Executive Committee, a former member of the Huntington Study Group Executive Committee, and former Scientific Advisor to the Alzheimer’s Disease Cooperative Study (ADCS); he chaired the ADCS Data Safety Monitoring Board (DSMB) for more than a decade, along with multiple DSMBs for industry-led Alzheimer’s disease clinical trials. Dr. Kieburtz has served as an officer of the American Neurological Association, a member of the International Executive Committee of the Movement Disorder Society, and as Associate Editor of Neurology and Movement Disorders. He has served as principal investigator of more than 50 clinical trials sponsored by the NIH, the FDA, and industry, and he was chair of the large NIH-sponsored Neuroprotection Exploratory Trials in PD (NET-PD) study. In addition, he served as the chair of the FDA Peripheral and Central Nervous System Advisory Committee, chair of the Veteran’s Administration Cooperative Studies Program Scientific Evaluation Committee, and as a consultant to the NIH. Dr. Kieburtz has served on numerous editorial and scientific advisory boards and lectured widely on therapeutic development for neurodegenerative diseases.

David Klenerman is a Royal Society Glaxo Wellcome Professor of Molecular Medicine at the University of Cambridge, where he develops and applies physical methods to biological and biomedical problems, with particular focus on laser spectroscopy and single-molecule fluorescence. He is a co-inventor of Solexa next-generation DNA sequencing methodology. Previously, he was a professor at the Department of Chemistry, University of Cambridge after working for seven years for BP Research in the Laser Spectroscopy Group. Dr. Klenerman is a Fellow of the Royal Society and the Academy of Medical Sciences. He was awarded the Royal Medal from the Royal Society in 2018 and the Millennium Technology Prize in 2020, both jointly with Shankar Balasubramanian;, and he was awarded the 2022 Breakthrough Prize for Life Sciences jointly with Shankar Balasubramanian and Pascal Mayer. He was knighted in 2019. Dr. Klenerman completed his PhD at Cambridge University working with Professor Ian Smith on infra-red chemiluminescence, and he completed postdoctoral research at Stanford University with Professor Dick Zare on high overtone chemistry.

Dr. Lee is an Associate Professor of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine, Co-Director of the Institute on Aging, Director of the Center for Neurodegenerative Disease Research Brain Bank, and Associate Director of the Penn Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center. His research aims to uncover molecular mechanisms that contribute to the formation or resolution of neurodegenerative disease proteinopathies using a multidisciplinary approach spanning basic biochemistry and structural biology to cellular and in vivo models and human neuropathology. Dr. Lee’s team focuses on the genetic and environmental factors that influence human neuropathology and translates these findings into tractable experimental models—for example, uncovering how pathogenic variants in ATPase valosin-containing protein (VCP) lead to autosomal dominant tau and TDP-43 proteinopathies. Dr. Lee obtained his MD and PhD degrees followed by clinical training in neuropathology at the University of Pennsylvania.

Kelvin Luk is Research Associate Professor of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine and the Penn Center for Neurodegenerative Disease Research (CNDR). His research aims to untangle the relationship between the formation of alpha-synuclein pathology that characterizes Parkinson’s disease and related disorders [e.g., dementia with Lewy bodies and multiple system atrophy (MSA)] as well as its contribution to neuronal dysfunction and degeneration. Using a multidisciplinary approach spanning in vitro, cell-based, and in vivo models, Dr. Luk’s team has been revealing the mechanisms by which this protein misfolds into pathological agents that self-propagate and transmit between cells. His group developed several novel cell- and animal-based models of synucleinopathy that are widely used in the field. This knowledge base has also been leveraged toward developing innovative tools for detecting neurodegeneration-related proteins and to evaluate emerging therapies for neurodegenerative disorders. Dr. Luk received his PhD from McGill University and completed his postdoctoral training at the University of Pennsylvania.

Rajesh Pahwa is the Laverne and Joyce Rider Professor of Neurology, Chief of the Parkinson’s and Movement Disorder Division, and Director of Parkinson Foundation Center of Excellence at the University of Kansas Medical Center. Dr. Pahwa joined the faculty of the Department of Neurology as an instructor in 1992 and was named the inaugural recipient of the Laverne and Joyce Rider Professorship in 2005. Dr. Pahwa is also a Diplomate of the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology, and he directs the Parkinson’s Disease and Movement Disorder Center at The University of Kansas Health System. Dr. Pahwa’s research focuses on the various aspects of Parkinson’s disease and essential tremor, and he is currently involved in studies related to medical and surgical forms of therapies for Parkinson’s disease and essential tremor. In addition to publishing more than 250 peer-reviewed articles, chapters, and abstracts in leading neurology and movement disorder journals, he has conducted more than 150 clinical trials related to Parkinson’s disease and other movement disorders. Dr. Pahwa is the co-editor of Handbook of Parkinson’s Disease (3rd and 4th editions), Therapy of Parkinson’s Disease (3rd edition), and Handbook of Essential Tremor and other Tremor Disorders. He also is co-author of the book, Parkinson’s Disease: Questions and Answers (4th edition). Dr. Pahwa received his M.B.B.S. (M.D.) degree at Seth G.S. Medical College, University of Bombay, India. He completed an internship in medicine followed by a residency in Neurology, both at Baylor College of Medicine. He then completed a one-year fellowship in movement disorders at the University of Kansas Medical Center.