Planned Meetings

On November 1, 2002 at the Society for Neuroscience Annual Meeting, Drs. Christine Colvis and Rita Liu will co-chair a symposium: Proteomics & Mass Spectrometry in Neuroscience. The latest in neuroproteomics, peptidomics, imaging mass spectrometry, and protein mass spectrometry, will be presented by: Dr. Richard Caprioli,Vanderbilt University, Dr. Ariel Deutch, Vanderbilt University, Dr. Lloyd Fricker, Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Dr. Seth Grant, University of Edinburgh, UK, Dr.Vivian Hook, Buck Institute for Age Research, and Dr. Amina Woods, NIDA.

On November 1, 2002 at the Society for Neuroscience Annual Meeting, Drs. Steven Grant and Herbert Weingartner will co-chair a poster session, sponsored by Neuron and NIDA: Systems Neurobiology and Drug Abuse. This session will feature poster presentations related to the three Friday NIDA symposia on "Proteomics & Mass Spectrometry in Neuroscience," "Mechanisms of Reward: Implications for Addiction," and "Systems Neurobiology of Drug Abuse." In addition to the poster presenters, speakers from the symposia and NIDA staff will be on hand for conversation during the poster session.

On November 1, 2002 at the Society for Neuroscience Annual Meeting, Drs. Kenny Blum, Neuron, and David Shurtleff, DNBR, will co-chair a symposium, sponsored by Neuron and NIDA: Mechanisms of Reward: Implications for Addiction. Current research and this symposium focus on how the reward and decision-making processes in our brains work and fail. These mechanisms involve both molecular interactions and sophisticated neural circuitry, and these different perspectives will be presented by: Dr. Gregory Berns, Emory University, Dr. Marc Caron, Duke University, Dr. Jonathan Cohen, Princeton University, Dr. Read Montague, Baylor College of Medicine, and Dr. Wolfram Schultz, University of Cambridge, UK.

On November 1, 2002 at the Society for Neuroscience Annual Meeting, Drs. Francis White, Chicago Medical School, and Rita Liu, OEA, will co-chair a symposium: Systems Neurobiology of Drug Abuse. Presentations will focus on mechanisms of action of psychomotor stimulants (amphetamine and cocaine), cannabinoids (marijuana), nicotine, alcohol, opiates, and natural rewards (e.g. food, water). The speakers will be: Dr. Ann Kelley, University of Wisconsin-Madison Medical School, Dr. Rafael Maldonado, University of Pompeu Fabra, Barcelona, Spain, Dr. Marina Picciotto, Yale University, Dr. Toni Shippenberg, NIDA, IRP, Dr. Friedbert Weiss, The Scripps Research Institute, and Dr. Marina Wolf, Chicago Medical School.

On November 2, 2002, at the Society for Neuroscience Annual Meeting, Dr. Yu Woody Lin, DNBR will chair a symposium: Neuropeptides: A Role in Drug Abuse? This symposium represents a state-of-the-art look at where neuropeptide research stands today and how it is poised to provide insights into the understanding of normal brain functions and brain functions after exposure to drugs of abuse. The speakers will be: Dr. Glen Hanson, NIDA, Dr. S. Hunt, University College London, UK, Dr. Yasmin Hurd, Karolinska Institute, Stockholm, Sweden, Dr. George Koob, The Scripps Research Institute, Dr. William Rostene, Hopital St Antoine, Paris, France, and Dr. S. Zahm, St. Louis University.

On November 2, 2002, at the Society for Neuroscience Annual Meeting, Dr. Susan Volman will co-chair a poster session: Neurobiology of Drug Abuse: Cellular Mechanisms. This session will feature poster presentations related to the two Saturday NIDA symposia on "Neuropeptides: A Role in Drug Abuse?" and "Synaptic Change and Addiction." In addition to the poster presenters, speakers from the symposia and NIDA staff will be on hand for conversation during the poster session.

On November 2, 2002, at the Society for Neuroscience Annual Meeting, Drs. Jonathan Pollock, DNBR and Susan Volman, DNBR will co-chair a symposium: Synaptic Change and Addiction. The goal of this symposium is to present information about the molecular mechanisms controlling dendritic morphology and the relevance of these mechanisms to long-term adaptations to drugs of abuse. The speakers will be: Dr. Terry Robinson, University of Michigan, Dr. Eric Nestler, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dr. Angus Nairn, Rockefeller University, Hollis Cline, Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, Dr. Kristen Harris, Boston University, Dr. Oswald Steward, University of California, Irvine, Dr. Morgan Sheng, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and Dr. Kausik Si, Columbia University.

On November 5, 2002, at the Society for Neuroscience Annual Meeting, Drs Rita Liu, OEA, and Minda Lynch will co-chair a symposium: Neurobiology of Relapse. This program is dedicated to the memory of Dr. Roger Brown, DNBR. The current state of knowledge about brain mechanisms underlying relapse to drug addiction, future directions for research, and implications for practice will be discussed by: Dr. Glen Hanson, Acting NIDA Director, Dr. Peter Kalivas, The Medical University of South Carolina, Dr. George Koob, The Scripps Research Institute, and Dr. Jane Stewart, Concordia University. Following the symposium, there will be an opportunity to meet with NIDA staff to discuss NIDA's interests in behavioral neuroscience, integrative and cellular neurobiology, molecular neurobiology, proteomics, medications development, and other related topics. Staff will also be available to discuss "how to prepare a better grant application," training and career development mechanisms, gender research in drug abuse, and opportunities for special populations.

On November 6, 2002, at the Society for Neuroscience Annual Meeting, held at the University of Central Florida, Orlando, Florida, Drs. Pushpa Thadani, DNBR, and Donald Vereen, SPO will cochair a forum: Minority Scholars: Research and Funding Opportunities at the National Institute on Drug Abuse. The forum will showcase research at various training levels (undergraduate, graduate, postgraduate, and faculty) affiliated with minority or majority institutions. The speakers will be Dr. Delia Vazquez, University of Michigan Medical School and Cassandra Baskfield, Virginia Commonwealth University. There will be ample opportunities for attendees to interact with Dr. Hanson, the presenters, NIDA supported training directors and researchers, and NIDA staff, as well as to discuss various grant-funding opportunities at NIDA. The forum will be co-hosted by the University of Central Florida, Orlando, Florida.

National CTN Steering Committee Meetings are planned for the follow dates and locations: August 12-14 in Seattle, Washington; October 21-24 in Bethesda, Maryland; and January 27-29, 2003, in Miami, Florida.

The CTN Data and Safety Monitoring Board will meet, October 10-11, 2002 and January 16-17, 2003, in Bethesda, Maryland.

The CTN Protocol Review Board will meet November 5, 2002 in Bethesda, MD.

The CTN Ad-Hoc Oversight Board will convene October 29, 2002 to review and approve CTN's 4th wave of concepts.

On May 14-15, 2003, NIDA will hold a 2-day symposium in honor of Dr. Roger M. Brown at Masur Auditorium on the NIH main campus in Bethesda, MD. Numerous NIDA-supported scientists will be invited to share a remembrance of Roger and discuss many of the exciting research programs that Roger helped to foster during his tenure at NIDA. Plans are also underway to secure a publisher who will combine manuscripts of the symposium presentations into a volume dedicated to Roger's memory.