INA-14

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): This proposal requests partial support for the 14th Biennial Meeting of the International Neurotoxicology Association The Neurodevelopmental Basis of Health and Disease in Neurotoxicology to be held June 9-13, 2013 in Egmond aan Zee, a small village located 7 miles northwest of Amsterdam, The Netherlands. The overarching objectives of the INA meetings are to: 1) highlight the latest findings in neurotoxicology, 2) promote the development of the field by hosting symposia from multiple sub-disciplines, 3) provide a collegial setting for developing working relationships among scientists from different countries, and 4) recruit and energize young investigators to pursue careers in neurotoxicology. The specific aims of this meeting will be (1) to convene 40 invited speakers from around the globe that represent critical areas of neurotoxicological research with a total of 200 participants for a five day conference in a relatively isolated setting; (2) to define future research needs in environmental and occupational causes of neurotoxicity and neurodegeneration; (3) to increase the involvement of young and promising neurotoxicologists in this field; and (4) to disseminate state-of-the-art findings in a timely manner. The program will commence Sunday evening with a keynote lecture by Dr. Peter S. Spencer, Director of the Oregon Global Health Center, presenting the Keynote Hooisma Lecture titled Neglected Neurological and Neurodegenerative Diseases Associated with Naturally Occurring Substances in Plants. The 11 symposia will broadly address current issues in the field. A detailed list of symposia titles, speakers and their titles is presented as Attachment #2 in the proposal. In addition, two symposia organized and presented by students participating in graduate programs in neurotoxicology will round out the oral presentations (Monday AM, June 10 and Wednesday AM, June 12). The significance of this application is that the INA Conference series is a major venue that propels research in the international community of researchers and educators involved in all aspects of neurotoxicology, fosters career development of scientists entering the field and promotes collaborative research activity with an international scope, and provides state of the art information for scientific administrators and program directors. The health relatedness of this application is that the discussions stimulated by the presentations will define the major questions that require experimental resolution in areas that affect human neurological heath, ranging from developmental exposures to degeneration associated with the aging nervous system, as well as the lifetime effects of developmental neurotoxicant exposure resulting in neurodegeneration.