In the core research area "Engineering for Health", the interdisciplinary symposium Brains on Chips took place at the Haus der Wissenschaft from May 24 to 26, 2023. International researchers from the fields of neuroscience, systems biology, chemistry and engineering sciences such as mechanical and electrical engineering exchanged ideas during talks, poster sessions and joint coffee breaks and dinners.
The central theme of the symposium, organized by the HomeoHirn Research Network, was brain cell homeostasis. The imbalance of the metabolic homeostasis of brain cells causes neurodegenerative diseases such as epilepsy, Alzheimer's, Parkinson's or other dementias. The scientists came from Canada, USA, Hong Kong, Finland, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Berlin, Freiburg, Lübeck and Göttingen to Braunschweig to unite their interdisciplinary knowledge. They talked about disease processes in the brain, how they can be reproducibly measured and treated from different angles. They discussed special requirements for measurement systems in controlled biomimetic environments and new approaches to linking natural sciences and engineering to build neuroscience collaborations.
The lively conversations and discussions of the participants during the symposium showed the passion for this topic and the desire for networking both on a national and international level to jointly advance the research of neurodegenerative diseases.