This conference is jointly organized by the Ing4Life and BrightBrain projects. It brings together researchers from engineering, the life sciences, medicine, physics, and computer science to promote interdisciplinary collaboration and scientific exchange on emerging technologies for neuroscience and biomedical research. Particular emphasis is placed on innovative measurement and analytical platforms that advance our understanding of neurodegenerative diseases and accelerate the development of next-generation diagnostic and therapeutic strategies.
The programme brings together an international group of researchers working at the interface of technology, neuroscience and biomedical research. Invited speakers include Larysa Baraban, Susanna Narkilahti, Gert Fricker, Corette Wierenga and Iryna Prots, alongside experts from TU Braunschweig including Andreas Waag, Andreas Dietzel, Stephan Reichl, Reinhard Köster and Thekla Cordes. Together, the talks cover topics ranging from microfluidics, biosensing, photonics and advanced in vitro models to blood–brain barrier research, synaptic dysfunction, brain organoids and neurodegeneration.
In addition to the invited lectures, the programme will feature selected short talks by early-career researchers. Abstracts can be submitted for consideration for either a short talk or a poster presentation. We warmly invite researchers, especially early-career scientists, to contribute to the scientific programme by submitting an abstract for a short talk or poster presentation. Participants who wish to attend without presenting are also welcome to register.
Abstract submission & registration deadline: 24 February 2027
Registration and abstract submission: ing4life(at)tu-braunschweig.de
Conference organizers:
Prof. Dr. Martin Korte, Dr. Luisa Demuth & Dr. Shirin Hosseini
TU Braunschweig
Ing4Life – Engineering4Life
Ing4Life develops cutting-edge lab-on-a-chip platforms that integrate electrical, optical, and microfluidic technologies to enable highly precise, real-time investigation of living neuronal systems under physiologically relevant conditions. The project focuses on the development of advanced tools for studying neuronal function and dysfunction, with a particular emphasis on the cellular and molecular mechanisms underlying Alzheimer’s disease. By comparing healthy and diseased neurons and investigating the regulation of cellular homeostasis, Ing4Life aims to uncover novel pathogenic mechanisms, identify innovative biomarkers, and facilitate the development of future diagnostic and therapeutic approaches, while simultaneously contributing to the reduction of animal experimentation. The project is funded by the European Union through the ERDF programme “Europa für Niedersachsen”.
Bright Brain
Bright Brain is a flagship interdisciplinary research initiative within the Engineering for Health research focus at TU Braunschweig, dedicated to advancing next-generation technologies and innovative measurement platforms for biomedical research. By integrating microfluidics, microphotonics, and silicon-based microsystems, the project enables highly precise, multimodal investigations of neuronal systems, organoids, and complex tissue models that faithfully recapitulate the physiological in vivo microenvironment. Using neurodegenerative diseases as an initial application area, BrightBrain seeks to elucidate fundamental disease mechanisms and accelerate the development of predictive, personalized, and cost-effective diagnostic and therapeutic strategies. BrightBrain is funded by zukunft.niedersachsen as part of the TU Braunschweig Ecoversity initiative, a joint science funding programme of the Lower Saxony Ministry of Science and Culture and the Volkswagen Foundation (Funding No. ZN4545).