Neuroscientists to be honored at 2016 Gill Symposium for recasting role of glial cells in the brain

IU

IUB Newsroom »Neuroscientists to be honored at 2016 Gill Symposium for recasting role of glial cells in the brainNeuroscientists to be honored at 2016 Gill Symposium for recasting role of glial cells in the brainSept. 7, 2016FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASEBLOOMINGTON, Ind. -- Two prominent neurobiologists will be honored Sept. 12 at Indiana University Bloomington for their groundbreaking work on glial cells in the brain.
Ben Barres of Stanford University School of Medicine and Beth Stevens of Harvard University Medical School will be recognized during the annual symposium of the Linda and Jack Gill Center for Biomolecular Science.
Long considered supporting cells, glia are now thought to have important metabolic functions, owing in part to work of Barres, Stevens and four other symposium speakers, whose research will be highlighted with a series of lectures on the theme of "neuron-glia interaction in the nervous system."
The 2016 Gill Symposium will take place in the Whittenberger Auditorium at the Indiana Memorial Union. The event is free, but registration is required.
Ben Barres
Ben Barres, professor and chair of neurobiology at the Stanford University School of Medicine, is the recipient of the 2016 Gill Distinguished Scientist Award.
"Throughout his career, Ben Barres has identified important unanswered questions and worked to solve them even when doing so was seen as unfashionable," said Dan Tracey, the Linda and Jack Gill Chair of Neuroscience and professor in the IU Bloomington College of Arts and Sciences’ Department of Biology. "This was particularly true of his work on neuron-glia interactions, which was considered by many to be an uninteresting topic.
"Now, largely based on the results of Barres and his trainees, many others have entered this exciting area and have finally recognized its importance,” Tracey said.
Hui-Chen Lu, Gill Chair of Neuroscience and professor in the IU Bloomington Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, said: "Ben has been passionate about increasing diversity and raising awareness for ...

Read More