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As part of its annual Brainy Days celebrations in March 2025, ������Դ��’s Stiles- Nicholson Brain Institute (SNBI) celebrated the launch of the David and Lynn Nicholson Center for Neurodegenerative Disease Research.

The evening featured a special reception and dinner for SNBI supporters and collaborators followed by a lecture from eminent Alzheimer’s disease researcher, Sir John Hardy, Ph.D., chair of Molecular Biology of Neurological Disease at University College London’s Institute of Neurology.

During the dinner, guests heard from the center’s director, Corinne Lasmézas, DVM, Ph.D., about her vision to accelerate the work already underway at Florida Atlantic to develop bench-to-bedside treatments for neurodegenerative diseases by combining the latest technology with multidisciplinary collaboration.

To illustrate, Florida Atlantic’s vice president for research, Gregg Fields, Ph.D., described a current clinical trial with the university and research partners to enhance the efficacy of Alzheimer’s disease drugs by enabling their movement across the blood-brain barrier using focused ultrasound technology coupled to magnetic resonance imaging (MRI).

In addition, Harvy was presented with the institute’s first Expanding Horizons Awards for his groundbreaking work in uncovering genetic links to Alzheimer’s disease, work that has led to the first mechanism-based treatments for the disease. David Nicholson was also honored for his transformational generosity and vision in support of brain research and education.

An overflow crowd attended Hardy’s Brainy Days lecture, Origins and Treatments of Alzheimer’s Disease, which charted his decades of work investigating the genetic source behind hereditary forms of Alzheimer’s disease and the ongoing quest to understand the disease process and how to stop it.

The monthlong Brainy Days programs continued with a talk by Michael D. Burton, Ph.D., the Eugene McDermott Distinguished Professor in the Department of Neuroscience at the University of Texas Dallas. Burton’s specialty is the neuroscience behind pain, and his lecture explained how regular alcohol use can exacerbate its intensity.

The final lecture of the series was given by Andrew B. Newberg, MD, director, MRI Research and Discovery Center at Florida Atlantic. Newberg spoke about his research using MRI to visualize the effects of spirituality – specifically prayer – on the brain.

Brain Sparks
Brainy Days would have been incomplete without the popular Brain Sparks pop-up event at the Cox Science Center and Aquarium in West Palm Beach. SNBI partnered with Max Planck Florida Institute for Neuroscience and the Herbert Wertheim UF Scripps Institute for Biomedical Innovation & Technology to introduce children and adults to the fun of neuroscience discovery through interactive, brainbending activities.

“Brainy Days exemplifies our mission to make neuroscience accessible to everyone,” said Nicole Baganz, Ph.D., director of community engagement at SNBI. “These events help ensure scientific knowledge and breakthroughs make it out of the lab and into our community – potentially inspiring hope for those struggling with brain disorders and an excitement about science in the next generation.”