Date: October 19, 2026
Time: 1:15 pm to 3:30 pm
Room: Pacific Jewel Ballroom
Track: Plenary
The Derek Denny-Brown Young Neurological Scholar Symposium provides a platform for emerging researchers to present groundbreaking work in neurology and neuroscience. The symposium will feature presentations from the 2026 Derek Denny-Brown Award recipients, as well as honorees of the Grass Foundation–ANA Award in Neuroscience, the Audrey S. Penn Lectureship, and the Wolfe Research Prize for identifying new causes or novel treatments of neuropathy and related disorders.
In addition, recipients of the Distinguished Neurology Teacher Award, the ANA-Persyst IDEAS Professional Development Award, the ANA IDEAS Early Career Member Award, and the ANA Awards for Excellence will be recognized during the symposium.
At the conclusion of this session, attendees will be able to:
In this presentation, Dr. Conrad will show how this work uses quantitative EEG and electrical stimulation to understand how brain networks remain altered between seizures, improving seizure localization, treatment monitoring, and neuromodulation strategies in epilepsy.
In this presntation, Dr. Züchner will highlight how advances in genomic technologies have transformed the diagnosis, classification, and understanding of peripheral neuropathies while paving the way toward targeted therapies and clinical trials.
In this presentation, Dr. Saylor will explore emerging research on MS across Africa, highlighting efforts to improve diagnosis, strengthen care infrastructure, and expand access to treatment in resource-limited settings.
In this presentation, Dr. Boire will explore how cancer cells invade and adapt to the leptomeningeal space, with implications for targeted therapies, immunotherapy, and prevention of metastatic disease in the nervous system.
In this presentation, Dr. Kiskinis will examine how TDP-43 pathology disrupts RNA processing, neuronal excitability, and neuroimmune signaling in ALS and FTD, revealing potential targets for RNA-based therapies.
In this presentation, Dr. Landsness will explore how activation of hypothalamic thermoregulatory circuits induces a torpor-like hypometabolic state that reduces ischemic brain injury and reveals new pathways for stroke therapy.
In this presentation, Dr. Williams will trace the roots of health disparities from 1619 to present day America through the lens of stroke.