Monthly Newsletters

• BHI marked its 10th anniversary with the 2024 Research & Service Awards ceremony, honoring the exceptional contributions of BHI faculty to neuroscience research and service.
• Dr. Travis Lear has joined the BHI as a Core Faculty and an Assistant Professor in the Department of Pharmacology, Physiology, and Neuroscience at NJMS.

• As part of October National Depression Education & Awareness Month, we are highlighting the work of Dr. Benjamin Samuels, Associate Professor in the Department of Psychology at Rutgers University-New Brunswick and BHI Member.
• Dr. Salman Qasim joined BHI as a Core Faculty and as an Assistant Professor in the Department of Neurosurgery at RWJMS.

• We celebrated International Overdose Awareness Day on August 31 by spotlighting Dr. Kristina Jackson, Professor of Psychiatry at RWJMS, Associate Director of Epidemiology, Etiology & Prevention at RARC in the BHI, and BHI Core Faculty. Dr. Jackson’s research largely centers on the etiology and course of substance use among adolescents and young adults.
• Dr. Sarah Brislin joined BHI as Core Faculty and is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Psychiatry at RWJMS.
• Dr. Sangmi Chung joined BHI as Core Faculty and is a Professor in the Department of Neurosurgery at RWJMS.

We celebrated June Alzheimer’s and Brain Awareness Month by spotlighting Dr. Marc Tambini and Dr. Kasia Bieszczad. Dr. Tambini’s lab studies the function of Amyloid Precursor Protein and its link to Alzheimer’s disease. Dr. Bieszczad’s lab focuses on the neurobiological substrates of learning and memory, particularly the role of the auditory system in the ability to learn and remember.

We celebrated April Autism Acceptance Month by spotlighting Dr. Brian Greer and Dr. Miriam Rosenberg-Lee. At RUCARES, Dr. Greer leads the Severe Behavior Program, a service line of a collaborative effort with Children’s Specialized Hospital (CSH), to provide intensive and highly specialized services to children and adolescents with autism spectrum disorder and other developmental disabilities. Dr. Rosenberg-Lee focuses on how the brain acquires and masters complex cognitive skills, like mathematics.

The BHI is embarking on a planning and priority-setting process to develop a strategic plan that will guide the Institute’s growth and success for years to come. Our goal is to review our mission and values and envision the BHI of the future setting priorities to serve the membership and fuel further expansion. This process started with a brainstorming event during the BHI Symposium in November 2023 and continued with multiple town halls in February 2024 to capture the needs of both faculty and trainees.

• The 2024 BHI Symposium on Nov 14-15 celebrated the 10th anniversary of the Rutgers Brain Health Institute, marking a decade of innovation and collaboration in neuroscience.
• The launch of BHI’s new website was announced, enhancing accessibility to its resources and programs.
• Drs. Miriam Bocarsly and Linden Parkes introduced the Junior Faculty Working Group (JFWG), highlighting its mission to support early-career researchers.

• The Rutgers Addiction Research Center (RARC) at the BHI hosted the 2024 Fall Symposium, highlighting the extensive addiction research and clinical services across Rutgers.
• The Rutgers Center for Autism Research, Education, and Services (RUCARES) at the BHI and the New Jersey Autism Center of Excellence (NJACE) hosted the First Annual Conference, bringing together local and national autism researchers and physicians for a day of presentations and discussions on cutting-edge topics in autism research and clinical care.

We celebrated World Brain Day on July 22 by spotlighting Dr. Detlev Boison, Professor and Vice Chair of Research and Training in the Department of Neurosurgery at RWJMS and BHI Core Faculty. Dr. Boison studies epilepsy and traumatic brain injury, and his research has found that brain insults that trigger epilepsy cause a maladaptive overexpression of adenosine kinase.

We celebrated May Mental Health Month by spotlighting Dr. Andrew Westbrook and Dr. Tracey Shors. Dr. Westbrook studies neuromodulatory systems regulating higher-order cognitive function, investigating the role of striatal dopamine in learning and decision-making. Dr. Shors studies how our brains ruminate on trauma-related memories and how this process can interfere with our everyday lives, while making still more memories.

• The Inaugural Symposium for the Herbert And Jacqueline Krieger Klein Alzheimer’s Research Center at the BHI was held on March 28, featuring talks by Rutgers faculty and trainees involved in AD research. More than 100 participants attended the inaugural symposium.
• 2024 Rutgers Giving Days – donations are essential for BHI and its Centers to support Rutgers scientists integrate cutting-edge basic and clinical research, develop robust educational programs, and enhance scientific collaborations with the goal to become a highly translational and internationally preeminent neuroscience and brain health research enterprise.

In 2024, the Brain Health Institute (BHI) marks its 10th Anniversary, highlighting a decade of significant growth and achievements. Since its establishment in 2014, BHI has evolved into an internationally recognized center for basic, translational, and clinical research into the biological bases of human brain function and dysfunction.