Hope Center Seminars are organized by mini-series topics. Each spring, we solicit the community for topics to feature in the next academic year. Ideally, suggested topics are relevant to active research at WashU, as each mini-series features WashU speakers as well as external speakers.
To see mini-series topics from previous seasons, visit the archives.
Have an idea for a mini-series topic? Let us know! Suggestions can be made anytime but let us know by February 19, 2026 to be considered for the 2026/2027 season!
Current Mini-series: Biomarkers in Neurological Diseases
Organizers: Cindy Ly (WashU Neurology) and Suzanne Schindler (WashU Neurology)
Location: Fort Neuroscience Research Building Auditorium (*unless noted below)
- February 2: Kanta Horie (WashU Neurology)
- February 9: Manu Goyal (WashU Radiology)
- February 16: Carlos Cruchaga (WashU Psychiatry)
- February 23: Robert Bowser (Barrow Neurological Institute)
Click for Zoom information (WashU Key required)
2025/2026 Monday Noon Seminars
Mondays, 12-1p
Location: Fort Neuroscience Research Building Auditorium* and Zoom
*Unless noted below
Check back for full lists of speakers and talk titles. For inquiries contact the Hope Center.
Mini-series Topics
Organizer: Yang (Eric) Li (WashU Neurosurgery and WashU Genetics)
- September 8*: William Buchser (WashU Genetics) “Functional Genomics Imaging Studies to Uncover Genetic Impacts at Scale”
*NOTE LOCATION: Fort Neuroscience Research Building 9101 - September 15: Eric Leuthardt (WashU Neurosurgery) “Emerging AI and Neuromodulation Solutions for Neurosurgery“
- September 22: Keith Hengen (WashU Biology) “What’s the death of one neuron matter if it doesn’t impact computation?”
- October 13: Feixiong Cheng (Cleveland Clinic) “Leveraging Genetics, Multi-Omics and Real-World Patient Data from Diverse Populations Fuels First-In-Human Trials in Alzheimer’s Disease using AI/ML Approaches”
Organizers: Robert Gereau (WashU Anesthesiology) and Sheng Chih (Peter) Jin (WashU Genetics)
For inquiries contact the Hope Center.
- October 27: Bryan Copits (WashU Anesthesiology) “Multimodal characterization of human somatosensory neurons”
- November 3: Valeria Cavalli (WashU Neuroscience) “The emerging contributions of Satellite Glial Cells in peripheral sensory biology”
- November 10: Sheng Chih (Peter) Jin and Zitian Tang (WashU Genetics) “Short tandem repeat expansions in idiopathic peripheral neuropathy”
- November 24**: Ahmet Hoke (Johns Hopkins School of Medicine) “Programmed axon degeneration pathway in peripheral neuropathies”
**Zoom Only
Organizers: Celeste Karch (WashU Psychiatry) and Farzane Mirfakhar (WashU Psychiatry)
For inquiries contact the Hope Center.
- December 8: Celeste Karch (WashU Psychiatry) “Genetic and Molecular Drivers of Lysosome Dysfunction in Tauopathies”
- December 15* David Rubinsztein (University of Cambridge) “Autophagy in Alzheimer’s disease and Parkinson’s disease”
*Zoom only - January 5: Joanna Jankowsky (WashU Neuroscience) “TMEM106B: A small protein with a big influence on neurological disease”
- January 12: Eric Huang (WashU Pathology & Immunology) “Trafficking lipids in the aging brain: Lessons from FTD-GRN”
Organizers: Cindy Ly (WashU Neurology) and Suzanne Schindler (WashU Neurology)
Check back for list of talk titles
- February 2: Kanta Horie (WashU Neurology) “Novel fluid biomarker, MTBR-tau243, specifically identifies mixed 3R/4R tauopathies”
- February 9: Manu Goyal (WashU Radiology) “Exploring metabolic brain imaging as a biomarker in preclinical Alzheimer disease”
- February 16: Carlos Cruchaga (WashU Psychiatry)
- February 23: Robert Bowser (Barrow Neurological Institute)
Organizer: Albert Kim (WashU Neurosurgery) and Dimitrios Mathios (WashU Neurosurgery)
Check back for list of dates, presenters, and talk titles
Organizer: Elizabeth Pollina (WashU Developmental Biology) and Tony Tsai (WashU Developmental Biology)
Check back for list of dates, presenters, and talk titles
Stay tuned for any special seminar
Seminars also are listed on the ONR Calendar.