Stony Brook Medicine Spotlights Advances in Brain Health and Aging

As part of East Campus Day's inauguration activities, Stony Brook University President Goldsmith attended a series of presentations led by Stony Brook Medicine's distinguished researchers, who shared emerging insights into brain health, aging, and the scientific advances shaping the future of patient care. The session highlighted the breadth of expertise across the institution and underscored Stony Brook Medicine's leadership in neuroscience and aging research.

The Brain and Healthy Aging: A Walk to Remember opened with "Brain Aging," presented by Markus Riessland, PhD, and Qiaojie Xiong, PhD. Riessland discussed cellular aging in the brain, describing how "zombie" cells propagated aging-related changes across cell types and drove age-related neurodegeneration, while Xiong demonstrated how aging neural circuits influenced physiological conditions.

Building on this foundation, "Imaging Memory - I Will Remember You," presented by Anissa Abi-Dargham, MD, Mark Slifstein, PhD, and Christine DeLorenzo, PhD, highlighted the use of PET imaging tracers to visualize and quantify brain targets relevant to aging. Through 3D interactive visualizations, the presenters illustrated how different tracers provided insight into key processes such as neuroinflammation, misfolded proteins, synaptic density and the cholinergic system.

When it came time to discuss real-time clinical AI applications, "Using AI to Protect the Brain", featuring Sima Mofakham, PhD, and Chuck Mikell, MD, demonstrated artificial intelligence tools capable of detecting subtle facial micromovements in comatose patients - signals not visible to the human eye. The presentation showed how this technology might enable early detection of agitation and delirium, including in Alzheimer's disease, underscoring the potential for earlier intervention.

Continuing the focus on brain health and aging, "Walking into Healthy Brains," presented by Jeannette Mahoney, PhD, Neil Nadkarni, MD, and Xi Chen, PhD, showcased emerging mobile electrophysiological and functional neuroimaging approaches used to define phenotypes of healthy aging in "super-movers." The work emphasized brain resilience and neuroplasticity, incorporating recorded testimonials and translational data illustrating how a stroke disrupted normal gait, linking inflammation and mobility.

Goldsmith concluded her visit with updates on clinical research in Alzheimer's disease. "Clinical Trials for Alzheimer's - When Every Second Counts," led by Nikhil Palekar, MD, and Christopher Christodoulou, PhD, reviewed completed, ongoing and upcoming Phase II clinical trials targeting amyloid, tau and neuroinflammation in early-stage Alzheimer's disease. They highlighted forthcoming studies in pre-clinical Alzheimer's disease and Stony Brook's participation in the Alzheimer's Clinical Trials Consortium, a collaboration that included the NIH, academia and industry.

Together, the presentations offered Goldsmith a vivid look at the depth and direction of Stony Brook's neuroscience and aging research. The session brought forward the voices of investigators working across basic science, clinical trials, imaging, mobility and emerging technologies, illustrating how their discoveries were shaping the future of brain health and patient care.