Program

First day | 13^thApril 2021: Seminars covering different topics in neuroengineering.
Second day | 14^th April 2021: Hands-on practical sessions on basic lab techniques in neuroengineering.

Please notice that the number of available seats in some sessions is very low. The minimum number of participants per session is 2.

Schedule

First day | 13^th April 2021

Hour		Program
09:50		Welcome
10:00		Benoit Charlot
10:45		Higino Correia
11:30		Coffee Break
12:00		Catarina Seabra
12:45		Margarida Diogo
13:10		Lunch
14:30		Thibault Honegger
15:15		Orals x 3
16:00		Meet the Speakers & Coffee Break
17:00		T.B.A.
17:45		António Jácome
18:30		Concluding Remarks

Second day | 14th April 2021

09:30-12:30 Hands-on practical morning session

14:00-17:00 Hands-on practical afternoon session

Hands-on Practical Sessions

S1 – Basics of Neuronal Cell Cultures
[Responsible: Cátia Lopes, NCN - INEB/i3S]
Cell culturing techniques are widely used in neuroengineering studies and have significantly improved our understanding of the physiological and pathological processes of living organisms. This workshop session is intended to provide an introductory training in the basic requirements for successful cell culturing. With this hands-on training session, the participants will get acquainted with a number of valuable resources and guidelines required to establish and maintain a cell culture, as well as the basic principles of sterile technique and laboratory safety issues.

S2 – Memristive artificial synapses: from device principles to neuromorphic applications
[Responsible: Catarina Dias, IFIMUP]
Neuromorphic devices use the brain's structure and operation principles as a promising solution for modern computational storage and processing demands. Memristors, a new class of electronic devices, resemble properties similar to neural synapses. They behave like resistors whose resistance depends on the current that passed through the device. This session will start with an introduction to the memristor and then followed by the electrical characterization of some real examples. Finally, the results will be analyzed to characterize and distinguish different devices.

S3 – Principles of patch-clamp electrophysiology
[Responsible: Liliana Luz, IBMC/i3S]
Electrophysiology is the biomedical field dealing with the study of the electrical properties of cells and tissues. The patch-clamp technique is a major tool in electrophysiology which allow us to study cell excitability, functions and pharmacology of ion channels. Understanding how neurons respond to electrical stimuli is an essential element in the design of systems capable of modulating the activity in neuronal populations. In this practical session participants will learn the very basics of patch-clamp electrophysiology and will have to possibility to record the activity of neurons subject to electrical stimulation.

S4 – Introduction to the NEURON modeling software – in silico neuroscience and detailed simulations of neurons in a computer
[Responsible: Paulo Aguiar, NCN - INEB/i3S]
Neurons are cells specialized in transmission, storage and processing of information. Understanding the complexities of neuronal dynamics in normal conditions, in order to devise correction strategies in pathological conditions, requires detailed modeling and computer simulations. This hands-on practical session gives an introduction to the NEURON simulation environment, a well-established tool for in silico neuroscience and the workhorse software of the Human Brain Project. Participants will learn how to perform biophysically detailed simulations of single neurons and small neuronal circuits. Participants are requested to bring their laptop for the session.

S5 – Principles of multielectrode arrays (MEAs) electrophysiology
[Responsible: José Mateus, NCN - INEB/i3S]
Multielectrode array (MEA) technology is at the forefront of recording electrical activity from large neuronal ensembles. MEAs enable electrophysiological recordings of hundreds of neurons simultaneously, thus are of great use in both basic and clinical/applied neuroscience. Furthermore, different microelectrodes can be used to both record and stimulate neuronal activity in the same experiment. In this practical session, the participants will get acquainted with the principles of MEA experiments and have the possibility to evoke and record extracellular signals from in vitro neuronal networks.

S6 – Imaging neuronal activity with Calcium dyes
[Responsible: Miguel Aroso, NCN - i3S/INEB]
During electric activity of neurons, the cytoplasmatic calcium concentration rises transiently to values that can be 100x higher than in resting state. Calcium dyes are used to monitor neuronal activity by accessing these intracellular changes of Ca2+ concentration. The calcium dyes are typically organised by two parts: a chelator that binds to free Ca2+ and a fluorophore that emits fluorescent light and when it bind to Ca2+ the emitted fluorescence increases. Fluorescence is commonly recorded by an optical imaging system (microscope) with a high-speed camera, however, advanced imaging processing methods are required to extract precise neuronal activity measurements. In this session, participants will have the opportunity to record neuronal cell cultures labelled with a commercial calcium dye and analyse the acquired data with a software developed in-house.

S7 – Introduction to basic concepts of neuronal morphometric analysis in imageJ
[Responsible: Ana Gerós, NCN - INEB/i3S]
In neurons, shape and function are intimately related. Quantification of morphological characteristics (morphometrics) is therefore an important step in the evaluation of many experimental conditions. This practical session gives an introductory crash course on neuronal morphometric analysis for people with little or no knowledge in the subject. The following case studies with 2D fluorescence images, and associated image analysis workflows, will be addressed: a) neurite tracing and total fiber length; b) detecting and counting spines; c) automatic cell body segmentation and area calculation; d) Sholl analysis; in addition to a few others. Participants should have already some experience with imageJ/Fiji.

Speakers

Benoit Charlot, U. Montpelier - France
Thibault Honegger, NETRI – France
Higino Correia, UMinho - Portugal
Catarina Seabra, CNC - Portugal
António Jácome, U. Católica - Portugal
Margarida Diogo, IST - Portugal

Registration

A participant can register for the lectures only (13th April 2021), for a hands-on session only (14th April 2021), or for both lectures and one hands-on session. The registration fees include the coffee breaks and lunch (13th April 2021 only) and the necessary hands-on session materials. Please notice that the number of seats is limited (for both lectures and practical sessions). Participation will be confirmed on a first-come, first-served basis, upon confirmation of registration fee payment. The time slot (morning or afternoon) for each practical session is subject to confirmation. This information will be provided to the participants upon registration.

This 4th edition of the WoN includes 3 selected short-talks from students and junior researchers. We thus invite the participants to submit their recent work on neuroengineering and specifically on brain-on-chip platforms. Your submitted Abstract should be 1 page PDF with no more than 500 words, but may include figures.

REGISTRATION FEES:

Early bird registration: Until 1st March 2021 | Payment deadline: 8th March 2021
Hands-On Session only: 50€ (for one hands-on session)
Lectures only: 25€
Full workshop: 60€

Regular registration: Between 2nd March and 22nd March 2021 | Payment deadline: 29th March 2021
Hands-On Session only: 70€ (for one hands-on session)
Lectures only: 40€
Full workshop: 80€

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