Outreach Events
Brain Awareness Week 2009
Naples, 18 - 20 March 2009
On 18, 19 and 20 March 2009, the Stazione Zoologica Anton Dohrn in Napoli hosted the international week dedicated to the neurosciences: seminars, experiments, posters and videos to talk about the brain and its secrets.
As every year since 1996, many cities in the world have celebrated the BAW 2009 (Brain Awareness Week), an outreach event characterized by seminars, debates posters and exhibitions to promote the research on the brain. In Napoli, this event is at the second edition (the first was last year) and has been really successful. The event has been organized at the Stazione Zoologica Anton Dohrn inside the “Villa Comunale” nearby the sea on 18, 19 and 20 March 2009, from 9:30 to 18:30.The organizing institutions were: TIGEM (TELETHON Institute of Genetics and Medicine), ANISN (Associazione Nazionale Insegnati di Scienze Naturali), Università degli studi di Napoli Federico II, ELLS (European Learning Laboratory for the Life Sciences) - a facility of EMBL (European Molecular Biology Laboratory), IGB (Istituto di Genetica e Biofisica Adriano Buzzati- Traverso), and SZN (Stazione Zoologica Anton Dohrn). The event, aimed at high school teachers, students and at the general public, lasted for 3 days and focused on different aspects of brain research (brain development, adult brain and diseased brain).
The first day, coordinated by Michéle Studer from the TIGEM, was entirely dedicated to brain development. In the morning, the scientific seminars about the evolution of the nervous system (presented by Paolo Bazzicalupo, Paolo Sordino, Christian Alfano e Gemma Fiore) attracted many teachers and students. A success replicated in the afternoon with the session on psychobiology of childhood and on the role of music during early children development presented by Chiara D’Alessio. There were several practical demonstrations organized during the day such as staining techniques to analyse the brain tissues in order to detect neuronal damage induced by specific diseases. Sections of different brain tissues were shown to the audience and observed through a staining with the Nissl method, or with antibodies or through the expression of fluorescent proteins in the genetically modified tissues. The students could learn how to use the microscopes to follow neuronal migration during development and neuronal damage.
The scientific seminars of the second day - focused on the adult brain and coordinated by Graziano Fiorito from the SZN - illustrated the connection between brain and behaviour and the mechanism of memory. The first seminar on “brain and music” by Renato Musto - explaining the reciprocity between the notes and the nervous system - was extremely successful, as well as the seminar on “mirror neurons” - a population of neurons activated by an action and by the observation of the same actions performed by another person – given by Luca Bonini. The public attended with a strong interest also the other seminars (“Exciting excitability” by Maurizio Taglialatela, “Brain and memory” by Elvira de Leonibus, “Cognitive neurosciences” by Massimiliano Conson and “The cybernetic model of intelligence” by Barbara Mussi) and interacted with numerous comments and questions. The practical demonstrations of the day consisted in the observation of organisms such as copepods, squids and the worm Caenorhabditis elegans, used as model organisms for the study of neurons. Two small robots, a dog and a dinosaur, were the main attraction of the whole event: they have been developed by the Scuola Superiore Sant’Anna in the frame of a project aimed at understanding biological processes through the generation of biomimetic robots. These models are very useful for the diagnostic of neonatal infarction and the rehabilitation of the affected children.
The last day and session, coordinated by Carla Perrone Capano from the “Università di Napoli Federico II” focused on the study of the diseased brain, with seminars and videos aimed at understanding different clinical conditions: neurodegenerative diseases, traumatic brain injury, “in vivo” imaging techniques, psychological disorders. In the opening seminar Giuseppe de Michele illustrated the condition and the causes of a “non functioning” brain while Lucio Annunziato presented the pharmaceutical strategies available for different brain diseases. During the rest of the day the public was entertained by the numerous interactive activities: video projections, posters and practical tests – such as neuropsychological tests. Also in this session the students could observe neuronal cells and tissues at the microscope, and watch a video on the “deep brain stimulation” technique. Angiola Maria Fasano (Ospedale Cardarelli di Napoli) presented a very interesting session dedicated to the role of art in Alzheimer’s patients, and the counsellors of the “Istituto di Psicoterapia Relazionale di Napoli” designed some tests for the young students attending the event.
The event has attracted hundreds of high school students, teachers and people that were interested in the topic, providing them with information and support material to facilitate the understanding and the teaching of the nervous system. The different ways of communication, coexisting during the event, gave the public the chance to approach new and difficult themes from different perspectives.