Student Blog - 2nd Targeting Therapy of Alzheimer’s and Related Neurodegenerative Diseases Virtual Conference, 1- 3 November 2021

By: Amy

In the beginning of November as the leaves turned brown and cold winds begin to blow. I was able to attend the 2nd Targeting Therapy of Alzheimer's and Related Neurodegenerative Diseases Virtual Conference from the comfort of my own home. This was vital for me as being in the UK there was a time difference of a few hours which allowed me able to keep up with completing my master's dissertation in the morning so that I could attend the conference in the afternoon and learn some intriguing and novel science. 

The conference was well organised with enough sessions on each day to fill everyone's stomach with scientific knowledge. I have a wide range of scientific interests so a lot of the sessions took my fancy and I attended many of them. 
From sessions on the gut microbiome in modulating amyloidosis to ways to repair the brain to the use of brain organoids. It was fascinating to learn from experts in their fields. I can't say that one talk was better than the rest because even though I read a lot of scientific literature. I still found new insights. That is the beauty of conferences and science. There is always something else to learn. 

The timings of the sessions were great. Short and snappy 15 minute sessions allowed for your brain to be uploaded with new information followed by a Q & A session straight afterwards so you could ask those all-important questions. The timings of the sessions gave ample time to learn new information while not being too long that they tire you out. As each day was only 4 hours long you felt more refreshed at the end than in the beginning. I also liked how they had 'Meet the Speaker' sessions at the end of the day. This allowed you to ask any questions that you may not have had to chance to or popped in your head later on. A brilliant idea. 

They also had posters, which was great. Another opportunity to learn and interact with scientists and their research. 

Overall, the conference was outstanding and is the first virtual conference hosted by Fusion conferences makes this an even larger achievement. With excellent speakers,  good timing and great connection what isn't there to like? I am going to be attending their future conferences and you should too!

Blog written by Abdullah Iqbal (University of Leeds)