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The 911����������� showcased its growing impact in the field of neuroscience research at the 2024 Society for Neuroscience (SfN) Annual Meeting, held in Chicago from Oct. 5-9, with nearly two dozen faculty, student, and professional members of 911�����������’s research community represented.

The 2024 conference drew approximately 23,000 neuroscientists from across the world. With eight faculty members, two professional staff, and 13 students in attendance, the event provided a platform for 911����������� researchers to present their findings, engage in public outreach, build infrastructure, and connect with international experts to discuss pedagogy and research methods.

Key contributions came from the following research entities at the University.

The Burman Collaborative

The Burman Lab — known as after director Michael Burman, Ph.D., professor of psychology and director of the School of Social and Behavioral Sciences — is dedicated to understanding and discovering treatments for the effects of neonatal trauma on the brain.

Researchers from the lab focused their conference agenda on the effects of this early-life stress, giving three presentations on their research on the lasting impacts of neonatal intensive care unit-type experiences in a session entitled “Processing Threats and Pain.”

Left: (From left) Willard Swift, Michael Burman, Brooklyn Merrill, and Megan Tomash at the 2024 Society for Neuroscience Annual Meeting. Right: Willard Smith poses in front of his research poster examining stress in zebrafish embryos .

The session highlighted the work of Brooklynn Merrill (Neuroscience, ’24); Emma Naess, B.S. ’23, M.S. ’24 (Biological Sciences); and Megan Tomash, a Ph.D. student at the University of Maine Graduate School of Biomedical Science and Engineering (GSBSE).

Additionally, Willard Swift (Neuroscience, ’25) presented the lab’s research on stress in zebrafish embryos during a session on neural and physiological effects of early-life stress.

Merrill’s and Swift’s research was made possible with funding from the Kahn Family Foundation.

Burman, who recently concluded his role on SfN’s Public Education and Communications Committee, helped organize a press conference titled “Pain in the Brain: New Models, Mechanisms, and Targets.” The event highlighted new advances in pain research from four recent studies that have resulted in at least one published article. 

Behavior Core