Thank you to everyone who attended the inaugural Translational Glial Sciences Conference. We were delighted to welcome a full house to our first event as the Institute for Glial Sciences, and we are grateful tto welcome so many new glial scientists into our growing community.
We look forward to building on this momentum as we plan for next year’s conference. Stay tuned for updates on our 2026 conference!
The Institute for Glial Sciences was pleased to host the inaugural Translational Glial Sciences Conference on November 4, 2025 at the Sheila and Eric Samson Pavilion of the Health Education Campus of Case Western Reserve University and Cleveland Clinic. The conference brought together scientists at the forefront of glial sciences to share their latest findings on the impact of glia in a range of diseases, along with emerging opportunities to target glia for therapeutic benefit.
The event also marked the launch of the Institute for Glial Sciences, the newest institute at Case Western Reserve University, established to illuminate the hidden role of glia in disease and advance the era of glial medicines.
Agenda
9:30 Online Registration closes
11:30 Check in and Lunch
12:30 Conference begins
Master of Ceremonies: Raeka Aiyar, PhD | Institute for Glial Sciences, Case Western Reserve University
Welcome by Dean Stanton L. Gerson, MD, Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine
12:40 Paul Tesar, PhD | Institute for Glial Sciences, Case Western Reserve University
The IGS Blueprint for Glial Medicines: Lessons from Oligodendrocytes
1:10 Bruce Trapp, PhD | Cleveland Clinic
Plenary Lecture: Glia Cells in the Pathogenesis of Multiple Sclerosis
1:40 Tracy Young-Pearse, PhD | Harvard Medical School, Brigham and Women’s Hospital
Moving beyond amyloid and tau to capture the biological heterogeneity of Alzheimer’s disease using human IPSC models
2:05 Break
2:30 Marissa Scavuzzo, PhD | Institute for Glial Sciences, Case Western Reserve University
Understanding glia in the brain inside your gut
2:45 Allison Bradbury, PhD | Nationwide Children’s Hospital
Development of genetic therapies for inherited pediatric leukodystrophies
3:10 Tyler Miller, MD, PhD | Institute for Glial Sciences, Case Western Reserve University
Redefining and targeting the immune microenvironment in glial diseases
3:25 Dimitry Ofengeim, PhD | Sanofi
Key drivers of disease progression in multiple sclerosis
3:50 Benjamin Clayton, PhD | Institute for Glial Sciences, Case Western Reserve University
Modulating reactive glia to promote neuroprotection
4:05 Break
4:30 Lorenz Studer, MD | Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center
Keynote Address
5:00 Panel discussion: The Promise of Glial Medicines
Panelists: Richard Ransohoff, MD | Paul Tesar, PhD | Tracy Young-Pearse, PhD | Lorenz Studer, MD | Moderator: Raeka Aiyar, PhD
5:45 Conclusion