Dialogue on Dementia: What the Early Stages and Related Diseases Teach Us

Alfredo Ramirez, M.D., Ph.D., division head of the Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy at the University of Cologne at Cologne, Germany, leads research focusing on the genetics and epigenetics of complex neurodegenerative diseases. Research studies have ​laid the groundwork for research on genetics and epigenetics of prodromal Alzheimer’s disease dementia and its progression by establishing strong ties with other research groups working on genetics and functional genomics of Alzheimer’s disease. The collaborative research activities were pivotal for recruitment of a large longitudinal sample of patients at-risk for an Alzheimer’s disease dementia, namely mild cognitive impairment patients. In 2016, his group expanded research interest into the molecular biology of genes involved in neurodegeneration.

Joshua M. Shulman M.D., Ph.D., associate professor of Neurology, Neuroscience, and Molecular & Human Genetics at Baylor College of Medicine at Waco, Texas and Investigator in the Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute at Texas Children’s Hospital, received an A.B. in Biochemical Sciences from Harvard College, and his Ph.D. in Genetics from Cambridge University. He subsequently studied at Harvard Medical School and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, where he received his M.D., and completed his neurology residency and fellowship training at the Brigham & Women's Hospital and the Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston.

Dr. Shulman's research focuses on understanding the genetic architecture and pathogenesis of neurodegenerative disorders, including Parkinson’s disease and Alzheimer's disease, integrating genetic studies in human subjects with functional investigation in experimental animal models.