It’s the American Neurological Association‘s 140th Annual meeting in Chicago this weekend and my first attendance. It is holding at the grand Marriott Hotel on The Magnificent Mile.

It is a rigorously academic meeting and the highlight for me on the first day is the presentation by the Gross Awardee, Dena Dubal, on the longevity protein Klotho. Heterozygote variants of its gene appears to confer longevity, enhance cognition, and prevent neurodegenerative diseases. It’s almost too good to be true- but her research is practically faultless.

‘What happens if one has the homozygote variant?’ she was asked during Q and A. Unfortunately and paradoxically a double dose of the variant results in faster aging!

Her lab’s site has more to say on her research into aging and neuroscience-well worth bookmarking.