Brain Talks

The increasing number of people living with two or more chronic disorders (multimorbidities) poses an urgent need to better understand underlying mechanisms for better prevention and care throughout the life course. Somatic disorders e.g., type 2 diabetes and brain disorders e.g., Alzheimer’s disorder often co-occur. If a single molecule was the key to some of the greatest health challenges of our time, what would tomorrow look like?

The EU-funded PRIME project aims to unravel the insulin-dependent mechanisms underlying both somatic conditions (e.g., type 2 diabetes, obesity, metabolic syndrome) and brain disorders (e.g., Alzheimer’s disease, obsessive-compulsive disorder, autism spectrum disorders).

In this new Brain Talks episode on the integration of mental and somatic health, Sam Pauly sat down with two partners in this EU-funded project PRIME: Silke Matura, Group Leader at the Goethe University Hospital, and Simone Macri, Researcher at the Italian National Institute of Health.

The Covid-19 pandemic shed a crude light on how instrumental research and innovation are in the European Union. This crisis revealed significant disparities and fractures between Member States. More importantly, patients living with neurological or mental disorders were heavily impacted by the pandemic, and faced tremendous challenges to maintain their access to care and to meet their medical needs.

In this episode, Frederic Destrebecq, Executive Director of the European Brain Council, Christian Suojanen, Founder & CEO of Broadreach Global, and Professor Michel Goldman, renowned medical doctor and researcher, discuss the post-pandemic European landscape, and address the major challenges and opportunities for brain research and innovation in the EU.

From fostering a collaborative climate within the wider brain community to an ambitious European Brain Research and Innovation Plan, join our journey on what it takes to make brain research and innovation a European priority for the 21st century.

This Brain Talks episode on Urban Environment and Brain Health features two projects on brain health, funded by the European Union under the same main programme (H2020-EU.3.1. - SOCIETAL CHALLENGES - Health, demographic change and well-being): BRAINTEASER and eMOTIONAL Cities.

Evidence shows that environmental factors may influence both the aetiology and the progression of a number of brain conditions. Through cost-effective sensors and apps, a comprehensive analysis of clinical, lifestyle and environmental data and predictive/preventive AI models for patient stratification and disease progression, BRAINTEASER aims to better inform people living with MS and ALS and support clinical decision making in 4 urban areas: Madrid, Turin, Lisbon and Pavia.

Urban living is associated to an increase in mood and anxiety disorders, drugs addiction and risk of schizophrenia and psychosis. Through urban stress research, emotional mapping, urban prevention and therapy research, eMOTIONAL Cities aims to explore how urban planning and design could positively impact brain health in 4 cities: Lisbon, Copenhagen, London and Lansing.

Despite the burden, migraine is not consistently recognized in health policy. However, countries are making progress and establishing a way forward for patients.

In the latest Brain Talks episode, Sam Pauly sat down with Dawn Carlson, AbbVie's Vice-President of Neuroscience Clinical Development, and Alessandra Sorrentino, migraine patient and representative of Alleanza Cefalalgici, to discuss promising developments in migraine care, management, and policy prioritization.

This episode was recorded in partnership with AbbVie.

In this third episode of Brain Talks | Season 3, Alice Medialia (Columbia University), Péter Kéri (GAMIAN-Europe), and John Saunders (EUFAMI) sat down with Sam Pauly to share some thoughts and advices on how to ensure the meaningful engagement of patients with lived experiences of mental health conditions.

In partnership with Boehringer Ingelheim, this episode was recorded live from the third edition of the Brain Innovation Days

Join us for the second episode of this new season of Brain Talks, where Dimitrios Georgiopoulos, Global Business Franchise Head for Neurology and Immunology at Merck Healthcare, delves into the world of Multiple Sclerosis (MS) care.Discover Merck's patient-centered approach and explore the challenges and opportunities for young people living with MS in the EU. With 2.9 million people affected, this is a conversation that impacts us all.

Brain Talks are back for a third season!


Join us in unveiling the highly anticipated 2023 edition of the Brain Innovation Days with Prof. Suzanne Dickson, President of the European Brain Council, and Frédéric Destrebecq, Executive Director of EBC.

Tune in to the new podcast episode to hear Sam Pauly talk with two expert guests Professor Asgeir Jakola, Director of the European Association of Neurosurgical Societies (EANS) Research Fund & Dr Victor Staartjes, a neurosurgery resident at the University Hospital Zurich. They look at how the EANS Research Fund facilitates neurosurgical research across Europe.

In today's Brain Talk, we’ll be looking at the role technology currently plays in neurosurgery. We are joined by Dr Pieter Kubben, a neurosurgeon at Maastricht University Medical Center and the founder of the Neuromind App and Dr. Marike Broekman, a neurosurgeon in the Department of Neurosurgery at Leiden University Medical Center. She is the first female board member of the European Association of Neurosurgical Associations or EANS, and her main clinical and research interests focus on Neuro-Oncology and Ethics.

We're back from our summer break and our host, Sam Pauly, is delighted to be joined today by Dr Orla Galvin, Executive Director of the European Federation of Neurological Associations (EFNA) to discuss the important role patients play in guiding policy and leading advocacy in the brain space, particularly as the "experts" in their own brain conditions. A common phrase in the community always is, "nothing about us without us", a strong call to decision-makers to ensure that the people most affected by their decisions are involved from the beginning.

Accompanied by Dr Elke De Witte, Head of Project Development at the European Brain Council, Sam explores the importance of patient involvement in policy and advocacy, the challenges and roadblocks faced to do so (and how to overcome them) and innovative approaches for improvement at present and in the future.

For more information, visit http://efna.net/ and braininnovationdays.eu