Methods for Studying Human Cerebellar Structure and Function is a 2-day workshop for investigators with an interest in applying modern anatomical and physiological methods to the study of human cerebellar function. It is a satellite event of the 2011 Society for Neuroscience Meeting in Washington, DC.

While it has long been known that the cerebellum is involved in a broad range of sensorimotor and cognitive processes, it is only recently that technical advances in neuroimaging and neurophysiological methods have allowed investigation of these phenomena in humans. This workshop will serve to bring together basic and clinical neuroscientists interested in human cerebellar structure/function relationships to share their experience relevant to the technical aspects of cerebellar investigation. 
  
Presentations will cover the principal methods currently in use to study human cerebellar function, including: (1) magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) of cerebellar structure, (2) transcranial magnetic stimulation as a neurodisruptive probe of cerebellar function, (3) functional MRI connectivity studies of cortico-cerebellar loop organization, (4) task-related functional MRI studies of cerebellar function, (5) MRI meta-analysis approaches to cerebellar function, and (6) focal and neurodegenerative lesion analysis of cerebellar function.
 
On the first day of the workshop, a lunch-time reception and poster session will allow participants to share their recent findings and will provide an opportunity to discuss opportunities for future efforts. 

The course will be held on the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine campus in Baltimore, Maryland from November 10-11, 2011. Directions to the classroom in the School of Nursing Building can be found here.

Register for the workshop here. Registration at the main SfN meeting in Washington is not required to attend this workshop.

Make payment using PAYPAL here.

The workshop is sponsored by the Johns Hopkins Center for Brain Imaging Science.

The workshop organizers are Cherie Marvel, Jacinda Dariotis and Thomas Zeffiro.

Poster Sessions

During the lunch break on Thursday and Friday we are arranging catered poster receptions to allow participants to share their current work. Although there is limited display space for posters in the meeting area, we will accommodate as many as possible. The registration process must be completed at the time of poster submission. To submit after your registration is already completed, please mail an abstract in SfN format to cerebellum@neurometrika.org. Please include your last name in the file name.

SFN-accepted posters may be presented, as well as posters from outside conferences in other formats. SFN posters are generally 3' H x 4' W (.9 m x 1.2 m). Note that for this symposium, poster boards will measure 6' H x 6' W (1.8 m x 1.8 m). This could be a good opportunity for you to share the findings you will be presenting at the SfN meeting the following week.

Accommodations

A hotel map can be found here.

Transportation

From Washington, D.C. you can take the MARC train, which runs from Union Station in Washington, DC to Penn Station in Baltimore. Here is the MARC train schedule: http://mta.maryland.gov/news/new-penn-line-schedule

From Penn Station in Baltimore, attendees can take a free Johns Hopkins-operated shuttle to the medical school campus.  Take the “JHMI to Homewood Bus Route”, and get off at Monument and Wolfe St.  Route map and schedule can be found here: http://www.parking.jhu.edu/shuttles_jhmi_homewood.html

Current Speaker List

Amy Bastian, Ph.D.
Pablo Celnik, M.D.
John Desmond, Ph.D.
Joern Diedrichsen, Ph.D.
Cherie Marvel, Ph.D.
Chris Miall, Ph.D
Rachael Seidler, Ph.D.
Reza Shadmehr, Ph.D.
Catherine Stoodley, Ph.D.
Dagmar Timmann-Braun, M.D.
Thomas Zeffiro, M.D., Ph.D.

Schedule

THURSDAY

8:00AM-9:00AM  Registration and Breakfast (Carpenter Room)

9:00AM-9:30AM  Introduction and Workshop Overview

9:30AM-11:45PM  Using Structural Imaging to Study Cerebellar Function

• Anatomical nomenclature and cerebellar atlases - Zeffiro
• Cerebellar spatial normalization using SUIT - Diedrichsen
• Dentate imaging: methods and applications - Timmann-Braun
• High-resolution study of cerebellar anatomy - Diedrichsen

11:45PM-1:30PM LUNCH (Auditorium Lobby) and POSTER RECEPTION (Carpenter Room)

1:30PM-3:00PM  Using Stimulation to Study Cerebellar Function

• Cerebellar TMS methods and applications - Desmond
• Cerebellar tDCS methods and applications - Celnick

3:15PM-4:30PM  Using Modeling to Study Cerebellar Function

• Historical review of cerebellar modeling - Zeffiro
• Computational approaches to cerebellar modeling - Shadmehr

 4:30-5:30 Happy Hour and Dinner at the James Joyce Pub in Harbor East

FRIDAY

9:00AM-12:30PM  Using fMRI to Study Task-Related Cerebellar Function

• fMRI Basics - Zeffiro
• Cerebellar hemodynamics - Marvel
• Cerebellar fMRI - Motor control - Zeffiro
• Cerebellar fMRI - Adaptation and motor learning - Seidler
• Cerebellar fMRI - Cognition - Marvel
• fMRI meta-analysis methods - Zeffiro
• Cerebellar meta-analysis  - Stoodley

12:30PM-1:30PM  LUNCH (Auditorium Lobby) and POSTER RECEPTION (Carpenter Room)

1:35PM-3:00PM Using fMRI to Study Cerebellar Connectivity

• Bivariate correlation approaches - Zeffiro
• ICA approaches - Miall

3:00PM-3:30PM Models of Cerebellar Function

• Testing forward model theory agaianst the cerebellum - Miall

3:45PM-5:25PM  Using Clinical Samples to Study Cerebellar Function

• Kinematic analysis of cerebellar dysfunction - Bastian
• Functional imaging of cerebellar function - Zeffiro
• Structural lesion analysis: methods - Zeffiro
• Structural lesion analysis: applications - Timmann-Braun

5:25PM-5:30PM  Concluding Remarks