NCE 2007 San Francisco - Highlights of Work and Fun for Senior Members
View all of the pictures from NCE 2007
Read a summary of NCE 2007 by Lucy Crain MD (Program Chair) in Senior Bulletin (Page 3)
>> Bronwyn Anders MD FAAP accepts the 2007 Section for Senior Members Advocacy Award.
SFSM Chairperson Av Katcher MD FAAP  leads the Executive Committee discussion on Strategic Planning and other issues.
Drs. Lucy Crain and Jerry Aronson confer on Strategic Planning issues. 
Guest Ken Slaw PhD, Director of Membership  provided an overview of Strategic Planning that the SFSM hopes to accomplish during 2008.
Section Scientific Meeting, planned by Lucy Crain MD FAAP and George Cohen MD FAAP, presented extraordinary speakers discussing the pathophysiology of cognitive decline as part of the aging process, including but not limited to Alzheimer's Disease. Help is on the way, the speakers said, in the form of new drugs currently in Phase III trials. Elegant research work demonstrates that future prevention of Alzheimer's Disease will begin in childhood. For example, Down's Syndrome children exhibit many of the anatomic finding of Alzheimers in their brains at an early age. The session was well attended with over 60 attendees.
Dale E. Bredesen MD discussed "Genes, Aging and Disease". Dr. Bredesen is with the Buck Institute. He presented elegant research from his lab and others on Alzheimer's Disease using transgenic mice. The biochemical, anatomic, and pathophysiology of Alzheimer's Disease, as well as other neuro-degenerative diseases of aging was described. Dr. Bredesen highlighted enzymatic processes in the development of Amyloid Factor 42 (the abnormal protein found in Alzheimer's Disease responsible for plaque and fibril development) and indicated where these processes could be stopped by drugs in current clinical trials.
Bruce Miller MD, a neurologist, presented "Strategies for Staying Sharp: Behavioral Interventions Gleaned from Neuro-Cognitive Research". He advised that we should not stop playing Bridge or Sudoku; however, their value is over-rated. Dr. Miller's optimism over Phase III Clinical Trials of certain Alzheimer's drugs was exciting to hear. Attendees learned that Alzheimer's Disease may be most successfully treated, in the future, during its pre-clinical phases, in childhood based upon genetic work with APO4 genome. Indeed, children with Down's Syndrome, have amyloid deposition in brain similar to Alzheimer's patients.
Martin Peru MD, our last speaker, provided an excellent talk on "Stem Cell Research 101: Overview of the Basics of Stem-Cell Research Plus Current and Future Clinical Applications". Despite substantial political and ethical issues association with the development and harvesting of embryonic stem cells, there is significant progress being made on therapies based on stem cell research that are already being applied in the field of regenerative medicine.
 To read a more detailed summary of the Scientific Session by SFSM Education Coordinator Lucy Crain MD FAAP, CLICK HERE.
The Scientific Session ended with a delightful reception in honor of Dr. Anders, Advocacy Award Recipient, and the many members of the Section for Senior Members in attendance. 
Enjoy the pictures of your colleagues. To view all of the pictures from NCE 2007 and The Section for Senior Members, CLICK HERE.
 Benjamin Silverman MD FAAP receives the AAP Section of Pediatric Emergency Medicine "Jim Seidel Career Award for Distinguished Service at AAP NCE in October 2007. 
Click Here to view the text of Dr. Silverman's acceptance speech. Click Here to view his Power Point slides and reminisce. (Webmaster Note - the slide presentation is very large. Download only if you have DSL or Cable hi-speed Internet; please be patient.)
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