Thinking in Code

Our brain is one of the most complex biological systems we know. Despite multiple decades of study, it still hides many mysteries that we need to uncover.
How do individual nerve cells create the complexity of our nervous system simply by working together? How do they organize themselves to form the various neural circuits that govern thought, movement, and much more? Can we understand how the shape of individual cells and circuits determines their function? And how can we prevent the damage caused by aging or diseases to these networks of cells?
Andrea Serio and his team study the nervous system, particularly how the shape and function of nerve cells and circuits are shaped by evolution and altered by various neurodegenerative diseases.
To understand how these circuits work (or stop working), Dr. Serio and his team have developed various methods to recreate them in the lab, piece by piece, like a model kit, starting from stem cells.
To build these "circuits in a dish," Andrea and his team work in an interdisciplinary way, using different resources and methods such as tissue bioengineering, neurobiology, physics, and biomedical engineering. During this event, Dr. Serio will present the main discoveries of his group, the technologies his lab has developed to recreate the nervous system in the lab, and how these can be used to find new treatments for neurodegenerative diseases.