CUSTOM PUBLISHING

Medical systems around the world are at capacity. Patients frequently complain that their doctors spend insufficient time with them to really understand their ailments. Furthermore, doctors are hesitant to admit that they do not know a patient’s diagnosis. Time constraints and financial pressures push doctors to make quick diagnoses and get the patient out the door. For patients with rare diseases, the situation is even more trying. The average delay for a patient to receive a diagnosis is 5 to 7 years, during which time they will have seen an average of over seven different doctors. Often forgotten are the humanistic burdens of the diagnostic odyssey. Imagine not being able to find the cause of your child’s suffering for years on end. Imagine the stress, the pain, the frustration, and a growing sense of hopelessness in the wake of that suffering. In addition, the psychological burden for the patient and caregivers is huge, affecting their emotional and mental well-being, which in turn impacts their ability to properly care for their loved one. Add to this the financial burden that can be accrued by a family going from one health care provider to another seeking answers.

How best to support patients with a rare disease is ill-defined. Medical teams, especially doctors, are often insufficiently trained to explain to patients that they do not have the answers—or even know how to get them. Health care systems are not equipped to provide the psychological and social support patients need. Genetic counseling is complex in the setting of undiagnosed patients. Layered on this is the complexity of supporting the mental or physical disabilities that many patients with a rare disease must manage, whether they have a diagnosis or not.The humanistic support of patients with rare diseases and their families needs to improve. In this webinar, we’ll meet experts who struggle with these issues and can help guide us on how to do better.

This webinar will last for approximately 60 minutes.

Stress granules (SGs) are a type of biomolecular condensate that consist of membraneless compartments formed in cells through liquid–liquid phase separation (LLPS). They have been shown to concentrate proteins such as RNA-binding proteins (RBPs) to enable biochemical reactions. When cells are exposed to acute biotic and abiotic stress, nuclear RBPs translocate to the cytoplasm and nucleate to form SGs and promote cell survival. Mutations in SG proteins, including TIA1, FUS, TDP43, and hnRNPA1, have been observed in neurodegenerative disorders such as Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s disease, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), and frontotemporal dementia (FTD), indicating a potential link between the mechanisms that regulate LLPS and disease progression. Studies suggest that the SG liquid–liquid state undergoes an aberrant phase transition to a more solid-like state, potentially leading to the formation of tau and other protein aggregates. Thus, further understanding of the mechanisms that control LLPS, such as nucleocytoplasmic transport or posttranslational modification, presents a new paradigm for aggregate formation that can lead to new, transformative therapeutics.

During the webinar, viewers will:

• Learn about different factors influencing SG dynamics
• Hear about recently discovered phase separation mechanisms regulating SG proteins implicated in ALS and FTD
• Gain insight into the link between SG behavior and neurodegenerative disease
• Be able to ask questions during the live broadcast.

This webinar will last for approximately 60 minutes.

Spatial biology is transforming the field of molecular biology by allowing the study of cells within their tissue context. It enables scientists to map tissue architecture and to interrogate cell-to-cell interactions and dependencies. Such granularity is not achieved with any other existing tool.

Spatial biology helps scientists studying oncology, immuno-oncology, immunology, neuroscience, and infectious diseases. In this webinar, the speakers will discuss the benefit of using spatial biology across multiple disciplines. Alexander Klimowicz from Boehringer Ingelheim, Ridgefield, Connecticut, will describe how spatial immunofluorescence can address a broad array of complex questions and help us gain insight into myeloid cell phenotypes associated with Crohn’s disease pathology. Jared Burks from MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, Texas, will focus on the spatial distribution of cells in tissues of the tumor microenvironment. Janis Taube from Johns Hopkins University of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, will discuss the mapping of solid tumors using multiplexing technology.

In this webinar, viewers will:

• Learn the benefits of performing spatial biology applications for their research
• Discover how to perform immune-cell profiling and correlate cell phenotypes to specific pathological conditions
• Explore how an open platform is crucial to integrate spatial biology for biopharmaceutical translational research
• Hear about the latest trends in spatial biology, from basic research to translational applications
• Have an opportunity to ask questions during the live broadcast.

This webinar will last for approximately 60 minutes.