The NextGen Symposium

The NextGen Symposium brings together early-career scientists working on protein aggregation to foster collaboration and networking in a welcoming, interdisciplinary environment. This half-day event takes place on June 28, 2025, just before the main FASEB Protein Aggregation: Polymorphic Species Conference. Participants can share their research, exchange ideas, and build professional connections.

Key Details:

Date: June 28, 2025 (Morning before the main FASEB conference)
Location: Omni Scottsdale Resort & Spa at Montelucia (Same venue as the main FASEB conference)
Audience: Early-career researchers in the protein aggregation field

Abstract Deadline: May 16, 2025, 11:59 PM ET - (You may submit the same abstract for both the NextGen Symposium and the main FASEB conference. Being selected for a NextGen talk does not prevent you from presenting at the main conference.)
Registration Deadline: July 2, 2025
Registration Fee: $120 - Limited financial assistance (fee waivers or partial reimbursement) may be available, depending on funding. Please email the organizers if interested.
Main Conference Registration: You must also register for the main FASEB Protein Aggregation Conference to attend this Symposium.

How to Register:

Click the red "Register Now" button at the top of the page and proceed through the main conference registration then on page 5, select the NextGen option.

9 – 10 am: Session 1: Molecular and Cellular Mechanisms of Protein Folding, Misfolding, Phase Separation and Aggregation

9 – 9:20 am: Alex Von Schulze – “Reexamining the Role of Proteasomal Inhibition in Amyloid Beta 42 Nucleation.”
9:20 – 9:40 am: Madeline Hatch – “Toward Determining Amyloid Fibril Structures Using Experimental Constraints from Raman Spectroscopy.”
9:40 – 10 am: Henry S. Pan – “Novel Tau Filament Folds in Individuals with Frontotemporal Degeneration Caused by Familial Tau Mutation.”
10 – 10:30 am: Break
10:30 – 10:50 am: Ryan Limbocker – “An Aminosterol Breaks the Autocatalytic Cycle of Aβ42 Aggregation, Dissociates its Fibrils, and Protects Cell membranes from its Soluble Aggregates.”
10:50 – 11:10 am: Sashary Ramos – “Vibrational Spectroscopic Studies of TDP-43 C-Terminal Domain Condensates.”
11:10 – 11:30 am: Xinrui Gui – “Heterotypic Buffering via Biomolecular Condensates Suppresses Protein Fibril Formation.”

11:30 am – 1 pm: Lunch

1 – 3:30 pm: Session 2: Functional Amyloids, Disease-Associated Amyloids, Neurodegenerative and Prion-Like Diseases

1 – 1:20 pm: Alejandra Gomez – “Sex-specific Roles of Cystatin-related Epididymal Spermatogenic (CRES) and CRES Amyloids in the Brain Extracellular Matrix.”
1:20 – 1:40 pm: Binh A. Nguyen – “Structural Variability of Apolipoprotein A-I Amyloid Fibrils across Organs, Mutations, and Clinical Presentations, Revealed by Cryo-EM.”
1:40 – 2 pm: Brajabandhu Pradhan – “Medin Drives Aβ40 Polymorphism Toward an Aβ42-like Conformation by Stabilizing N-Terminal Structure.”
2 – 2:30 pm: Break
2:30 – 2:50 pm: Jack P. Connor – “Structural and Thermodynamic Classification of Amyloid Polymorphs.”
2:50 – 3:10 pm: Joshua E. Mayfield – “Glycosylation and Multisite Binding Dictate the Cellular Prion Protein Interaction with NMDAR Subunit Glun1.”
3:10 – 3:30 pm: Maria del Carmen Fernandez-Ramirez – “Insights into the Structural Polymorphism of ex-vivo ATTR Fibrils.”

3:30 – 4 pm: Break

4 – 5 pm: Poster Session

P1 Shumaila Afrin: “Structural Polymorphism of ALECT2 Amyloid Fibrils Revealed by Cryo-EM: Implications for Disease Pathogenesis.”
P2 Parker Bassett: “Structural Diversity and Polymorphism in Amyloid Fibrils from Single Organs and Single Patients with Al Amyloidosis.”
P3 Lexie Berkowicz: “Disease Subtyping via a Novel DAmFRET Biosensing Approach.”
P4 Katherine Dewison: “The Importance of Monomer Conformation in Amyloid Formation of Α-Synuclein Splice Variants.”
P5 Mariana J. Do Amaral: “Mechanisms of Formation and Composition of Mutant Prion Protein Aggregates and Condensates.”
S2-6/P6 Maria del Carmen Fernandez-Ramirez: “Insights into the Structural Polymorphism of ex-vivo ATTR Fibrils.”
P7 Kimberly Garza: “Germ Granules in Mammalian Spermatozoa: Proteinaceous Carriers of Cytosolic Inheritance?”
P8 Yoshiko Nakagawa: “Amyloid Conformation-Dependent Disaggregation Revealed by Real-Time Fluorescent Imaging.”
P9 Hannah Kimbrough: “A Tool to Dissect Heterotypic Determinants of Homotypic Protein Phase Behavior.”
P10 Rahul Kumar: “The Effect of Heat on Asc-Pyd Filament Formation in Microdroplets.”
P11 Johnathan R. Pinc: “Structure-activity Relationships to Investigate the Cytotoxic Behavior of Protein Misfolded Oligomers and Pore-Forming Peptides.”
P12 Wenhao Song: Filensin: “A Hypothetical Functional Amyloid in the Lens.”
S2-4/P13 Jack P. Connor: “Structural and Thermodynamic Classification of Amyloid Polymorphs.”
S2-1/P14 Alejandra Gomez: “Sex-specific Roles of Cystatin-related Epididymal Spermatogenic (CRES) and CRES Amyloids in the Brain Extracellular Matrix.”
S1-6/P15 Xinrui Gui: “Heterotypic Buffering via Biomolecular Condensates Suppresses Protein Fibril Formation.”
S1-2/P16 Madeline Hatch: “Toward Determining Amyloid Fibril Structures Using Experimental Constraints from Raman Spectroscopy.”
S1-4/P17 Ryan Limbocker: “An Aminosterol Breaks the Autocatalytic Cycle of Aβ42 Aggregation, Dissociates its Fibrils, and Protects Cell membranes from its Soluble Aggregates.”
S2-5/P18 Joshua E. Mayfield: “Glycosylation and Multisite Binding Dictate the Cellular Prion Protein Interaction with NMDAR Subunit Glun1.”
S2-2/P19 Binh A. Nguyen: “Structural Variability of Apolipoprotein A-I Amyloid Fibrils across Organs, Mutations, and Clinical Presentations, Revealed by Cryo-EM.”
S1-3/P20 Henry S. Pan: “Novel Tau Filament Folds in Individuals with Frontotemporal Degeneration Caused by Familial Tau Mutation.”
S12-3/P21 Brajabandhu Pradhan: “Medin Drives Aβ40 Polymorphism Toward an Aβ42-like Conformation by Stabilizing N-Terminal Structure.”
S1-5/P22 Sashary Ramos: “Vibrational Spectroscopic Studies of TDP-43 C-Terminal Domain Condensates.”
S1-1/P24 Alex Von Schulze: “Reexamining the Role of Proteasomal Inhibition in Amyloid Beta 42 Nucleation.”

Saturday, June 28, 2025