A gift for science
The Williamson Chair in Neurosci - ence has its first incumbent: Sara Lagal- war, who joined the Skidmore faculty this fall. Given by longtime trustee and benefactor Susan Kettering Williamson ’59 during Skidmore’s “Creative Thought, Bold Promise” campaign, the endowed professorship recognizes and supports faculty excellence in the field, honors the memory of her late husband, world- renowned Dartmouth neurologist and epilepsy expert Peter Williamson, and underscores her own deep commitment to Skidmore’s undergraduate education. Lagalwar earned her PhD at North- western University and went on for post- doctoral research at the University of Minnesota. Scope caught up with her just before she moved to Skidmore.
Why Skidmore? It’s been exciting to see the integration of neuroscience into small colleges in recent years, but I was still surprised to find that Skidmore has had an established program for years. It’s great to join a team of faculty already teaching in neurobiology and neuropsychology and conducting re- search with undergraduates.
What courses are you teaching? “Cellular and Molecular Neuroscience,” which prepares students for advanced courses in neuroscience and biology, and “Mechanisms of Neurodegeneration,” which delves into the neurobiological basis of diseases such as Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s.
How do you involve students in your research? In every step—from learning the biological concepts and research tools and techniques to formu-
Can you briefly describe your re- search? I am interested in cellular trig- gers of neurodegeneration (neuron death). Carefully regulated, highly com- plex signaling pathways control the nor- mal functioning of neurons throughout our lives, but individuals with neuro- logical disease have slight alter- ations to these pathways. If we can pinpoint early on in a pa- tient’s life what alterations are occurring and how they af- fect the cellular path- ways, we may be able to maintain normal function in the neu- rons and prevent neuronal death.
So, will
“IT’S BEEN EXCITING TO SEE THE INTEGRATION OF
NEUROSCIENCE INTO SMALL COLLEGES IN RECENT YEARS, AND IT’S GREAT TO JOIN A TEAM OF FACULTY ALREADY TEACHING AND CONDUCTING RESEARCH IN THE FIELD.”
lating hypotheses, from conducting lab experiments and analyzing and inter- preting the data to potentially writing manuscripts for publication.
we see progress on Alzheimer’s? Alzheimer’s is a challenging disease because there is no easily identifiable cause. But I’m opti- mistic. Research is growing rapidly, and the technology with which we can comb through genomes has exploded. I think it’s a matter of time before we may be able to assess a per- son’s likelihood of de- veloping sporadic (nonfamilial) Alzheimer’s.
What would you like the average person to under-
stand about the disease? Alzheimer’s is so devastating because it slowly pro- gresses through the brain, triggering new symptoms as it goes—from early minor memory loss to later major changes in
personality and behavior. It is difficult to watch this happen in a loved one, but important to remember that it’s a conse- quence of disease. Friends and family can be a huge resource by sharing their stories with each other and with re- searchers.
How can colleges and universities educate more scientists? Science is such a highly dynamic and creative field of study, and we should present it to stu- dents that way. The more we can involve them in research, present them with cut- ting-edge literature, and give them novel problems to solve, the more students will become passionate about science. Skid- more has already created this type of en- vironment, and I am looking forward to being a part of it. —KG
FALL 2012 SCOPE 13
JOSEPH LEVY
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