Supporters and audience members will get an in-depth look at Professor Bronwen Connor’s career and current research on “reprogramming” human skin cells into human brain stem cells. This process allows her lab to generate and study live human brain cells, something researchers have never been able to do before. While studying these live human brain cells, Professor Connor and her team are then able to investigate the cause and progression of neurodevelopmental and neurological conditions by taking specific skin cells from patients living with neurological conditions such as Huntington’s disease or Parkinson’s disease.

Directions and parking

There is parking available at the Holiday Inn Rotorua for guests of the hotel and guests of our event. It is on a first come, first serve basis for hotel parking, but additional on street parking is available around the hotel on Froude Street or Tyron Street.

Once inside the Holiday Inn Rotorua, you will be directed by signage and the concierge as to where the Totara Rooms are located.

Other information

The Neurological Foundation would like to invite all audience members to stay after the presentation is given for a mix and mingle. We will be providing beverages and finger foods starting at 7.30 pm including coffee, tea, orange juice and water.

Please take this opportunity to chat with fellow research and science enthusiasts, and Foundation supporters in your area. The speaker will be available from this hour to answer any additional questions you might have as well.

Meet Professor Bronwen Connor

Bronwen Connor is a professor in Pharmacology and head of the Neural Reprogramming and Repair Lab at the Centre for Brain Research, University of Auckland. Her specific interest is in the development of novel protective or regenerative strategies to treat neurological disease.

Bronwen is a graduate of the University of Auckland, graduating with a BSc in Pharmacology and Physiology in 1994 and a PhD in Neuropharmacology in 1997. She spent 3 years as a post-doctoral fellow at Northwestern University in Chicago, USA. There she undertook ground-breaking research demonstrating the potential use of gene therapy for the treatment of Parkinson’s disease. In 2018 Bronwen was made a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit for her contribution to the treatment of neurological disease.