The EP BrainHealth Midterm Symposium for projects funded under ERA-Net NEURON and JPND took place on 21–22 May 2026 at Espace Cléry in Paris, France. The meeting brought together 91 established and early-career researchers, funding organisations representatives and scientific experts to exchange on the progress of ongoing transnational brain and mental health-related research projects.
This year’s symposium was particularly broad in scope, as it included projects funded under three different joint transnational calls 2023 (JTC2023): two ERA-Net NEURON calls, one on ‘Resilience and Vulnerability in Mental Health’ and the second on ‘Ethical, Legal and Social Aspects of Neuroscience’, and one JPND call on ‘Large Scale Analysis of Omics Data for Drug-Target Finding in Neurodegenerative Diseases’. By bringing these projects together, the meeting provided a valuable opportunity to highlight scientific progress across different areas of brain health research, while also strengthening connections between the NEURON, JPND and the newly forming EP BrainHealth communities.
Wide variety of research topics
The programme reflected the diversity of research supported through these initiatives. The fifteen NEURON-funded projects presented work on topics including immune, inflammatory and gut-brain interactions in mental health resilience; stress, development and early-life adversity; metabolic and molecular pathways to resilience; and neural networks and computational perspectives on stress resilience. The eleven JPND-funded projects focused on omics-driven approaches to proteinopathies; novel targets and biomarkers in Alzheimer’s disease; and emerging omics-based mechanisms and cross-disease insights. In addition, the symposium included a dedicated session for the five research projects funded in the framework of the ERA-Net NEURON JTC2023 ELSA call addressing ethical, legal and social aspects of neuroscience.
Over the two days, the funded consortia presented their progress, shared emerging results and discussed scientific challenges and future directions. The meeting also created space for exchange across different research fields, from molecular and imaging approaches to microbiome research, computational methods, neurodegeneration, mental health and societal dimensions of brain research.
Poster exhibition
Poster sessions formed an important part of the symposium, offering early-career researchers, the opportunity to present their work and engage directly with their peers and with established researchers. Overall, 26 posters were presented and the best poster prize was awarded to Daniel Panadero-Soler, a researcher from the group of Dr. Santiago Canals who coordinates the IBRAA consortium, for the poster entitled “Integrative MRI-microbiota analysis reveals protective role of Akkermansia in alcohol-induced white matter alterations.” The work highlights how combining brain imaging with microbiota analysis may help uncover mechanisms involved in alcohol-induced changes in the brain, and points to a potential protective role of the gut bacterium Akkermansia.
Interactive networking workshop
The symposium also included an interactive networking workshop, providing participants with additional opportunities for discussion, learning and exchange. The workshop aimed to inspire ideas for the constructive involvement of different disciplines and stakeholders in research conducted by researchers funded under the JPND, NEURON and ELSA calls of ERA-Net NEURON. Organised in the format of scientific “speed dating”, the workshop enabled researchers to meet and connect with different colleagues across four rounds. Each round focused on one key topic: ethical considerations, interdisciplinarity in research consortia, the involvement and empowerment of early-career researchers, or the inclusion of patient perspectives. During the 15-minute time slots, lively discussions took place around these themes, providing participants with valuable food for thought and new perspectives to take back to their projects and future research.
Overall, the Paris Midterm Symposium showcased the added value of interdisciplinary and transnational collaboration in addressing the complexity of brain health and brain disorders. By bringing together projects from NEURON and JPND within the framework of EP BrainHealth, the meeting highlighted both the achievements of previous European brain research funding initiatives and their important contribution to the development of a more integrated European brain health research community.
