What are the mechanisms underlying neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer’s, ALS, and Parkinson’s, and are there promising new therapies? These and other questions were the focus of the 2015 Lasker Public Lecture given by Gregory Petsko, Professor of Neurology and Neuroscience at Weill Cornell Medical College.

The free public lecture was held on August 18 at the Bell House in Brooklyn and was co-hosted with the Secret Science Club. This special lecture was supported by an anonymous donation made in honor of the Lasker Foundation board member, Alfred (Al) Sommer, a prominent ophthalmologist and epidemiologist and Dean Emeritus at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.

The Lasker annual public lectures are an exciting initiative that creates a direct dialogue between the public and some of the most accomplished scientists in the world. The August event attracted 350 attendees for an evening of informal learning and an opportunity to ask questions.