Wednesday, June 17, 2026
Overview
Day #1: Monday, May 24
9:00 – 10:00
Workshop A: Technical Workshop: Inside the African Brain Data Initiative (ABDI): Platform, Workbench, and AI Capabilities
Vaibhav Narayan, PhD, Executive Vice President, Strategy and Innovation, The Davos Alzheimer’s Collaborative (DAC)
This technical workshop will provide an in-depth demonstration of the ABDI platform, showing how researchers can access, analyze, and work across datasets through the platform and workbench. The session will explore ABDI’s technical infrastructure, analytical and AI capabilities, and researcher experience, while preparing participants to use the platform during the exposomics and GIS workshops that follow.
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10:00 – 11:30
Concurrent Morning Workshops
Workshop B: Geographic Information Systems (GIS) and Environmental Exposures
Itai Kloog, PhD, Professor, Environmental Medicine, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai
This workshop will introduce GIS concepts and their application in exposomic research studies, with a focus on temperature and air pollution. Dr. Kloog will focus on introducing key concepts in GIS including projections, working with spatial data, base mapping concept, geocoding, visualization, and thematic mapping. He will also give some examples from recent studies applying these tools in environmental epidemiology. Participants will gain insights through case studies on how to leverage GIS tools for spatial analysis in exposure assessment studies, emphasizing the visualization and interpretation of environmental data.
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Workshop C: Untargeted Exposomics for AD/ADRD Research
Dinesh Barupal, PhD, Associate Professor, Environmental Medicine, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai
This workshop will introduce researchers to the transformative potential of untargeted exposomics in understanding environmental contributions to Alzheimer’s Disease and Related Dementias (ADRD). Untargeted exposomics goes beyond traditional methods that target specific exposures, such as lead or BPA, by utilizing advanced analytical techniques, such as high-resolution mass spectrometry to detect a broad spectrum of environmental chemicals, biological agents, and endogenous metabolic changes. Dr. Barupal will share examples highlighting the success of untargeted exposomics in biobank studies, showcasing the ability to reveal previously unrecognized exposure-disease relationships.
11:00 – 12:00
Check-in and Lunch Available
12:00 – 12:20
Welcome
Rachid El-Fatimy, PhD, Dean, Faculty of Medicine Sciences, Mohammed VI Polytechnic University, Ben Guerir
Robert Wright, MD, MPH, Ethel H. Wise Professor and Chair, Department of Environmental Medicine, and Co-Director, Institute for Exposomic Research, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai
12:20–12:50
Miriam Merad, MD, PhD, Chair, Department of Immunology and Immunotherapy, the Robin Chemers Neustein Professor of Immunology, Director of the Marc and Jennifer Lipschultz Precision Immunology Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai
12:50-13:05
Exposomics and Brain Health Across the Life Course: Opportunities for Research and Collaboration at NIA
Richard Kwok, PhD, Program Director, Population Studies and Genetics Branch, Division of Neuroscience, National Institute on Aging/U.S. National Institutes of Health
13:05-13:20
Exposomics and Brain Health Across the Life Course: Perspectives from NINDS
Shardell M. Spriggs, PhD, Acting Director, Office of Neural Exposome and Toxicology, National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS)/U.S. National Institutes of Health
13:20-13:50
Neuroimmune mechanisms in Huntington’s disease: implications for brain aging and neurodegeneration
Abdellatif Abbaoui, PhD, Assistant Professor, Faculty of Medical Sciences, Mohammed VI Polytechnic University, Benguerir
13:50 – 14:20
Coffee Break
14:20 – 14:50
Vaibhav Narayan, PhD, MBA, Executive Vice President and head of strategy and innovation at The Davos Alzheimer’s Collaborative (DAC)
14:50 – 15:05
Making Exposomics Possible: Turning Resource Constraints into Research Capacity
–Myriam Mrad, PhD, Associate Professor, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Balamand and Principal Investigator, GEOHealth Hub for Climate Change and Health in the MENA Region
15:05 – 15:20
Presentation
Erwin Berthier, PhD, Affiliate Professor of Chemistry at the University of Washington and Co-Founder, Tasso, Inc.
15:20 – 15:35
Presentation
Lauren Petrick, PhD, Professor, Department of Environmental Medicine, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai
15:35 – 16:30
Panel Discussion: Shelf-Stable Science: Advancing Biomarker Research in Challenging Settings
Myriam Mrad, PhD, Associate Professor, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Balamand and Principal Investigator, GEOHealth Hub for Climate Change and Health in the MENA Region
Erwin Berthier, PhD, Affiliate Professor of Chemistry at the University of Washington and Co-Founder, Tasso, Inc.
Lauren Petrick, PhD, Professor, Department of Environmental Medicine, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai
Moderator: Youssef Oulhote, PhD, Associate Professor of Epidemiology, Department of Environmental Medicine, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai
Day #2: Tuesday, May 25
9:00 – 9:10
Welcome
Sean Morrison, MD, Ellen and Howard C. Katz Professor and Chair, Brookdale Department of Geriatrics and Palliative Medicine, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai
9:10–9:40
Kyle Walsh, PhD, Director, National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences/U.S. National Institutes of Health
9:40–10:10
Mouhamadou Bamba Sylla, PhD, AIMS-Canada Research Chair in Climate Change Science, African Institute for Mathematical Sciences (AIMS)
10:10 – 10:40
Rima Habre, ScD, MSc, Professor of Environmental Health and Spatial Sciences, Keck School of Medicine, University of Southern California and NEXUS
10:40 – 11:00
Coffee Break
11:00 – 11:30
Leveraging Exposomics to Investigate the Etiology of ADRD: From Population Pattern to Molecular Signature
Peng Gao, PhD, Assistant Professor of Environmental Health and Exposomics, Environmental Health, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health
11:30 – 12:00
Environmental Exposures and Dementia: What Can We Learn from Longitudinal Data
Amy Kelley, MD, MSHS, University of Michigan
12:00 – 13:30
Poster Session A and Lunch
Poster Session Chair: Richard Woychik, PhD, Senior Advisor to the NIH Director, U.S. National Institutes of Health
13:30 – 14:00
A Global Network of Emerging Leaders Addressing Brain Health: The Atlantic Fellows for Equity in Brain Health Experience
Victor Valcour, MD, PhD, Professor, Department of Neurology and Division of Geriatric Medicine and Director, International Atlantic Fellows Training Program, University of California, San Francisco
14:00 – 15:30
Panel Discussion: Emerging Biomarkers for Early Detection in Aging and Neurodegenerative Diseases
Fanny Elahi, MD, PhD, Associate Professor in the Departments of Neurology, Neuroscience, Pathology, Molecular and Cell-based Medicine, and Artificial Intelligence and Human Health, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai
Yue Leng, PhD, Associate Professor, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Bakar Computational Health Sciences Institute, University of California, San Francisco
Hassan Ainani, PhD, Assistant Professor, Faculty of Medical Sciences, Mohammed VI Polytechnic University, Benguerir, Morocco
Elliott Price, PhD, RECETOX, Masaryk University
Moderator: R. Sean Morrison, MD, Ellen and Howard C. Katz Professor and Chair, Brookdale Department of Geriatrics and Palliative Medicine, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai
15:30
Transfer to Marrakech
19:30
Optional Networking Dinner
21:30 Return by bus to hotels on Benguerir campus
Day #3: Wednesday, May 26
9:00-9:10
Welcome
Rima Habre, ScD, MSc, Professor of Environmental Health and Spatial Sciences, Keck School of Medicine, University of Southern California and NEXUS, USA
9:10–9:55
Leveraging the Alzheimer’s Disease Sequencing Project (ADSP) Resources in AD/ADRD Research
Michael Bennani, PhD, Program Director, Population Studies and Genetics Branch, Division of Neuroscience, National Institute on Aging
Rufus Akinyemi, PhD, Professor, College of Medicine, University of Ibadan, Nigeria
Margaret (Peggy) A. Pericak-Vance, PhD, FACMG, Director, John P. Hussman Institute for Human Genomics, University of Miami Miller School of Medicine
9:55-10:25
The impact of geospatial and environmental risk factors on stroke occurrence and recovery in Africa: state of the science and future directions
Mayowa Ojo Owolabi, DrM, MD, Director, Center for Genomic and Precision Medicine, College of Medicine, University of Ibadan, Nigeria
10:25–10:45
Coffee Break
10:45 – 11:15
Representation to Discovery: A GeoAI Paradigm Shift for Studying the Environment’s Impact on Health
Hoda S. Abdel Magid, PhD, MHS, Assistant Professor, Department of Population and Public Health Sciences, Keck School of Medicine, Dornsife Spatial Sciences Institute, University of Southern California
11:15–11:45
Kissani Najib, MD, Professor of Neurology, University Hospital Mohamed VI, Marrakech
11:45 – 13:30
Group Photo, Poster Session B and Lunch
Poster Session Chair: Richard Woychik, PhD, Senior Advisor to the NIH Director, U.S. National Institutes of Health
13:30 – 14:00
Kiros Berhane, PhD, MSc, Cynthia and Robert Citron-Roslyn and Leslie Goldstein Professor and Biostatistics Chair, Biostatistics, Mailman School of Public Health, Columbia University and PI, Eastern Africa GEOHealth Hub
14:00 – 14:30
Marc Weisskopf, PhD, ScD, Cecil K. and Philip Drinker Professor of Environmental Epidemiology and Physiology, Environmental Health, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health
14:30 – 15:00
Metabolites from Microbiota
Sanae Mkaddem, PhD, Associate Professor of Immunology, Faculty of Medical Sciences, Mohammed VI Polytechnic University, Ben Guerir
15:00 – 15:30
Coffee Break
15:30 – 16:00
Jinkook Lee, PhD, Professor of Economics and Director of the Program on Global Aging, Health, and Policy, University of Southern California
16:00 – 17:00
Panel Discussion: From Case to Care: Applying Exposomics to Improve Brain Health in Aging
Amy Kelley, MD, MSHS, University of Michigan
Abdellatif Abbaoui, PhD, Assistant Professor, Faculty of Medical Sciences, Mohammed VI Polytechnic University, Benguerir
Sean Morrison, MD, Ellen and Howard C. Katz Professor and Chair, Brookdale Department of Geriatrics and Palliative Medicine, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai
Fanny Elahi, MD, PhD, Associate Professor in the Departments of Neurology, Neuroscience, Pathology, Molecular and Cell-based Medicine, and Artificial Intelligence and Human Health, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai
Moderator: Rosalind Wright, MD, MPH, Dean for Public Health and Co-Director of the Institute for Exposomic Research, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai
17:00
Attendees have a free evening
Day 4: Thursday, May 27, 2027
Welcome
Richard Kwok, PhD, Program Director, Population Studies and Genetics Branch, Division of Neuroscience, National Institute on Aging, USA
9:10 – 9:40
ABDI and Exposomics: Applying African Brain Health Data to Exposomic Research
Using the Egyptian cohort as an initial case study, this session will explore how ABDI data and infrastructure can support exposomic research and help researchers investigate relationships between environmental exposures, population health, and brain health. The session will connect ABDI directly to the scientific priorities of the symposium and explore how ABDI data could contribute to the broader exposomics research agenda.
Mohamed Salama, MBBCH, DTQM, PhD, Professor, Department of Biological, Chemical and Global Health Sciences, American University in Cairo, Egypt
9:40 – 10:20
Panel Discussion: From Data to Discovery: Unlocking Interdisciplinary and Global Research through ABDI
Moderator: Vaibhav Narayan, PhD, The Davos Alzheimer’s Collaborative (DAC)
10:20 – 10:50
Coffee Break
10:50 – 11:30
Panel Discussion: From Progress to Priorities: A Strategic Roadmap for the Global ADRD/Exposome Community
This panel will reflect on the progress made in building the global ADRD/exposome research community and identify the key scientific and strategic priorities for the next phase. Panelists will discuss what has worked, where important gaps remain, and where the community should focus its collective efforts.
Martha M. (Mara) Téllez Rojo, MSc, DSc, Professor, National Institute of Public Health (INSP), Mexico
Shoji Nakayama, MD, PhD, Deputy Director, Japan Environment and Children’s Study Programme Office, National Institute for Environmental Studies, Japan
Nasser Laouali, PhD, Assistant Professor, Faculty of Medical Sciences, Mohammed VI Polytechnic University, Benguerir
Kyle Walsh, PhD, Director, National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences/U.S. National Institutes of Health
Fenna C.M. Sillé, PhD, MS, Assistant Professor of Environmental Health and Engineering, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health (Global Exposome Forum)
Moderators:
Rima Habre, ScD, MSC (NEXUS)
Jinkook Lee, PhD (GECC)
11:30 – 12:00
Closing Remarks
Robert Wright, MD, MPH
12:00
Poster Awards