01 Summer School Overview
The International Summer School of Brain Facts and Future Health, hosted by the Global Institute of Future Technology of Shanghai Jiao Tong University, focuses on brain science and future health technologies. It aims to cultivate students' interest in these fields and enhance their research innovation capabilities through lectures, seminars, workshops, project research, organizations visit, and cultural excursions.
02 Date and Location
June 23 – July 6, 2025
Global Institute of Future Technology, Minhang Campus, Shanghai Jiao Tong University
03 Target Participants
“ Undergraduates and Graduates” with interest of the summer school's topics
Final participants will be selected by an expert committee composed by professors from the Global Institute of Future Technology of Shanghai Jiao Tong University, depending on applicants' comprehensive qualifications.
04 If you are interested, please click on this link and submit the application!
https://www.wjx.cn/vm/tACyGNq.aspx#
http://apply.sjtu.edu.cn
Submission Deadline: 30 May, 2025 (Please be aware of the Visa processing timeline)
05 Core Highlights
Dual-track Curriculum System:
Pioneering Brain Science In-depth Exploration × Future Health Multidimensional Expansion framework. Focusing on systematic deconstruction of neural circuits, brain-computer interfaces, and other key domains. Expansion on Interdisciplinary integration of digital healthcare, AI diagnostics, and other cutting-edge fields.
Industry-Research Integration Practices:
Customized industry visits to institutions including United Imaging Healthcare and Shanghai Sixth People's Hospital, with in-depth decoding of China's healthcare innovation ecosystem through corporate mentor seminars and clinical scenario observations.
GIFT Challenge:
Themed group competitions on Brain Facts and Future Health with real-time guidance from domain experts, culminating in the selection of outstanding teams.
Elite Pathway:
Junior undergraduates demonstrating outstanding performance through multi-dimensional evaluations will be granted direct interview eligibility for the 'GIFT Summer Challenge Camp'.
Official Academic Certification:
Participants completing the program will receive a summer school completion certificate, adding a robust credential to academic portfolios.
06 Faculty Profiles
Paul Frankland, Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada, Professor at the University of Toronto
Dr. Frankland holds the Canada Research Chair in Cognitive Neurobiology and is affiliated with the Department of Psychology, Department of Physiology, and Institute of Medical Science at the University of Toronto. His research focuses on systems consolidation, the role of adult neurogenesis in hippocampal memory function and forgetting, identification/manipulation of memory engrams, and the development of hippocampal memory.
Zang Hee Cho, Member of the U.S. National Academy of Medicine
Dr. Zang Hee Cho is an expert in Positron Emission Tomography (PET), Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI), and brain imaging. He invented the world’s first ring-shaped PET scanner at UCLA in 1975. His research spans breakthroughs in functional MRI technology and the development of PET-MRI multimodal imaging systems. In recent years, he has been advancing the integration of neuroimaging technology with artificial intelligence.
Weidong Li, Professor at Shanghai Jiao Tong University, China
Dr. Weidong Li is a tenured full professor at Shanghai Jiao Tong University and the director of the Center for Brain Health and Brain Technologies of Global Institute of Future Technology. His main research areas include the study of mechanisms of learning and memory, cognitive disorders, and depression, as well as the research and development work of brain technologies such as brain-computer interfaces and brain modulation.
Weiliang Xia, Professor at Shanghai Jiao Tong University, China
Dr. Weiliang Xia is a tenured full professor at Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Deputy Dean of Global Institute of Future Technology. The research interest of his group includes mechanisms of cancer progression, treatment resistance and theragnostic target identification, exosome biology and application, roles of FGF/FGFR signaling and sirtuins in cancer progression and tissue repair. He has published more than 130 academic papers in Science Translational Medicine, Cell Death & Differentiation, PNAS, Oncogene, Protein Cell, Biomaterials, etc., with H-factor 50.
Margit Burmeister, Professor at University of Michigan, USA
Dr. Margit Burmeister is the Associate Chair of Computational Medicine & Bioinformatics at the University of Michigan, directs a graduate program in Bioinformatics and is also a Professor of Neuroscience, Psychiatry and Human Genetics. She was trained in Germany, Israel and the US in molecular biology and genetics, and as postdoc at UCSF was involved in the Human Genome Project. She studies brain disorders in several ways: Her lab has identified and characterized several of the genes involved in the neurological movement disorder ataxia, which sometimes led to targeted treatments. She studies how genetic risk factors interact with lifestyle and the environment to modify risk, particularly when it comes to depression and Alzheimer's disease, and how the general public uses genetic information to their advantage.
Katsuhiko Mikoshiba, Professor at ShanghaiTech University, China
Dr. Katsuhiko Mikoshiba is a renowned Japanese neuroscientist, molecular biologist, and geneticist. He is well known by his discovery of ER-localized IP3R/Ca2+channel (Nature 1989), an allosteric channel that produces Ca2+ oscillation from ER (Science 1992) by the study of the P400 protein missing in the ataxic mice. IP3R/Ca2+channel is involved in early development (Cell 1993), dorso-vental-axis formation (Science 1997), cell fate determination in embryos. (Nature 2002) and nerve growth (Science 1998). Allosteric dysfunction IP3R/Ca2+channel causes epileptic seizure and spinocerebellar ataxia (Nature 1996) and exocrine secretion deficit (Science 2005). Mikoshiba discovered it is an ion channel carrying huge (1,252kDa) signal hub with numerous disease-related molecules (Annual Rev Physiol 2020) and is involved in apoptosis in ER-Stress Response (Cell 2005) (Neuron 2010). He educated more than 120 Ph.D. candidates and postdocs, among whom more than 70 Principal Investigators (51 full professors) have been grown up from Mikoshiba lab.
Sanbing Shen, Professor at the University of Galway, Ireland
Dr. Sanbing Shen is an expert in the field of stem cell biology and leads the human induced pluripotent stem cell (iPSC) research program at REMEDI, University of Galway Medical School. His team has constructed a series of iPSCs using genome editing technology to carry out research into mechanisms of autism, epilepsy and tumors.
Miou Zhou, Assistant Professor at Western University of Health Sciences, USA
Dr. Miou Zhou is focusing on hippocampal synaptic plasticity and its regulatory mechanisms in cognitive function. Recently, He revealed the mysterious role of the HIV co-receptor CCR5 in brain memory regulation and providing a potential new target for treating age-related memory disorders (Nature).
More international experts will be joining soon, and continues to be updated…
07 Cultural Immersion
Beyond academic exploration, the summer school curates a cultural immersion program. Through multidimensional engagements—from traditional craftsmanship workshops to urban cultural expeditions—international students deepen cross-cultural understanding by engaging with Eastern wisdom, fostering an organic integration of scientific rigor and humanistic literacy
08 Past Events Review
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09 Other
Insurance:
Accepted students will be required to provide documentation of personal accident insurance covering start and end dates prior to the start of summer school.
Catering:
There are several canteens on the campus of Shanghai Jiao Tong University, and students can use their student cards to make payments.
Accommodation:
Based on the finalists, we will recommend accommodation close to the campus for students, and the accommodation fees should be paid by students themselves.
10 Contact Details
Email: kirstenchen@sjtu.edu.cn/yingchen1912@gmail.com
Phone: +86 18805109977 / 021-54741175-1512
