RareNet 2026: Accelerating Discovery to Treatment in Rare Brain Disorders
Date: Tuesday, June 9, 2026
Location: MIT Building 46, Singleton Auditorium (Room 46-3002), 524 Main Street, Cambridge, MA
Time: 8:45 a.m. – 4:30 PM with reception to follow
Registration is required
Symposium Overview
The pace of discovery in rare brain disorders has never been faster. Precision genetics, genome editing, RNA modulation, and targeted delivery platforms are redefining what is possible in the brain. Yet the path from discovery to effective treatment remains complex, capital-intensive, and often siloed across disorders and sectors.
RareNet 2026 brings together leaders from academia, biotechnology, and patient advocacy to build a more integrated translational model for rare brain disorders. By bridging discovery science with therapeutic engineering and real-world implementation, the symposium will explore practical strategies to overcome current bottlenecks in translation to clinical development.
Be sure to check this page for the most up-to-date event information.
Registration
Symposium Schedule
8:45 – 9:00AM – OPENING REMARKS
Guoping Feng, MIT McGovern Institute
9:00 – 9:35 AM – Feng Zhang, MIT McGovern Institute; Broad Institute
9:35 – 10:10 AM – Katherine High, Spark Therapeutics; Rockefeller University
10:10 – 10:45 AM – Kiran Musunuru, University of Pennsylvania
10:45 – 11:05 AM – COFFEE BREAK
11:05 – 11:40 AM – Timothy Yu, Boston Children’s Hospital; Harvard Medical School
11:40 – 12:15 PM – Kevin Bender, University of California San Francisco
12:20 – 1:20 PM – LUNCH
1:20 – 1:30 PM – Remarks by Ana Mendez and Rajeev Jayavant, MIT RareNet Founders
1:30 – 1:40 PM – Remarks by Sally Kornbluth, President of MIT
1:40 – 2:15 PM – Christopher Walsh, Boston Children’s Hospital; Harvard Medical School
2:15 – 2:50 PM – Sonia Vallabh, Broad Institute; MGH; Harvard Medical School
2:50 – 3:25 PM – Joseph Buxbaum, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai
3:25 – 3:45 PM – COFFEE BREAK
3:45 – 4:05 PM – Monica Coenraads, Rett Syndrome Research Trust
4:05 – 4:25 PM – Samit Dasgupta, Duke University; FoxP1 Medical Research Foundation
4:25 – 4:30 PM – CLOSING REMARKS
Robert Desimone, MIT McGovern Institute
4:30 – 6:00 PM – POSTER SESSION & NETWORKING RECEPTION