FEBS MPST 2009

July 11-16, 2009, Patras, Greece, Conference & Cultural Center, University of Patras

Introduction

The 2nd FEBS-MPST Advanced Lecture Course follows the previous successful FEBS-MPST 2007 course organized for first time in May 2007. The topics covered key areas in the maintenance of normal tissue homeostasis and alterations in disease, signaling elicited by interactions of cell surface receptors with matrix components and growth factors and rapid and sensitive structure analysis methods. Matrix-mediated regulation of the various cell functions has been demonstrated during the last years from the structural biochemical and molecular cell biology studies in various in vitro and in vivo models. It is well known that mutations and structural alterations of matrix molecules are closely related to the development of common diseases such as cardiovascular disease, cancer including metastasis and diseases affecting the musculoskeletal system as well as more rare conditions, often including hereditary components. In order to understand disease initiation and development it is of great importance to address issues related with matrix organization and assembly, matrix-mediated signaling, cell adhesion growth factors, proteoglycans, glycans, collagens and metalloproteinases that affect the cell behavior.
The FEBS-MPST 2009 on Matrix Pathobiology, Signaling and Molecular Targets 2009, further to topics covered in (FEBS-MPST-2007) will cover topics related to ongoing development in the field of glycobiology (glycomics and glycoproteomics), domain mapping of interactions with matrix effectors and their importance for disease treatment and diagnosis, i.e disorders caused by genetic variation, biomechanics, glycomics and clinical applications, structure approaches in disease, stem cells and cancer biomarkers, signaling and tumor therapy.
This FEBS course will provide important new knowledge to participants in the form of:
  1. Understanding the structure-function relationship as well as the therapeutical importance of matrix macromolecules, mainly from the general lectures (tutorials) to be held.
  2. New insights on how matrix macromolecules participate and affect cell signaling and behavior as well as how these molecules may contribute to disease development and progress.
  3. Participants will further become familiar with methodological challenges used for expression and determination of various macromolecules with biopharmaceutical importance.
 
An important goal of this course is to bring together scientists from biochemistry, life sciences and molecular cell biology on an important and rapidly developing scientific field. The benefits of the course will provide participants with a new understanding of new technology for unraveling molecular structure and function as well as how this can be used to study alterations in tissue in disease. The participants will gain information that can be applied in their academic environment and research institutes.
 
Many leading experts will participate as lecturers/tutors and we are confident that FEBS-MPST2009 will be an outstanding lecture course with an exquisite scientific program.

Major Sponsor

The Federation of European Biochemical Societies (FEBS) is the major sponsor of this event supporting both the organization and young scientists offering to them Youth Travel Fellowships.