The Physiological Society Joint Themed Meeting in Epithelia & Membrane Transport and Vascular & Smooth Muscle Physiology

11–13 December 2013, The Convention Centre Dublin, Ireland

Epithelia & Membrane Transport (EM) and Vascular & Smooth Muscle Physiology (VS) Themes share many common interests in numerous diseases which affect both epithelial ion transport and smooth muscle contractility. Examples include diarrhoea, inflammatory bowel disease and respiratory diseases such as asthma, COPD and cystic fibrosis. Researchers in EM and VS tend to work independently of each other on the molecular mechanisms although the full aetiology of these diseases involves dysfunction in electrolyte – fluid secretion and smooth muscle contraction.

In health, the cross-talk between EM and VS functions underlie whole organ physiology, for example, in the airway, gastrointestinal tract, and salivary gland. In the ion channel field, research into the physiological function, differential expression, molecular regulation and pharmacological properties of specific ion channels is usually undertaken separately in epithelia or smooth muscle. Shared knowledge around the role of specific ion channels in physiology and pathophysiology is not facilitated through separate forums. This lack of interaction hampers progress in both EM and VS fields to provide a fuller understanding of pathophysiological mechanisms underlying common diseases.

The Physiological Society Joint Themed EM and VS Meeting will be a unique opportunity to share experiences, generate novel research ideas and forge new collaborations. The Society returns to Dublin, which hosted the Main Meeting in 2009, in December 2013. Brian Harvey (Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland) and Noel McHale (Dundalk Institute of Technology, Dundalk, Ireland) have put together a superb speaker panel that includes:

Plenary Speakers:

• Kim Barrett, University of California San Diego, USA
• Kenton Sanders, University of Nevada, Reno, USA

Speakers:

• Deborah Baines, St Georges Medical School, London, UK
• Peter Bradding, University of Leicester, UK
• Emmanuelle Brochiero, Centre hospitalier de l’Université de Montréal, Canada
• Wouter De Jonge, University of Antwerp, Belgium
• Mark Donowitz, The Johns Hopkins Hospital, USA
• Kim Dora, University of Oxford, UK
• Peter Howarth, University of Southampton, UK
• Luke Janssen, McMaster University Medical Center, Canada
• Stephen Keely, Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland
• Francesco Sepulveda, Centro de Estudios Científicos, Valdivia, Chile
• Gary Sieck, Mayo Clinic, USA
• Robert Tarran, University of North Carolina, USA
• Keith Thornbury, Dundalk Institute of Technology, Ireland
• Valérie Urbach, National Children’s Research Centre, Dublin, Ireland and Institute of Functional Genomics, Montpellier, France

Key Dates:

• Registration opens 12 August 2013
• Abstract submission opens 23 September 2013
• Abstract submission closes 23 October 2013