Early application and abstract deadline: 8 June 2010.

Abstract Submission is now closed

Application is now closed

Harden Bursary application is now closed

Oral communication slots are available at this meeting. All attendees, particularly researchers in the early stages of their career, are invited to submit a poster abstract for consideration as an oral communication.

Harden Conferences

Unique to the Biochemical Society, Harden Conferences are residential research conferences covering a specialist topic.

The conferences bring together scientists from various backgrounds with a common interest in - but varying approaches to - the topic of the conference.

To maintain a suitably high level of discussion and presentation at the conference, it is desirable that participants be experienced in the field covered; most of the participants will be expected to have postdoctoral or equivalent experience, although Ph.D. students will also be welcome.

The planned scientific sessions feature speakers invited by the Organizers and, in addition, time is left for extensive discussion and for short contributions, including posters, by other conference participants.

All participants must be resident for the duration of the conference. Application is now closed.

Bursaries and free places
A limited number of bursaries to cover the cost of registration and/or travel are available to assist younger members of the Biochemical Society to attend the conferences.

Preference will be given to senior graduate students (or those who gained their Ph.D. in the last 5 years) and restricted to members of the Biochemical Society.

Applications for these places should be sent to the Biochemical Society from the applicant's supervisor and should be accompanied by an independent reference.

Harden bursary application deadline: 8 June 2010

Harden bursary application is now closed
 

BJ Signal poster prize

BJ Signal will award a £150 prize to the best poster presented during the programme. The winner will receive £150 and a host of BJ goodies. Entrants must be PhD students or post doctoral scientists within 7 years of receiving their PhD. To enter, please collect a sticker from the registration desk before the start of your poster session.

BJ Cell oral communication prize

BJ Cell will award a £100 prize to the best selected oral communication presented during the programme. Oral communications will be selected from poster abstract and will be given during the main science programme. If you wish your abstract to be considered for an oral communication slot, please tick the box during abstract submission.
 

Scientific background

Autophagy is an important catabolic process that contributes to cell survival, cell growth and cell differentiation, in model cell systems and in whole organisms. It is implicated in a number of human diseases including cancer, bowel disease and neurodegeneration, and has also been shown to play important roles in infectious disease. Autophagy is a degradative pathway which requires the formation of a special double membrane vesicle (the autophagosome) to sequester and deliver components to the lysosome. Over recent years our understanding of the basic mechanisms of the process – including the signalling pathways involved and the mechanisms of autophagosome biogenesis, maturation and trafficking – has evolved rapidly. Furthermore, the recent data implicating autophagy in human diseases has catalysed and developed widespread, cross-disciplinary interest. This Harden Conference will focus on basic mechanisms and disease processes, and will highlight the most recent advances in the field.

Topics

Atg proteins

Autophagy

Cell death

mTOR

nutrient sensing

PI3P binding proteins