Conference Description
The Collagen GRC is a premier, international scientific conference focused on advancing the frontiers of science through the presentation of cutting-edge and unpublished research, prioritizing time for discussion after each talk and fostering informal interactions among scientists of all career stages. The conference program includes a diverse range of speakers and discussion leaders from institutions and organizations worldwide, concentrating on the latest developments in the field. The conference is five days long and held in a remote location to increase the sense of camaraderie and create scientific communities, with lasting collaborations and friendships. In addition to premier talks, the conference has designated time for poster sessions from individuals of all career stages, and afternoon free time and communal meals allow for informal networking opportunities with leaders in the field.
The 2023 meeting will mark over 50 years of the Collagen GRCs, an uninterrupted series starting in 1970, and since 2013 expanded to include a Collagen Gordon Research Seminar targeting early career researchers. The break of four years in the Collagen GRC and GRS induced by the COVID-19 pandemic further highlights the importance of the 2023 conference and seminar, both for established scientists and especially the early career researchers. The central goal is to understand how the collagens interact with other extracellular matrix molecules and cells in the physiological contexts, and what are the molecular consequences of mutations in collagens and related molecules with respect to these complex interactions and dependencies. Importantly, we will link collagen research to a broader context of biology, as exemplified by the recent understanding that can now be used to develop drugs that target the hypoxia inducible factor (HIF) prolyl-hydroxylases for the treatment of, e.g., chronic kidney disorders and cancer. Other fields growing in impact that will be highlighted pertain to biomechanical and bioengineering aspects, stem cell guidance, fibrosis, malignant growth, and musculoskeletal development and pathology. These sessions and the session on big data in collagen research aim to bring forward the rapidly increasing systems biology approach regarding the association and roles of collagens in normal and disease situations. Moreover, in terms of basic understanding of collagens, we aim to highlight novel data on the transport and homeostasis of collagens in tissues and cells. The meeting will also provide a unique opportunity to discuss how the rapidly expanding field looks like in five or 10 years and what is needed for the field to advance.
The topics, speakers, and discussion leaders for the conference sessions are displayed below. The conference chair is currently developing their detailed program, which will include the complete meeting schedule, as well as the talk titles for all speakers. The detailed program will be available by March 11, 2023. Please check back for updates.
Keynote Session: ECM Dynamics in Development and Disease
Discussion Leaders
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Johanna Myllyharju (University of Oulu, Finland)
Speakers
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Irit Sagi (The Weizmann Institute of Science, Israel)
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Ernestina Schipani (University of Pennsylvania, United States)
Functional Effects and Translational Potential of Mutations in Collagens
Discussion Leaders
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Florence Ruggiero (ENS de Lyon / CNRS, France)
Speakers
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Billy Hudson (Vanderbilt university medical center, United States)
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Paolo Bonaldo (University of Padova, Italy, Italy)
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Fransiska Malfait (Center for Medical Genetics Ghent, Belgium)
Collagen Transport, Turnover and Homeostasis
Discussion Leaders
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Yoshihiro Ishikawa (University of California, San Francisco, United States)
Speakers
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Suneel Apte (Cleveland Clinic, United States)
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Joan Chang (University of Manchester, United Kingdom)
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Federico Forneris (University of Pavia, Italy)
Collagens and Related Molecules in Stem Cell Regulation
Discussion Leaders
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Leena Bruckner-Tuderman (Medical Center - University of Freiburg, Germany)
Speakers
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Sara Wickstrom (Max Planck Institute for Molecular Biomedicine, Germany)
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Danny Chan (The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong SAR China)
Bioengineering and Materials Design
Discussion Leaders
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Nancy Forde (Simon Fraser University, Canada)
Speakers
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Jeffrey Hartgerink (Rice University, United States)
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Fei Xu (Jiangnan University, China)
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Matthew Harrington (McGill University, Canada)
Tumor Growth and Metastasis
Discussion Leaders
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Raphael Reuten (Institute of Pharmacology, Medical Faculty, University of Freiburg, Freiburg, Germany)
Speakers
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Cynthia Reinhart-King (Vanderbilt University, United States)
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Alexandra Naba (University of Illinois at Chicago, United States)
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Kandice Tanner (NIH, United States)
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Thomas Cox (Garvan Institute of Medical Research, Australia)
Collagens: Systems Approaches, Networks and Interactomes
Discussion Leaders
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Delfien Syx (Ghent University, Belgium)
Speakers
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Sylvie Ricard-Blum (Université Claude Bernard Lyon 1, France)
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Valerio Izzi (University of Oulu, Finland)
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Collin Ewald (ETH Zurich, Switzerland)
Fibrosis and Tissue Repair
Discussion Leaders
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Sergey Leikin (National Institutes of Health, United States)
Speakers
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Boris Hinz (St. Michael's Hospital and University of Toronto, Canada)
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Alexander Nystrom (University Medical Center Freiburg, Germany)
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Jagdeep Nanchahal (University of Oxford, United Kingdom)
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Edna Cukierman (Fox Chase Cancer Center, United States)
Musculoskeletal Development and Pathology
Discussion Leaders
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Antonella Forlino (University of Pavia, Italy)
Speakers
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Shireen Lamande (Murdoch Children's Research Institute, Australia)
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Paul Eckhard Witten (Ghent University, Belgium)
The GRC Power Hourâ„¢
Organizers
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Rachel Lennon (Wellcome Centre for Cell-Matrix Research, United Kingdom)