Conference Description
Proteoglycans are biologically active components of the extracellular matrix consisting of a specific protein core post-translationally modified and covalently linked with linear glycosaminoglycans consisting of repeating disaccharides. The diversity in composition resulting from the various combinations of protein cores substituted with one or more glycosaminoglycan chains enables proteoglycans to interact with a host of different cell surface receptors, cytokines, growth factors, proteases, and other extracellular components. An emerging body of evidence indicates that secreted proteoglycans act as signaling molecules in addition to their canonical function in maintaining and regulating the architecture of various extracellular matrices. These interactions result in modulation of pivotal cellular processes e.g. differentiation, proliferation, growth, adhesion, migration, autophagy, angiogenesis, and survival under developmental, physiological and pathological conditions. Therefore, proteoglycans are crucial regulators of cancer development, angiogenesis, fibrosis, inflammation, immunity, regenerative medicine, and diseases of the musculoskeletal and neuronal systems, and lung, renal and cardiovascular diseases.
The program of the 2022 Proteoglycans GRC entitled “Frontiers in Basic and Translational Proteoglycan Research to Improve Human Health” will highlight the latest findings in fundamental proteoglycan research addressing biosynthesis, catabolism and synthesis as well as advances in the technologies used to study proteoglycans and glycosaminoglycans. A major focus of the 2022 Proteoglycans GRC is to underscore proteoglycans as therapeutic tools and targets. Thus, recent advances from preclinical studies using animal models to clinical studies targeting proteoglycans for treatment of various human diseases (e.g. COVID-19) will lead to discussions among basic scientists and clinical researchers from academia, research institutes, and the pharmaceutical industry.
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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 10, 2022 . Please check back for updates.
Keynote Session: Recent Progress in Proteoglycan Biology
Discussion Leaders
Marian Young (National Institutes of Health, USA)
Renato Iozzo (Thomas Jefferson University, USA)
Speakers
Peter Seeberger (Max Planck Institute of Colloids and Interfaces, Germany)
Genetic Defects Linking Proteoglycans and Glycosaminoglycans to Clinical Phenotypes and Tissue Pathologies
Discussion Leaders
Thomas Wight (Benaroya Research Institute, USA)
Suneel Apte (Cleveland Clinic, USA)
Speakers
Fransiska Malfait (Center for Medical Genetics Ghent, Belgium)
Josephina Meester (University of Antwerp, Belgium)
Eri Arikawa-Hirasawa (Juntendo University, Japan)
Mark Febbraio (Monash University, Australia)
Proteoglycans and Associated Molecules in Tissue Homeostasis and Disease
Discussion Leaders
Billy Hudson (Vanderbilt University, USA)
Nikos Karamanos (University of Patras, Greece)
Speakers
Nicola Allen (Salk Institute for Biological Studies, USA)
Joseph Hippensteel (University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus, USA)
Anthony Day (University of Manchester, United Kingdom)
Proteoglycan Signaling
Discussion Leaders
Melanie Simpson (North Carolina State University, USA)
Jeffrey Esko (University of California, San Diego, USA)
Speakers
Mythreye Karthikeyan (University of Alabama, USA)
Jorge Filmus (Sunnybrook Research Institute, Canada)
Aaron Petrey (University of Utah, USA)
Rashmin Savani (The University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, USA)
Proteoglycans in Development and Regenerative Medicine
Discussion Leaders
Hideto Watanabe (Aichi Medical University, Japan)
John Whitelock (University of New South Wales, Australia)
Speakers
Alyssa Panitch (University of California, Davis, USA)
Tommaso Pizzorusso (University of Florence, Italy)
Proteoglycans and GAGs in Immuno-Oncology
Discussion Leaders
Karin Forsberg-Nilsson (Uppsala University, Sweden)
Stephen Hewitt (National Cancer Institute, NIH, USA)
Speakers
Fotis Asimakopoulos (University of California, San Diego, USA)
Mattias Belting (Lund University, Sweden)
Wantong Yao (The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, USA)
Paul Timpson (Garvan Institute of Medical Research, Australia)
New Technologies to Define the Role of PGs and GAGs in Health and Disease
Discussion Leaders
Brooke Farrugia (University of Melbourne, Australia)
Vincent Hascall (Cleveland Clinic, USA)
Speakers
Sylvie Ricard-Blum (Université Claude Bernard Lyon 1, France)
Jamie Thompson (University of Nottingham, United Kingdom)
Adam Hall (Wake Forest School of Medicine, USA)
Development of New Drugs Targeting Proteoglycans
Discussion Leaders
Jin-Ping Li (Uppsala University, Sweden)
Ralph Sanderson (The University of Alabama at Birmingham, USA)
Speakers
Jeremy Turnbull (University of Liverpool, United Kingdom)
Nunzio Bottini (University of California, San Diego, USA)
Jian Liu (University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, USA)
Mitchell Ho (National Cancer Institute, NIH, USA)
Matrix-Targeted Glycan Therapeutics in Clinical Trials
Discussion Leaders
Glenn Prestwich (Clear Solutions Biomedical, USA)
John Paderi (IHP Therapeutics, USA)
Speakers
Li Peng (Palleon Pharmaceuticals, USA)
Sangeetha Srinivasan (Shasqi, Inc., USA)
Mats Wahlgren (Karolinska Institutet, Sweden)
Denis Barritault (Otr3, France)
Thomas Kennedy (Tulane University, USA)
Abigail Pulsipher (GlycoMira Therapeutics, USA)
The GRC Power Hour™
Organizer:
Catherine Merry (University of Nottingham, United Kingdom)
