Experts in the fields of drug discovery and development and biotherapeutics will converge at the Applications of BioCalorimetry (ABC6) conference in Heidelberg, 7-10 July 2008
This will be the sixth time this event has been staged and will be the biggest meeting yet with a unique gathering of some of the most renowned speakers in their respective areas.
With its world famous castle and picturesque old town, Heidelberg is also home to Germany's oldest university and modern research facilities, providing the perfect backdrop to this informative and thought-provoking meeting.
This is a great chance to speak in person with experts in the field and generate discussions on any calorimetric topic.
A 'peerless' list of both leading and up-and-coming researchers from industry and academia has been assembled.
The four day meeting will cover the scientific exploration of the use of protein melting temperatures in the prediction of biopharmaceutical formulation stabilities, and where lead optimisation can be enhanced by calorimetry resulting in improvement in the drug discovery process.
These questions will be answered by virtue of informed debate and a unique selection of scientific presentations.
All of which is supported by an underlying in-depth level of expertise about calorimetry and thermodynamics.
There will also be a poster session in which all attendees may participate.
Scientific organiser Professor John Ladbury, University College London commented: "ABC6 will be an intimate and highly educational forum for the discussion of applications and analysis of calorimetric data.
"It will provide an opportunity for users to discuss methods, analysis and current areas of interest with experts from around the world.
"The symposium will have a fairly wide scope, from proteins to nucleic acids and membrane-related macromolecules, which will be attractive for a broad audience".
The growing interest in microcalorimetry in the life sciences has necessitated an annual meeting on the subject, with the last one held in Boston in July 2007, preceded by Zaragoza, Spain in 2006.
Structural biologists, crystallographers, drug designers and others are discovering that the data generated by microcalorimetry can provide important information unavailable from any other technique.
Professor Ladbury concluded: "This event represents an excellent opportunity to obtain a general view of how calorimetry is used and integrated together with other analytical tools in order to study biologically relevant systems."
