Grant Number:	1R13NS070421-01 Interpret this number
Primary Investigator:	Provencio, Ignacio
Organization:	University Of Virginia
Project Title:	Biennial Meeting Society for Research on Biological Rhythms
Fiscal Year:	2010

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): The Biennial Meeting of Society for Research on Biological Rhythms (SRBR) will be held at Sandestin Resort in Destin, Florida from May 22-26, 2010. The Program Chair of this conference is Ignacio Provencio from the Department of Biology and the Center for Biological Timing at the University of Virginia. This conference will explore topics related to circadian biology on a broad scale ranging from biochemical/molecular and genetic analyses to whole organism behavior and physiology, including human clinical studies. This broad range of topics is indicative of this field, which is by its nature very multi-disciplinary. The program includes presentations in a variety of formats, including large symposia with invited speakers, small slide sessions and poster sessions programmed from the submitted abstracts and a number of workshops exploring specific hot areas of the field. The speakers and discussion leaders for this conference have been chosen so that many areas will be well represented, including academic researchers (including those from minority institutions), government scientists, and industrial researchers. In addition, we have a large representation of women (including 60% of the program committee) and have made an effort to include scientists from Europe, Latin America and Asia in addition to those from the US. Although this meeting is held every two years, the field is moving so rapidly that each meeting is a significant departure from previous meetings. A goal of the 2010 meeting is to bring in a number of excellent scientists from outside fields to increase the inter-disciplinary aspects of clock studies. PUBLIC HEALTH RELEVANCE: Circadian rhythms are daily rhythms in behavior and physiology that are driven by an internal 24-hour biological clock. The sleep:wake cycle is perhaps the most obvious of circadian rhythms. The anatomical site of the primary circadian clock is within the hypothalamus of the brain. However, peripheral tissues and organs also contain secondary circadian clocks that are synchronized by the central hypothalamic clock. Within the last decade, substantial evidence has emerged indicating that desynchrony among the circadian clocks within the body has profound negative effects on human health. Among the maladies associated with a desynchronized circadian system are obesity, diabetes, metabolic syndrome, depression, immunological deficiencies, sleep disorders, gastric irritability, impacts on learning and memory, and a substantial decrement in workplace performance. The Society for Research in Biological Rhythms (SRBR) is the most prominent scientific society engaged in the study of biological rhythms. Its biennial SRBR Meeting is the primary venue where the top international scientists involved in biological rhythms research and their trainees exchange information on the most recent findings and advances in the field. The purpose of this application is to obtain funding for graduate student and postdoctoral fellowship trainees to attend the next SRBR Meeting.





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