SOCIETÀ ITALIANA DI NEUROSCIENZE
ITALIAN SOCIETY OF NEUROSCIENCE

THE OBESE SPECIES: Clinical and preclinical understanding of eating and energy balance disorders

Directors of the workshop: Alessandro Bartolomucci (Univ. of Minnesota, USA);
Stefano Parmigiani (Univ. of Parma, Italy); John Rodgers (Univ. of Leeds, UK);
Antonio Vidal-Puig (Univ. of Cambridge, UK).

Venue: School of Ethology, Ettore Majorana Foundation and Centre for Scientific Culture, Erice, Sicily, Italy – President of the Center: Prof. A. Zichichi, Director of the School: Prof. Danilo Mainardi

Dates: 21-26 October 2011.

Web page:   http://theobesespecies.unipr.it/   -    Info:   This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
Registration and abstract submission will be opened in early spring 2011.
Details will be provided in the official web site.

Current epidemiological data show a dramatic increase of obesity in industrialized countries. The excess food availability and sedentary life style characteristic of these societies may negatively interact with phylogenetic adaptations of our species, resulting in maladaptive obesity and associated metabolic problems. Obesity is not only associated with physical incapacity and psychological distress but also with a considerably increased risk of Type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease, respiratory difficulties, certain cancers and premature mortality. While the obvious prophylactic strategy must entail a major change in lifestyle, therapeutic innovation will undoubtedly follow major recent advances in our understanding of the complex neurobiological signalling involved in appetite regulation and energy homeostasis. In this workshop, scientists and clinicians from many disciplines will address key issues from complementary perspectives.

Planned sessions will cover the following themes:

• hypothalamic neuropeptides
• serotonin, opioids & endocannabinoids
• gut-brain axis
• anti-obesity drug development
• exposure to man-made endocrine disruptors
• the role of gut microbiota
• diabetes & cardiovascular disease
• liking, wanting & palatability
• stress & gene-environment interactions
• evolution and adaptation


List of confirmed Speakers:
•    Fredrik Bäckhed (Univ. Gothenburg, Sweden)
•    Alessandro Bartolomucci (Univ. Minnesota, USA)
•    John Blundell (Univ. of Leeds, UK)
•    Saverio Cinti (Univ. of Ancona, Italy)
•    Anna Moles (CNR, Italy)
•    Eberhard Fuchs & Christina Schlumbohm (German Primate Center, Germany)
•    Jerrold Heindel (NIEHS, USA)
•    Bradford Lowell (Harvard Med. School, USA)
•    Stephen O’Rahilly (Univ. of Cambridge, UK)
•    Matej Oreši? (VTT, Finland)
•    Daniele Piomelli (Univ. of California at Irvine,  USA and IIT, Italy)
•    John Rodgers (Univ. of Leeds, UK)
•    John Speakman (Univ. Aberdeen, UK)
•    Matthias H. Tschöp (Univ. of Cincinnati, USA)
•    Antonio Vidal-Puig (Univ. of Cambridge, UK)
•    Frederick vom Saal (Univ. of Missouri-Columbia, USA)
•    Jonathan Wells (Institute of Child Health, London, UK)
•    John Wilding (Univ. of Liverpool, UK)
•    Zofia Zukowska (Univ. of Minnesota, USA)





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Alessandro Bartolomucci, Ph.D.
Department of Integrative Biology and Physiology
University of Minnesota
2-145A Jackson Hall
321 Church St SE
Minneapolis, MN 55455