Meet us at the "ESF-EMBO Symposium: Biological surfaces and interfaces"

Meet us at the conference. It will take place in Sant Feliu de Guixols, on the Spanish Costa Brava, 120 km north of Barcelona and 30 km south of Girona.

The symposium will be chaired by

Chair: Professor Julie Gold
Chalmers University of Technology Department of Applied Physics - Gothenburg, Sweden

Co-Chair: Professor Joachim Spatz
Max-Planck-Institut für Metallforschung Universität Heidelberg - Stuttgart Germany

Vice-Chairs:

Professor Fredrik Höök
Lund University Department of Solid State Physics - Lund, Sweden

Professor Janos Vörös
ETH Zurich Institute for Biomedical Engineering, Laboratory of Biosensors and Bioelectronics - Zürich, Switzerland

Dates
27 June - 2 July 2009

Program overview:
"Interfaces between synthetic materials and biological systems – biointerfaces – constitute one of the most dynamic and expanding fields in science and technology. The field is driven both by a number of growing industrial and clinical applications – medical implants, biosensors and biochips, regenerative medicine, drug screening and targeting - and by the desire to understand biointerface processes at a fundamental level. It is by definition highly interdisciplinary, spanning across the disciplines of physics, materials science & engineering, chemistry, biology, bioinformatics and medicine. Education of today’s students in a stimulating environment and with an interdisciplinary approach is a key factor for propelling this field forward.

The main approach in biointerfacial science involves preparation and characterisation of functional surfaces for specific interactions with bio-systems, in vivo and in vitro, and studies of the molecular and kinetic processes occurring at such interfaces, ranging from small molecule and biomolecular interactions, to cell adhesion, differentiation and tissue formation at the interface. As such, this conference spans a wide range of topics including biomimetic surface platforms, biomembrane and supramolecular materials, nanotechnology, controlling cellular responses by designed surfaces with switchable properties, stem cells, cellular and molecular biomechanics, neural networks, optical, magnetic and mechanical detection systems with single molecule sensitivity, bioarrays and DNA, peptides, proteins, enzymes at interfaces.

The programme is organised into invited presentations by internationally renowned researchers, complemented by shorter contributed oral presentations and poster sessions by young scientists. Selected after-dinner keynote speakers have been invited to put the biointerface field in a larger scientific, clinical and social context. A small-group discussion session is planned to address social and ethical issues of the impact of the technologies and scientific knowledge being developed and used in this area. The conference will include short talks selected from the submitted abstracts as well as poster presentations."

More info at http://www.esf.org/index.php?id=5251