Cutting-edge Research in Mitochondrial Disease to Be Revealed at April Symposium

If you or a family member has mitochondrial disease, you might want to attend the upcoming 2017 Mitochondrial Medicine Southeast Regional Symposium, organized by the United Mitochondrial Disease Foundation (UMDF), the Foundation for Mitochondrial Medicine (FMM) and the University of Alabama Birmingham (UAB).

The symposium will take place April 7-8 in Birmingham, Alabama.

The event will focus on mitochondrial disease and mitochondrial dysfunction. The program includes one medical-clinical day on Friday, April 7, which will include several continuing medical education (CME) activities and other sessions about clinical trials and mitochondrial research, as well as panel discussions; and one family-oriented day on April 8, which will include patient-oriented sessions.

UAB’s Mitochondrial Medicine Laboratory, in collaboration with Seahorse Bioscience, will also present a glance at cutting-edge research developments in bioenergetics at the two-day event.

On Friday, activities will take place at the Grand Bohemian Hotel, while on Saturday, activities will be nearby at the Birmingham Botanical Gardens.

There will be two non-CME sessions on Friday: one at noon titled “Clinical Trials and Pharma Advancements – and Roadmap to a Cure Updates,” and one at 1:30 p.m. titled “Bioenergetics and Mitochondrial Medicine – Aglient Technologies/Seahorse.”

Two panel discussions will also be held on Friday. The 3:15 p.m. discussion is titled “Mitochondria and Neurodegenerative Diseases:  Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, Others TBD,” and the 4 p.m. discussion is titled “Mitochondria and Common Diseases: Autism, Cancer, Others TBD.”

Clinical researchers, patients, and patients’ families are invited to meet at a Friday night reception to encourage networking and an exchange of information. The evening reception will include a keynote address titled “Human Energy and Performance: Transforming the Way We Work and Live,” presented by the Energy Project.

Here is the full schedule for Saturday, April 8 (for families):

• 9:30 to 10 a.m. – Breakfast and registration.
• 10 to 10:30 a.m. – Welcome and introductions. Speakers: Victor Darley-Usmar, PhD, Leon Dure, MD, and Philip Yeske, PhD.
• 10:30 to 11:30 a.m. – “Mitochondrial disease: What is it and what to expect?” Speaker: Amel Karaa, MD.
• 11:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. – “Hope on the Horizon: Until there is medicine, nutrition, physical therapy, clinical trials, current therapies in the treatment of mitochondrial diseases.” Speaker: Bruce Cohen, MD.
• 12:30 to 2 p.m. – Lunch with Q&A session with speakers.
• 2 to 3 p.m. – UMDF and FMM call to action. Speakers: Laura Stanley, Philip Yeske, PhD, and Shilpa Iyer, PhD.

Registration is now open now. Both individual and family registration is free of charge for patients and patient families on Saturday. Registration includes breaks and lunch. Family registration covers two adults from one household, so breaks and lunch will be provided for two. The Friday night reception is $25 for an individual patient, parent or caregiver; $45 for the family discount (includes two adults); and $50 for general admission.

Venues:

• Grand Bohemian Hotel, 2655 Lane Park Rd., Birmingham, Alabama.
• Birmingham Botanical Gardens, 2612 Lane Park Rd., Birmingham.

Hotel accommodations:

• A full list of suggested hotel accommodation options is available here.