Liverpool Biochemistry Centenary Meeting

Programme Committee Meeting Friday 22 October 1999

Present: Prof. Huw Rees (chair), Dr Andy Bates, Dr Dave Fernig, Prof. Malcolm Jackson, Dr Sandy McLennan, Prof. Philip Rudland, Dr Mike White

1. Apologies were received from Prof. Julian Crampton.

2. Minutes of the meeting of ‘Biochemistry’ staff on March 16 1999 were accepted.

3. Matters arising

(i) Letter/visit from Sheila Mills, Biochemical Society. The conclusions from this visit were summarised as follows:
 On the basis of this, the committee made the following decisions:

Action HHR

(ii) It was confirmed that the meeting will take place during the week of September 3, 2002, although the exact dates have yet to be confirmed. Accommodation at Derby and Rathbone Hall (101 en-suite bedrooms, 200 standard bedrooms) has been provisionally booked for the whole of that week. The provisional length of the meeting is 3 days (see 5).

(iii) Name of meeting. Given that the theme of the meeting will be biochemical signalling in the broadest sense, a brainstorming session produced, amongst others, the following possible titles: ‘Cell Fate and Information Processing’, ‘How Cells Decide’, ‘The Indecisive Cell’, ‘The (Biochemical) Signalling Web’ (an early favourite), ‘The Cellular Web’ and finally, ‘Signalling the Future’. A subtitle referring to the centenary is also required, so the provisional title was agreed as:

Signalling the Future
A Celebration of 100 years of Biochemistry in Liverpool and the UK

4. Organisation

The organisational requirements of the meeting were discussed. It was agreed that once the draft programme had been outlined, the Programme Committee would be expanded to include representatives from the different symposia, including representatives of other departments in the University. Small groups dealing with the symposia and other organisational aspects of the meeting will report to the Programme Committee.

5. Symposia/Programmes

After some discussion, it was agreed that the Main Symposium would consist of a series of plenary lectures taking place throughout the meeting as single sessions. The remaining symposia would take place in parallel sessions between the plenary sessions, and could consist of a half day, a full day or more, to be determined. The plenary sessions would include, as name lectures, the Centenary Lecture, the Morton Lecture, and a historical lecture (the Johnston Lecture?). Thus a provisional outline for one day of the meeting is shown below:

Possible symposia were discussed, largely based on the list produced in the earlier meeting (March 16 1999): The first two were agreed. The remaining possibilities will be discussed with relevant people, for example, Prof. Brian Tomsett (Plant Signalling), Prof. Jon Saunders (Environmental Signalling), Andrew Miller (Plants/Clocks).

Action HHR/MRHW

It was felt that the Main Symposium should have the highest-quality speakers possible. A list of possible names was proposed as follows:

  • Nick Jones - Patterson Inst.
  • Alan Wolffe - NIH
  • Michael Karin - La Jolla
  • Tom Blundell - Cambridge
  • Aaron Klug - LMB Cambridge
  • David Lane - Dundee
  • Steve Jackson - Cambridge
  • Stevan Hubbard - California
  • Bob Michell - Birmingham
  • John Scott - Oregon
  • Nick Tonks - Seattle
  • Steve Kay - Scripps Inst.
  • Roger Tsein - San Diego
  • Phil Cohen - Dundee
  • Michael Berridge - Babraham Inst
  • Rick Morimoto - CA
  • Susan Lindqvist - Chicago
  • Dennis Noble - Oxford
  • Nancy Rothwell - Manchester
  • Gareth Williams - Liverpool
  • Steven Rose - OU
  • Paul Nurse - ICRF
  • Salvador Moncada - UCL
  • Richard Treisman - ICRF
  • G. Smith - Oxford
  • Michel Goedert - LMB Cambridge
  • Philip Beachy - Johns Hopkins

Redox signalling
Chromatin remodelling
PK cascades
Structure/transcription factors
Transcription factors/molecular recognition
Transcription
Transcription/molecular recognition
Tyrosine kinase structure
Lipids/signalling
ACAP proteins (nervous system)
Phosphatases
Clocks
Calcium signalling
PKs and disease
Calcium signalling
Heat Shock/Stress signalling
Evolution of signalling
Integrative physiology
Lectins
Lectins
Cognitive neuroscience
Cell cycle
Cell cycle signalling
Fos
Alzheimer’s - signalling (clinical)
Alzheimer’s
Hedgehog signalling

This list will be added to and refined before and at the next meeting, before an approach is made to the Biochemical Society Subject Groups to gauge their interest in contributing to existing symposia, or organising additional ones.

Satellite meeting. There is a possibility of a stand-alone self-financing meeting on growth factor signalling (DGF).

6. Finance

It was decided that one person should act as Treasurer for the meeting. ADB agreed to undertake this role. Possible sources of funding were mentioned, but not discussed in detail:

7. Social Events

The Social Programme will require a small organising group reporting to the Programme Committee. The importance of the early booking of venues was emphasised. Caroline Griffiths, the Conference and Marketing Manager of the University has provided details of a number of possible venues: She also suggested a number of guided tours which may be suitable for accompanying persons, or for the day before or after the meeting. The Social events proposed were:

8. Commercial Exhibition

ADB coordinated this aspect of the 1996 meeting, and will do so again, although no action is required at present, as company budgets for exhibitions are only available approx. 12-18 months ahead of the event.

9. AOB - None.

10. Date of next meeting: Thursday November 4, 9.00 am, Committee Room

 

Andy Bates