International experts meet to bring down the barriers in research
Report by Dr Marita Pohlschmidt, Director of Research at the Muscular Dystrophy Campaign.
"Bringing Down the Barriers in Translational Medicine in Inherited Neuromuscular Diseases" was the title of the first TREAT-NMD conference organised in partnership with the National Institutes of Health, USA, which took place in Brussels from November 17-19, 2009.
The conference brought together 350 researchers, clinicians, representatives from industry and people affected by muscle disease from over 30 countries to discuss achievements made so far and to agree on future directions.
Scientific conferences generally consist of lectures during which researchers and clinicians report back new advances to their peers. For this meeting a new interactive format was chosen reflecting the inclusive nature of the TREAT-NMD network. There were eight sessions during which the project leaders initially updated the audience on any progress made, but these were followed by extensive panel discussions to ensure an informed debate and encourage questions from the audience. The format worked really well - it encouraged communication between different disciplines and gave delegates the opportunity to voice their perspective. It also highlighted the direction of future activities of the TREAT-NMD network and gave everybody the chance to learn from each others' expertise.
TREAT-NMD is a 'network of excellence' to promote translational research that is supported by the European Commission with 10 million Euros for a period of 5 years. The network started in 2007 and is coordinated by Professor Kate Bushby and Professor Volker Straub at the University of Newcastle. It has a multidisciplinary nature - it consists of academics, representatives from patient organisations and industry from all over Europe and has recently developed strong international links in particular with the USA. It has 21 partners in 11 countries that work on projects such as assessment of animal models, the development of patient registries, ethical issues, standards of care and the identification of promising potential therapeutic avenues.
Over the coming months TREAT-NMD will produce a number of publications detailing the outcomes of the main sessions. The Muscular Dystrophy Campaign works closely with the TREAT-NMD coordination office in Newcastle and was an official sponsor of the conference.
For more information please visit the TREAT-NMD website.
