ConfometRx Research Foundation Announces 2013 GPCR Workshop

PALO ALTO, Calif., March 27, 2013 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- ConfometRx Research Foundation is pleased to announce the 2013 GPCR Workshop to be held at Hyatt Regency, Maui Dec 1-5, 2013.  The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences called global attention to the significance of G protein coupled receptors (GPCRs) by awarding the 2012 Nobel Prize in Chemistry to two pioneers in the field.  GPCRs mediate the senses of sight, olfaction and taste, as well as the physiologic responses to the majority of hormones and neurotransmitters in the human body. As such GPCRs are the targets for nearly 50% of all marketed drugs, and are potential targets for many unmet medical needs. 

The goals of the workshop are to bring together scientists from academia and the pharmaceutical and biotechnology industries to discuss the most challenging problems in the GPCR field and explore new ways to work together to find solutions. The workshop will encourage mutual sharing of ongoing research results, both successes and failures, so as to facilitate progress in the development of more effective therapeutics for G protein coupled receptor targets.

The format for this workshop will encourage a free flow of ideas centered around key problems facing GPCR drug discovery, and a discussion of what different investigators have tried, what has worked, and what has failed. Morning sessions will consist of presentations from invited speakers covering a range of topics. Evening interactive sessions will provide a forum for attendees to present and discuss their latest research. The conference will follow the principles of the Gordon Research Conferences, where the participants will hold data and ideas discussed at the workshop in confidence.

The co-organizers of the workshop include the founders of the ConfometRx Research Foundation, Tong Sun and Brian Kobilka, who are also co-founders of ConfometRx, a sponsor of the workshop, and Arthur Christopoulos and Patrick Sexton of Monash Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Melbourne, Australia, also a workshop sponsor.  The environment of the workshop is informal and dynamic, and conducive to a free flow of ideas.  We encourage the participation of pharmaceutical companies through sponsorship and participation in the workshop.  Please visit the website for information and registration: www.gpcrworkshop.com.

SOURCE ConfometRx