Meeting Emphasis

The Alternative Muscle Club meeting is aimed at scientists early in their research careers. The free daylong meeting provides an opportunity for young investigators in the academic, industry and medical sectors to present their work in a more relaxed environment. Its main goal is to build connections in the research community, and help learn about projects from other research laboratories and organizations.

Areas of Interest

The one-day meeting covers a wide range of muscle-related research areas. We will try to represent the full range of cutting-edge muscle-related research that is being undertaken today.
Topics include, but are not limited to the following areas:

Muscle and cardiovascular diseases

Muscular Dystrophy and related myopathies
Cardiomyopathies
Atherosclerosis
Molecular mechansisms of disease development
Disease biomarkers
Novel disease associated mutations

Muscle Structure, Function and Mechanisms
- Sarcomeric Proteins
- Cytoskeletal Proteins
- Muscle Signaling Pathways
- Ion Channel Mechanisms
- Sarcolemma Membrane Functions
- Functions of the Cardiac Intercalated Disk
- Calcium Handling and Sarcoplasmic Reticulum Function
- Structure and function of the Neuromuscular Junction
Biomechanics and Biophysics of Muscle Contraction
- Muscle Biophysics
- Contractile Dynamics
- Bioengineering of Muscle Tissue and Organs
- Molecular Functions of Mechanosensors and Mechanotransducers
Muscle Development
- Cardiac Development
- Skeletal Muscle Development
- Gene Expression Profiling
- Epigenetic Regulation of Muscle Development
- Model Organisms
- Pathogenesis and Progression of Cardiac and Skeletal Muscle Myopathies
Muscle Regeneration & translational research
- Differentiation of iPS and Stem Cells cells into Cardiomyocytes and Skeletal Muscle
- Cardiac Repair mechanisms
- Skeletal Muscle Stem Cell/Satellite Cell Biology
- Applications for Muscle Therapeutics
- Translational Research: Bench to bedside and back
Cardiac vasculature
- Endothelial cell function and signaling pathways
- Myocardial infarction
- Atherosclerosis
Muscle metabolics
- Metabolic syndrome & cardiometabolic risk
- Metabolites and biomarkers for disease
- Catabolism: Autophagy, UPS & proteases
Muscle systems biology
- Muscle metabolomics
- Muscle proteomics
- Muscle transcriptomics/genetics/GWAS
- Systems biology approaches in muscle and cardiovascular science
- Novel bioinformatics tools to study larga datasets in cardiovascular research

Career Development

Like in previous years, we are hoping to be able to offer career development sessions. Details will be announced in the final program. Please stay tuned.

Presenting your data at the AMC can boost your career.

All accepted poster presentations will be automatically entered into the poster competition, while all accepted oral abstracts from junior investigators will compete for the AMC young investigator awards.

We will also continuing our tradition of awarding an outstanding junior investigator with the Jean Hanson Award for Diversity in Science.
This award, named in honor of Jean Hanson (FRS), is aimed to promote diversity of speakers and attendees at the AMC meeting. Meeting attendees from disadvantaged backgrounds and underrepresented minorities are particularly encouraged to apply for this award!
The award will be given to one presenting AMC attendee based on:

scientific merit of his/her abstract,
his/her curriculum vitae or biosketch, and
a personal statement (~500 words) from the attendee on why he/she should be considered for this award.

Further details will be announced in the final program.

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