S C H E D U L E
LEUKOLABS Inaugural Meeting, Firth Hall, Firth Court
The University of Sheffield - 29th November 2022
9.00-9.45 Arrival, Poster Set-Up, Registration and Coffee
9.45-10.00 Opening Remarks and Sponsors
10.00–12.00: Session 1. A roadmap for leukodystrophy research
10.00–10.40 Keynote Speaker: Professor John Livingston
Chair: James Poulter
Professor John Livingston will open the meeting and provide an overview of the current clinical state of leukodystrophies, sharing his wealth of experience as a Consultant Paediatric Neurologist and leader of the Inherited White Matter Disorders Multi-Disciplinary Team in Leeds.
10.40–11.20 Intro to LEUKOLABS: Vision, Mission and first LEUKOLABS story
Founders of the network.
11.20–11.40 AlexTLC: The Leukodystrophy Charity
Sara Hunt and Karen Harrison
11.40-11.55 European Leukodystrophy Association (ELA): Fighting leukodystrophies for 30 years - Elise Vivar
Poster Flash Talks (2-3 minutes each)
11.55-12.10
5 flash talks
12.10 - 13.30 Buffet lunch and Poster viewing
13.30-14.10 Inspirational Speaker: Professor Heather Mortiboys- University of Sheffield, Sheffield Institute of Translational Neuroscience.
Chair: Andrew Grierson
Professor Mortiboys will provide an overview of her career as a successful neuroscientist performing pioneering research in Parkinson Disease combining her expertise in mitochondria function with different models. She will share her experience in receiving a White Rose Collaborative Award and how this led her to her current position at the head of a large and very successful research group identifying new drugs for Parkinson Disease.
14.10–14.55: Session 2. Understanding leukodystrophy: new insights into disease pathogenesis
Session 2 will feature talks selected from submitted abstracts including clinicians and researchers, focusing on current research exploring leukodystrophy diagnosis and disease progression. The session will finish with a talk from Alex, The Leukodystrophy Charity, who will share their unique perspectives on living with leukodystrophy, and vital work supporting families affected by these disorders.
14.10-14.25 Selected from abstract talk 1: James Poulter, Missense mutation of MAL causes a rare leukodystrophy similar to Pelizaeus-Merzbacher disease
14.25-14.40 Selected from abstract talk 2: Charlotte Nutting, Title TBC
14.40-14.55 Selected from abstract talk 3:
14.55-15.35 Afternoon Networking: Tea/Coffee and Poster Viewing
15.35–16.00: Session 3. Looking to the future: developing therapies for leukodystrophies
Session 3 will feature talks selected from submitted abstracts including clinicians and researchers, with an emphasis on therapy development. Topics will cover preclinical therapy development – from cellular research and animal models – to clinical studies, demonstrating the broad range of research avenues covered within the LEUKOLABS collaboration.
15.35–15.45 Selected from abstract talk 4: Sara Benedetti, Title TBC
15.45–16.00 Selected from abstract talk 5: Holly Rutherford, Replacing deficient microglia in a zebrafish model of childhood leukodystrophy as a potential therapy
16.00–16.15 Selected from abstract talk 6
16.15–16.30 Plenary discussion, Prize giving, Survey and Close
16.30–18.00 Reception and Networking