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Daresbury and
Oxford, UK, 3rd
May 2006 - In recent years drugs have been
successfully designed to combat a range of viruses including human
influenza, rhinoviruses (primary cause of the common cold) and HIV.
These drugs have all been developed by structure-based design using
synchrotron radiation technology to identify structures of potential
drug target molecules.
Accelerating electrons to produce beams of
light 10,000 times brighter than that which can be obtained in the
laboratory, synchrotrons can be used to study the structure of
proteins and other biological molecules at the atomic level.
Synchrotron radiation technology has dramatically decreased the time
it takes scientists to resolve protein structures from years or even
decades down to a matter of hours.
To celebrate and communicate the current
research and future applications of synchrotron technology the
9th International Conference on Biology and Synchrotron Radiation
will be held in the UK in August 2007. The conference
will bring together the world’s leaders in and suppliers to this
field, already it has attracted speakers with international
recognition including Professor Johann Deisenhofer of Howard Hughes
Medical Institute in the USA; Professor Janos Hajdu based in Sweden at
Uppsala Universitet; and from Japan, Professor Shigeyuki Yokoyama,
RIKEN Genomic Sciences Centre.
In the next two years the UK and France
will benefit from the addition of two brand new, state-of-the-art, 3rd
generation synchrotron radiation sources – public access facilities
available to the general research community. Diamond will open in
Oxfordshire, UK in 2007 and SOLEIL in
Paris this year.
Professor Samar Hasnain, CCLRC, who is
organizing the event jointly
with Professor Dame Louise Johnson of Diamond Light Source, stated
that “we are expecting over 800 delegates to attend from all corners
of the globe. The future of synchrotron technology lies in the sharing
of research and knowledge”.
Dame Louise added, “With routine access to
synchrotron facilities both academic and industrial scientists can
experience increased research opportunities in the field of biology
and in particular drug discovery. The conference will provide a
platform for harnessing knowledge and exploring the next steps in the
development of synchrotron technology, such as methods for examining
fragile crystals of membrane proteins and methods for cell imaging.”
-Ends-
For further information please
contact:
Northbank Communications
Ben Routley, Tel: 44 (0) 1260 296500
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