MAY/JUNE 2008
Volume 14 - No. 2
Treating Tobacco Use and Dependence
Treating Smoking with Cancer Patients
SRNT Latin America and Iberoamerican Heart Foundation Conference
SRNT Newsletter
MAY/JUNE 2008, Volume 14, Number 2
10th Annual Conference of the SRNT Europe Rome
September 23rd-26th, 2008
The 10th Annual Conference of the SRNT Europe will take place in Rome, 23rd - 26th September 2008. All the staff of the SRNT Europe- board of directors and Scientific Committee - have been working hard in order to have an interesting and attractive scientific program. Please go to www.srnt2008rome.com to register and download the program!
The theme of this year's conference will be "The Scientific Evidence: Criteria for Therapy, Needs for Prevention". This thematic choice derives from the acknowledgement that in spite of guidelines and of the available scientific literature, the practical intervention for smoking cessation, prevention and tobacco control is still based on common sense, intuition and non-evidence based approaches. We think that this loss of energy may be limited with better information sharing among professionals and researchers based on a multidisciplinary communication across the different levels of expertise.
The mission of the Society for Research on Nicotine and Tobacco is to bring together experts from different fields, but also to disseminate to those people daily involved in research, medical practice and education on tobacco therapy and prevention. The aim of this conference is in fact to enhance the `translational' value of the scientific evidence as a well-accepted criterion for therapy, but also as a still unmet need for preventive activity. We hope that the Rome 2008 conference will meet these objectives.
The program is comprised of plenary lectures, basic, clinical and healthcare research symposiums and panels, round table discussions and workshops. A vital component of the program will be the poster sessions and free oral presentations where the most recent research findings in the field of nicotine and tobacco will be informally discussed among senior and junior attendees.
Prof. Michael Fiore will give the opening lecture at the welcome ceremony on 23rd Sep evening. On next day, 24th Sep, the Program will offer a series of sessions dedicated to update hot-topics in the field of nicotine and tobacco dependence: the round table on "Teaching Tobacco Science & Control" (chaired by Eva Kralikova), the "Update on Potential Reduced Exposure Products" session (chaired by Karl Fagerstrom), the basic research symposium on "Individual Differences in Tobacco/Nicotine Dependence" (chaired by Sakire Pogun & Marcus Munafò) and the two workshops on "Novel Discovery in Nicotine Neuroscience Research" (chaired by Bill Corrigall) and on "Biological Markers of Tobacco Use" (chaired by Neal Benowitz & Ivan Berlin). We hope that this first day will be an opportunity for non-specialists attendees to learn something new about what is going on in the field. In the evening, a Social Dinner will be held at the Old Hospital of Santo Spirito in Saxia, an impressive building besides St. Peter's.
On 25th, Karine Gallopel will give the plenary lecture on "Social Marketing Rules to Conduct Good Prevention Campaigns". On the same morning, two panels will be dedicated to research topics that are translational across basic and clinical science: the "Neural bases for nicotine-induced cognitive enhancement" and the "Tobacco and co-addictions" sessions, respectively chaired by Shoaib & Wonnacott and by Aubin & Chiamulera. In the afternoon, the session on "Psychiatric disorders and smoking" (chaired by Ivan Berlin & Hubertus Friederich) and the panel on "Cochrane Reviews to guide smoking cessation treatment" organized by Tim Lancaster & Lindsay Stead. It will take an hard decision on which session to choose!
The last day will open with a plenary lecture slot dedicated to Ian Stolerman, a tribute to our friend and colleague who was a pioneer in the behavioral pharmacology of nicotine. Contributions by David Balfour, Mohammed Shoaib, Jean-Pierre Changeux, Sue Wonnacott and Ellen Gritz. Theories of addiction will be discussed within the framework of nicotine/tobacco dependence in the panel chaired by Robert West and Susan Michie on the "Role of psychological theory in advancing treatment and prevention". Finally, the session on "Intrauterine smoke exposure and its consequences" (chaired by Berlin & Tonstad) will review the evidence on the drama of smoking during pregnancy.
After the Closing ceremony, please do not rush to take your flight and take some extra days in Rome! Rome in September is at its best, with the ponentino (the moderate warm wind) making the days and the evening pleasurable for walking around ancient roman ruins, spectacular imperial perspectives and its typical old quarters. In the last few years, Rome underwent an impressive cosmopolitan development and offers all the advantages of a modern city to its traditional historical heart.
The conference venue will be ATA Hotel Villa Pamphili. The venue is located in the wonderful part of ancient Villa Pamphili very close to city’s centre and its tourist attractions. The area has an old history but all the modern technologies needed for our conference are provided to attendees. Alternative accommodations will be available at a reduced rate. Shuttle services will also be available for transportation between the hotels and city’s centre.
I would like to thank the Chair of the Conference Giacomo Mangiaracina who is going to be our host and chaperon in Rome. Many thanks also to the President of SRNT-Europe Jacques Le Houezec and to all the members of the European Board, the Program Committee, the Secretariat AnteprimaDue.
Their effort and work have been essential for building up this Conference.
I hope all of you can enjoy it.
Arrivederci a Roma!
About the Author: Christian Chiamulera is the Co-Chair of the 10th Annual Conference of SRNT Europe and Chair of European Conference Program Committee
