Researchers to Discuss Exercise’s Underpinnings of Health at APS Conference

Rockville, Md. (November 3, 2020)—Exercise physiologists and researchers from around the world will meet virtually next week for the American Physiological Society Integrative Physiology of Exercise conference.

Physical activity can help manage weight, maintain bone health and improve mood. The catchphrase “exercise is medicine” is becoming increasingly part of the general public’s vocabulary as medical professionals urge their patients to stay active to stay healthy—especially during the coronavirus pandemic. However, exercise physiology—the study of the body’s responses and adaptations to exercise—is not new. Physiologist A.V. Hill introduced the concepts that built the foundation for the field of exercise physiology nearly a century ago.

“The theme of the meeting is ‘Distinguished Past, Bright Future’ to build upon the rich history of the field and forward momentum emerging in exercise physiology. We are excited for the novel virtual format and fun events that are planned,” said conference co-organizer Scott Trappe, PhD, of Ball State University in Indiana. The meeting will focus on the younger researchers who are “the future leaders in the important science of exercise and its underpinnings of human health,” explained conference co-organizer Todd Trappe, PhD, also of Ball State University.

Highlighted conference sessions are listed below. View the meeting program for more information.

 

Program Highlights

Monday, November 9

Symposium 1: Scientific contributions of John O. Holloszy, MD

Chair: John Kirwan, PhD, Pennington Biomedical Research Center, Baton Rouge, Louisiana

 

Speakers:

“When GLUT4 ‘arrived’ in muscle”

Amira Klip, PhD, FAPS, Hospital for Sick Children, Canada

 

“Exercise as ‘medicine’ to enhance insulin sensitivity and metabolism in type 2 diabetes: Inspired by John O. Holloszy”

Juleen Zierath, PhD, Karolinska Institute, Sweden

 

“Biogenesis of mitochondrial membranes”

Katsuhiko Funai, PhD, University of Utah

 

Workshop 1: Navigating the National Institutes of Health for young investigators and grant writing

Facilitators: Lyndon Joseph, PhD, National Institute on Aging, Bethesda, Maryland; Amanda Boyce, PhD, National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases, Bethesda, Maryland

 

Symposium 2: Mission to Mars: Astronaut health and exercise

Chairs: Jessica Scott, PhD, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, New York; Lori Ploutz-Snyder, PhD, University of Michigan

 

Speakers:

Lori Ploutz-Snyder, PhD, University of Michigan

 

“Exercise to mitigate multisystem deconditioning: the NASA 70-day bed rest study”

Jessica Scott, PhD, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, New York

 

“Nutrition as fuel for space exploration”

Scott Smith, PhD, NASA Johnson Space Center, Houston

 

“Maintaining bone and muscle mass in space: The astronaut perspective”

Michael Fossum, MS, Texas A&M University at Galveston

 

Tuesday, November 10

Keynote Address 1: August Krogh, Nobel Laureate: 100-year anniversary celebration

Speaker: Michael Kjaer, MD, DMSc, University of Copenhagen, Denmark

 

Workshop 2: Career paths and diversity in science

Facilitators: Jessica Scott, PhD, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, New York; Matthew Fedoruk, PhD, United States Anti-Doping Agency, Colorado Springs, Colorado; Hirofumi Tanaka, PhD, University of Texas at Austin

 

Symposium 3: Exercise and organ cross-talk

Chair: Bente Klarlund Pedersen, MD, DMSc, Rigshospitalet Hospital and University of Copenhagen, Denmark

 

Speakers:

“The role of muscle in adult neurogenesis and memory function”

Henriette Van Praag, PhD, Florida Atlantic University

 

“Clinical relevance and underlying mechanisms of exercise-induced browning of white adipose tissue”

David Wright, PhD, University of Guelph, Canada

 

“Role of extracellular vesicles in tissue cross-talk during exercise”

Mark Febbraio, PhD, Monash University, Australia

 

“Hepatokines—a novel group of exercise factors”

Cora Weigert, PhD, University of Tuebingen, Germany

 

Wednesday, November 11

Keynote Address 2: A.V. Hill, Nobel Laureate: 100-year anniversary celebration

Speaker: David Bassett, PhD, University of Tennessee

 

Concurrent sessions of trainee presentations

• Integrative responses 1

Chair: Jacob Haus, PhD, University of Michigan

 

• Skeletal muscle 1

Chair: Simon Schenk, PhD, University of California, San Diego

 

• Cardiovascular and aging

Chair: Jessica Scott, PhD, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, New York

 

• Integrative responses and skeletal muscle 2

Chair: Paul Coen, PhD, AdventHealth Research Institute, Orlando, Florida

 

Thursday, November 12

Symposium 4: Homeostasis and adaptation of tendons to exercise

Chair: Peter Magnusson, DMSc, Institute of Sports Medicine Copenhagen, Denmark

 

Speakers:

“The role of the circadian clock in exercising tendons”

Karl Kadler, PhD, The University of Manchester, U.K.

 

“Cellular and molecular responses to exercise and inactivity in human tendons”

Michael Kjaer, MD, DMSc, University of Copenhagen, Denmark

 

“Exercise-induced inflammation in tendon”

Stephanie Dakin, PhD, University of Oxford, U.K.

 

“Regulation of extracellular matrix tendon tissue in response to resistance training”

Chris Mendias, PhD, Hospital for Special Surgery, New York

 

Workshop 3: Team science

Facilitators: Lori Ploutz-Snyder, PhD, University of Michigan; Sue Bodine, PhD, FAPS, University of Iowa; John Kirwan, PhD, Pennington Biomedical Research Center, Baton Rouge, Louisiana

 

Symposium 5: Testosterone, health and performance

Chair: Matthew Fedoruk, PhD, United States Anti-Doping Agency, Colorado Springs, Colorado

 

Speakers:

“Testosterone and androgen abuse in sport—evolution and challenges in detection”

Daniel Eichner, PhD, Sports Medicine Research & Testing Laboratory, South Jordan, Utah

 

“Testosterone supplementation, energy deficit and performance”

Stefan Pasiakos, PhD, U.S. Army Research Institute of Environmental Medicine, Natick, Massachusetts

 

“Testosterone, females and athletic response—current research and controversy”

Angelica Lindén Hirschberg, MD, PhD, Karolinska Institute, Sweden

 

“Testosterone and sport: medical need or anti-aging fad? Clinical use of testosterone in men”

Al Matsumoto, MD, University of Washington

 

Friday, November 13

Symposium 6: Molecular transducers of physical activity consortium (MoTrPAC)

Chair: Sue Bodine, PhD, FAPS, University of Iowa

 

Speakers:

“Overview of preclinical animal study protocol and results of training studies”

Sue Bodine, PhD, FAPS, University of Iowa

 

“Overview and update of MoTrPAC clinical studies”

Marcas Bamman, PhD, University of Alabama at Birmingham

 

“Integrative multi-omic analysis in MoTrPAC”

Malene Lindholm, PhD, Stanford University, Stanford, California

“Moving the exercise biology field beyond MoTrPAC”

Bret Goodpaster, PhD, AdventHealth Research Institute, Orlando, Florida

 

Workshop 4: Social Media

Facilitator: Stacy Brooks, American Physiological Society, Rockville, Maryland

 

NOTE TO JOURNALISTS: The APS Integrative Physiology of Exercise will be held November 9–13 on a virtual platform. To schedule an interview with the conference organizers or presenters, contact the APS Communications Office or call 301.634.7314. Find more research highlights in the APS Newsroom.

Physiology is a broad area of scientific inquiry that focuses on how molecules, cells, tissues and organs function in health and disease. The American Physiological Society connects a global, multidisciplinary community of more than 10,000 biomedical scientists and educators as part of its mission to advance scientific discovery, understand life and improve health. The Society drives collaboration and spotlights scientific discoveries through its 16 scholarly journals and programming that support researchers and educators in their work.