The Academic Board of the International Chair on Cardiometabolic Risk has held bi-annual meetings since the Chair’s launch in December 2005. These meetings have led to the publication of reviews, articles, and thematic papers to appear in supplements of scientific journals. For example, the discussions arising from a previous Chair meeting in New York in December 2006 are to be published in an International Journal of Obesity supplement on approaches to assessing global risk of coronary heart disease. Similarly, the proceedings of the last Chair meeting in Québec City in July 2007 will be summarized in a new publication format to be announced soon by the Chair.
The Academic Board of the Chair will meet next in Paris, France on December 15, 2007. The theme of the meeting will be Abdominal Obesity, Insulin Resistance and the Metabolic Syndrome: Contribution of Physical Activity/Exercise. This meeting will provide a special opportunity to recognize the landmark contributions of two pioneers in the field of abdominal obesity/body fat distribution, the late professors Jean Vague and Per Björntorp, who will be honoured through the “Jean Vague/Per Björntorp Memorial Award Lecture.” This award will call attention to the contributions of exceptional scientists/clinicians who have been leaders in the field of abdominal obesity, body fat distribution, insulin resistance, and related cardiometabolic risk. The first recipient of this Memorial Award Lecture will be a colleague of Professor Per Björntorp, Professor Ulf Smith from the University of Göteborg, Sweden, who will give a plenary lecture entitled The Syndrome of Insulin Resistance: History Repeats Itself.
The morning symposium will be devoted to enhancing understanding of the pathophysiology of insulin resistance and its link to obesity and dysfunctional adipose tissue. In the afternoon, the Chair will hold a symposium focusing specifically on Physical Activity and Exercise: From Epidemiology to Metabolic Aspects. The plan is to publish the proceedings of the afternoon symposium in a supplement of a peer-reviewed journal. This meeting is closed and limited to the invited lecturers and international academic board members. The goal is to facilitate discussion and dialogue in view of producing literature for publication. The papers arising from these symposia will be published later on in 2008. Publication dates will be announced in this newsletter. Stay tuned!
