With members in Canada, Mexico, and the USA, the Metabolomics Association of North America values cooperation, coordination, and the advancement of the field. The mission of MANA is to promote the growth and development of the field of metabolomics (broadly defined as the systems-scale study of biochemical intermediates in biological systems), particularly on the continent of North America; to provide the opportunity for association among North American researchers in metabolomics sciences and in related fields, including connections between academia and industry; to provide opportunities for presentation of research achievements and for workshops; to promote the publication of meritorious research in the field; and to carry on any other activity to benefit the better understanding of metabolism in microbes, plants, animals and humans.
The 4th Annual Metabolomics Association of North America (MANA) Conference will take place on the campus of the University of Alberta in Edmonton, Canada. TMIC is proud to co-host this event with the University of Alberta. Plenty of interesting programs are offered as the conference is held in person after two years of online delivery.
Plenary speakers
- Using Metabolomics to Understand Immune Function − Dr. Russell Jones
- The Role of Metabolomics in Population Health: Insights into Tobacco Smoking Behavior and Eating Patterns − Dr. Philip Britz-McKibbin
- The Metabolite in the Coal Mine: Early-life Microbial Metabolic Drivers of Childhood Allergic Asthma − Kathryn Mccauley, MPH
- How Complicated is it Really? Exploring the Detectable Metabolome for Untargeted Mass Spectrometry−Dr. Nadja Cech
- Lessons from Metabolomics to Face the COVID-19 Pandemic −Dr. Yamile Lopez Hernandez
- Spatial Metabolomics: Insight Gained into Host-Pathogen-Microbiome Chemical Interactions − Dr. Laura-Isobel McCall
One of our node leader, Dr. Philip Britz-McKibbin from McMaster University is presenting “The Role of Metabolomics in Population Health: Insights into Tobacco Smoking Behavior and Eating Patterns“. Dr. Britz-McKibbin has contributed to innovations in capillary electrophoresis and mass spectrometry for metabolomics as applied to preventative health. His research program includes the development of higher throughput methods for identifying and quantifying metabolites of clinical significance in human biological samples, including the introduction of multiplexed separations and accelerated data workflows for biomarker discovery. His recent publications about the nutrition-related study: Iodine Deficiency – Striking Regional Variations In Canada and Pregnancy & Foods Related Metabolites are profiled in either TMIC news or national newspapers
Workshops and Interactive Forums
Workshops
- Metaboanalyst
- How do we best teach metabolomics?
- Frontiers in NMR Metabolomics
- Metabolomics Workbench and the National Metabolomics Data Repository
- National Microbiome Data Collaborative: Metabolomics Data Processing Workflows and Metadata Standards
Interactive Forums
- Precision Medicine discipline
- Wine and beer tasting with Metabolomics
- Software and Data Exchange (SODA)
- Urgent issues in NMR
- NIST Development of a fecal metabolite calibrant
“Wine and Beer Tasting with Metabolomics” is presented by one of TMIC Co-directors and also a Node Leader, Dr. David Wishart. This interactive forum will provide attendees with the opportunity to see how metabolomics can be used to interpret the taste and aroma of different wines and beers. Attendees will taste/assess 4 different wines and at least one type of beer. NMR, GC and LC-MS data will then be shown for each type of beverage and the identified chemical components will be used to explain the olfactory and taste sensations. The forum is intended to be relaxing, fun and instructive.
Oral Presentations and Lightning Talks
TMIC’s researchers from different nodes contribute to a total of 8 oral presentations and 2 lightning talks.
Poster presentations
TMIC’s scientist are also participating in 43 poster presentations out of the total 144 posters, which is contributing for about ~30%. This year seems to be very productive for our research teams.
Early Career Members (ECM) Awardee Lectures
- MANA Early Career Rising Star Award, USD $1000 is awarded to Tao Huan, The University of British Columbia and the title for the lecture is “Addressing Big Data Challenges in Untargeted Metabolomics”.
- Mark P. Styczynski Early Career Award in Computational Metabolomics, USD $1000 is awarded to Sadjad Fakouri Baygi, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York and the title for the lecture is “New Computational Workflows to Generate Comprehensive, Diverse and Inclusive Metabolomic Datasets”.
TMIC Tour
TMIC organizes a tour to give an opportunity for the participants to visit our TMIC facilities at the University of Alberta where four TMIC Nodes are located and to learn about TMIC’s research capabilities. If you are not able to join in person, TMIC also provides a video for the virtual tour and Dr. Wishart will also explain how Alberta has become a world leader in metabolomics and give a brief history of TMIC.
Others
There are also more events for the participants to join e.g. TMIC Spin-offs Exhibition, WOMIX Lecture, Corporate Seminars, etc.
