CONFIRMED SPEAKERS

• Alexander S. BUSCH, Department of General Paediatrics, University Children's Hospital Münster, Münster - DE
• Alfredo ULLOA-AGUIRRE, Red de Apoyo a la Investigación, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México (UNAM)-Instituto Nacional de Ciencias Médicas y Nutrición, Mexico City - MX
• Ali ABBARA, Section of Investigative Medicine, Imperial College London, London - UK
• Claus Yding ANDERSEN, The Department of Clinical Medicine. Faculty of Health and Medical Science, Copenhagen University, Copenhagen - DK
• Antonio LA MARCA, Department of Maternal-Child and Adult Medical and Surgical Sciences, University of Modena and Reggio Emilia - IT
• Aylin C. HANYALOGLU, Institute of Reproductive and Developmental Biology, Department Metabolism, Digestion and Reproduction, Imperial College London, London - UK
• Claire L. NEWTON, Centre for Neuroendocrinology, Department of Immunology, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Pretoria, Pretoria - ZA
• Daniel J BERNARD, Department of Pharmacology and Therapeutics, McGill University, Montreal - CA
• Daniele SANTI, Unit of Endocrinology, Department of Biomedical, Metabolic and Neural Sciences, University of Modena and Reggio Emilia, Modena, Italy
• Eric REITER, PRC/INRAe/CNRS/IFCE University of Tours - FR
• Frederic JEAN-ALPHONSE, PRC/INRAe/CNRS/IFCE University of Tours - FR
• Frank TÜTTELMANN, Institute of Reproductive Genetics, Munster - DE
• George R. BOUSFIELD, Department of Biological Sciences, Wichita State University, Wichita - USA
• Jan-Bernd STUKENBORG, Women's and Children's Health, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm - SE
• Jerome F. STRAUSS 3rd, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Virginia Commonwealth University, Richmond - USA
• Joëlle DUPONT, PRC/INRAe/CNRS/IFCE University of Tours, Tours - FR
• Kim C. JONAS, Department of Women and Children's Health, School of Life Course and Population Health Sciences, Kings College London - UK
• Livio CASARINI, Unit of Endocrinology, Department of Biomedical, Metabolic and Neural Sciences, University of Modena and Reggio Emilia, Modena - IT
• Manuela SIMONI, Unit of Endocrinology, Department of Biomedical, Metabolic and Neural Sciences, University of Modena and Reggio Emilia, Modena - IT
• Mike LUDWIG, Centre for Discovery Brain Sciences, The University of Edinburgh - UK
• Nelly PITTELOUD, Department of Endocrinology, Diabetology and Metabolism, Lausanne University Hospital, Lausanne - CH
• Nikolaos P. POLYZOS, Department of Reproductive Medicine, Dexeus University Hospital, Barcelona, Spain Barcelona - SP
• Paolo GIACOBINI, University Lille, INSERM, CHU Lille, Laboratory of Development and Plasticity of the Neuroendocrine Brain, Lille Neuroscience & Cognition, Lille - FR
• Pascale CREPIEUX, PRC/INRAe/CNRS/IFCE University of Tours - FR
• Pauliina DAMDIMOPOULOU, Division of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Department of Clinical Science, Intervention and Technology, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm -  SE
• Rajendra T. KUMAR, Division of Reproductive Sciences, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus, Aurora, CO - USA
• Robert P. MILLAR, Centre for Neuroendocrinology, Department of Immunology, University of Pretoria, Pretoria - ZA
• Silvana A. ANDRIC, Center for Reproductive Endocrinology and Signaling, Department of Biology and Ecology, Faculty of Sciences, University of Novi Sad, Novi Sad - RS
• Wayne A. HENDRICKSON, Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biophysics, Columbia University, New York, NY - USA
• Alberto FERLIN, Department of Clinical and Surgical Andrology, Centre for Reproductive Medicine and Andrology, University Hospital Münster, Münster - DE

• James A. DIAS, Department of Biomedical Sciences, State University of New York at Albany, Albany, NY - USA

• Francesco NEVELLI, Analytical Development Biotech-Global Analytical Development-Global Development & Launch-Global Healthcare Operation, Istituto di Ricerche Biomediche "Antoine Marxer" RBM S.p.A., Turin - IT

• Jia DUAN, State Key Laboratory of Drug Research, Shanghai Institute of Materia Medica, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai - CH

• Stephen PALMER, Celmatix Inc., New York, NY - USA

• Marina CORREA VIANA, Androfert Clinics, Sao Paulo - BR

• Henry YU, CanWell Pharma Inc., Woburn, MA - USA

• John DAVIS, Omaha, Nebraska - USA

• Angela CAPOLUPO, Merck - IT

1st DAY – Tuesday 12th March 2024

• 14:00 Registration
• 16:00 Official Opening 
• 16:15 Plenary Lecture 1 - Manuela Simoni - Gonadotropins: A view back and a view forward

Symposium 1 – Neuroendocrine control of HPG axis

• 17:00 Daniel J Bernard - Novel insights into regulation of follicle-stimulating hormone synthesis by TGFß family ligands
• 17:30 Mike Ludwig - Kisspeptin on safari
• 18:00 Ali Abbara - Translational Potential of Kisspeptin
• 18:30 Cellars tour and wine tasting - Château Gaudrelle (For registered participants: A bus will leave the Hôtel Univers at 18:30. 
  It will take you to the Château Gaudrelle estate (10kms) for a guided tour of the cellars, a wine tasting and a cocktail reception.
  The bus will take you back to the Tours train station around 22:00.)
  

2nd DAY – Wednesday 13th March 2024

 Symposium 2 – New structural insights on gonadotropin receptors

• 08:30 Wayne A. Hendrickson - Structural insights into the evolution of glycoprotein hormones and their receptors
• 09:00 Livio Casarini - Receptor-receptor interactions in gonadal physiology
• 09:30 Kim C. Jonas - Uncovering the functional roles of FSHR oligomerisation in young and ageing ovaries
• 10:00 Plenary lecture 2 - Jia Duan - Cryo-EM structures of gonadotropin receptors
• 10:45 Coffee break

Symposium 3 – Small molecules modulating HPG axis

• 11.15 James A Dias - The implementation of small molecule agonists and antagonists to elucidate gonadotropin receptor structure and function
• 11:45 Claire Newton - Restoring function to inactivating G protein-coupled receptor variants in the hypothalamic-pituitary-gonadal axis
• 12:15 Stephen Palmer - Discovery of Optimized FSHR allosteric agonists for treatment of female infertility
• 12.45 Lunch

Selected oral communications 1

• 14:15 Clara  Lazzaretti - Luteinizing hormone (LH)- and choriogonadotropin (hCG)-induced internalization of the receptor (LHCGR) leads to ligand-specific signalling
• 14:25 Nicole Bertani - Unconventional action of Luteinizing Hormone
• 14:35 Abigail Walker - Formation of LHR complexes as a mechanism of fine-tuning G protein coupling

Symposium 4 – New insights on gonadotropin signalling

• 14.45 Frédéric Jean-Alphonse  - New insights into the molecular mechanisms of endosomal signalling by gonadotropin receptors
• 15:15 Mohammed Akli Ayoub - Steroid-mediated modulation of signalling of gonadotropin receptors and beyond
• 15:45 Aylin C. Hanyaloglu - Spatial Control of LH receptor signalling: Proteomics to PCOS
• 16.15 Coffee break & posters session

Symposium 5 – genetic regulation of gametogenesis

• 16.45 Silvana A Andric - Mitochondrial dynamics markers and male (in/sub)fertility
• 17:15 Claus Yding Andersen - Genetics and hormonal hallmarks of oocyte maturation
• 17:45 Frank Tüttelmann - Molecular diagnostics of spermatogenesis - implications for fertility, general health, and the offspring
• 18.15 Plenary lecture 3: Eric Reiter - Antibody fragments for controlling reproduction without exogenous hormone
• 19:00 End of day 2

3rd DAY – Thursday 14th March 2024

Symposium 6 – Antibodies to control reproduction

• 8:30  Henry Yu - A Novel Antibody Drug Conjugate Directed against FSHR for the Treatment of Ovarian Cancer
• 09:00 Robert P. Millar - Dual kisspeptin-GnRH immunogen for reproductive immunosterilization
• 09:30 Pascale Crepieux - Intra-cellular VHH targeting the FSHR and LHR
• 10:00 Plenary lecture 4 - Rajendra T Kumar - Mouse models for gonadotropin trafficking and re-routing
• 10:45 Coffee break

Symposium 7 - Part A: Endocrine disruption

• 11:15 Pauliina Damdimopoulou - Chemical contamination in human ovarian follicular fluid correlates with ovarian sensitivity index, miRNA expression and steroidogenesis
• 11:45 Joelle Dupont - The epoxiconazole fungicide impairs basal and FSH-induced steroidogenesis in human granulosa cells: Potential involvement of aryl hydrocarbon receptor (AHR) signalling
• 12:15 Lunch

Symposium 7 - Part B: Impact of glycans on gonadotropin action

• 13:40 George R Bousfield - Impact of glycan variation on gonadotropin physiology
• 14.10 Angela Capolupo - Exogenous Gonadotropins and related glycan profile
• 14:30 Discussion of glycosylation impact on reproduction with experts (15 min)

Symposium 8 – Molecular insights in infertility

• 14.45  Alexander Busch - Minipuberty in boys - planting the seeds of future fertility
• 15:15 Paolo Giacobini - Role of anti-Müllerian hormone in the prenatal and postnatal programming of PCOS
• 15:45 Jerome F Strauss 3rd - Signal transduction abnormalities in PCOS
• 16.15 Coffee break & posters session

Symposium 9 – How to stimulate spermatogenesis in male infertility

• 16.45 Daniele Santi  - Gonadotropin-based clinical treatments for male infertility
• 17:15 Alberto Ferlin - Pharmacogenetics of FSH action in the male 
• 17:45 Marina Correa Viana - New application of hCG in non-obstructive azoospermia 
• 18.15 Plenary lecture 5 - Nelly Pitteloud - Hypogonadotropic hypogonadism in men 
• 19:00 End of day 3
• 19:30 Social dinner at Château Belmont (For registered participants: A bus will leave the Hôtel Univers at 19:00 for dinner at the Château Belmont. 
  It will take back to the Tours train station around 22:30.)

4th DAY – Friday 15th March 2024

Symposium 10 – Gametogenesis and fertilization

• 9:00 John S. Davis - LH effects on lipid droplets, mitochondria, and steroidogenesis
• 09:30 Jan-Bernd Stukenborg - In vitro models to study testicular cell physiology 
• 10.00 Plenary lecture 6  - Alfredo Ulloa-Aguirre -  Folding,  Misfolding, and Regulation of Intracellular Traffic of GPCRs
• 10.45 Coffee break

Symposium 11 – How to improve controlled ovarian stimulation

• 11:15 Francesco Nevelli - Biological Assay to Determine Gonadotropin Potency: From In Vivo to In Vitro Sustainable Method
• 11:45 Antonio La Marca - Any role for gonadotropins in early folliculogenesis? the basis for new therapeutical protocols
• 12:15 Nikolaos N Polyzos & Ana Raquel Neves - Role of FSHR SNPs in controlled ovarian stimulation 
• 12.45 Closing ceremony 
• 13:00 Lunch

Location

Hôtel Univers, 5 boulevard Heurteloup, 37000 Tours

Right in the center of Tours, close to the train station and the tram, the Hôtel Univers welcomes you to a truly mythical establishment facing the town hall. The Tours Oceania L’Univers hotel and restaurant is one of the city’s historic hotels. Since its opening in 1846, the hotel has hosted many famous guests whose portraits you can contemplate in the impressive gallery overlooking the vast lobby, a genuine trip down memory lane... 

 General Information

Congress Venue

 Hôtel Univers, 5 boulevard Heurteloup

37000 Tours, France

Dates

Tuesday, 12 March - Friday, 15 March 2024

Language

The official language of the Congress is English

Welcome pack and Name Badge

 Upon arrival you will receive a welcome pack that includes the printed material of the Conference and your name badge will be given to you at the reception . Please wear your name badge at all times during the Conference and to all official Conference events.

Invitation Letters

 An official letter of invitation facilitating the obtention of an entry visa can be sent upon request . In order to receive an invitation letter for visa purposes, send an email to maurine.villiers@lestudium-ias.fr. Please note that : 
- we only issue an official letter once the payment of the registration fee has been validated.
- such letters do not represent a commitment on the part of the Organisers to provide any financial assistance.

Certificate of attendance

 After the conference, in order to receive a certficate of participation, send an email to maurine.villiers@lestudium-ias.fr

 How to get there ?

By train:

* Tours centre station
 1.5 hour trip from Paris (Montparnasse)

 * Saint Pierre des Corps (4km from Tours town centre)
Bus 5, 20 minutes trip to Tours centre station

> Plan your trip by train: https://www.sncf-connect.com/en-en/

By car:

GPS: 47.390255,0.6905039
Please note that you can't park in front of the Hôtel de Ville.
Paid car parks nearby : 
Parking Gare, Place du Général Leclerc, 37000 Tours
Parking Tours Nationale, 5 rue Emile Zola, 37000 Tours

By plane:

*Arrival at Roissy Charles De Gaulle (CDG) airport: 
Take RER B in direction to Saint Rémy Les Chevreuse, step out at Denfert Rochereau Stop
Metro 6 in direction to Charles de Gaulle Etoile, step out at Montparnasse Bienvenue Stop 

> Then take a train to Tours (see "by train" section above)

*Arrival at Paris-Orly (ORY) airport: 

Take Orlyval Shuttle from Aéroport d’Orly in direction Antony, step out at Antony Stop

Take RER B in direction to Mitry Clave, step out at Denfert Rochereau Stop

Take Metro 6 in direction to Charles de Gaulle Etoile, step out at Montparnasse Bienvenue Stop

> Then take a train to Tours (see "by train" section above)  

Pricing

(Including three lunches, a wine & cheese cocktail, the social dinner and the coffee breaks)

Cancellation Policy
All cancellations must be made in writing and sent by email to the Registration Department
Up to 30 days prior to conference start – Full refund less €50 handling fee
Less than 30 days prior to conference start – No refund

Oral presentations & posters

Abstracts for oral presentation and poster should be submitted before Friday 2nd February 2024.

Please upload your abstract during the registration or send it before the deadline to maurine.villiers@lestudium-ias.fr.

The number of oral presentations is limited, convenors will process a selection and confirm your presentation few days later.

Please note that we do not print the posters, but racks & pins will be provided for up to A0 sizes, portrait format.

• Please download the template for oral presentation.
• Please download the template for poster presentation.