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2nd March BioBreakfast
Going over the MAX line
– When does your brain tell you to stop putting more fuel in the tank? Event Description
| When: |
Tuesday 2nd March 2010 Registration 7.15am Buffet Breakfast 7.20 - 7.55am Presentation 8am sharp Concludes at 9am |
|---|---|
| Where: | Supper Room, Melbourne Town Hall, Cnr Swanston Street and Collins Street, Melbourne |
| Speakers: | Professor Michael Cowley |
| Price: |
BioMelbourne Network members: $55.00 Non members: $88.00 Prices include GST |
| RSVP: | Friday, 26th February, 5pm |
About This Event
Why do some people put on more weight than others? Why is it that when you are overweight you are also highly likely to suffer from heart disease, diabetes and hypertension? Does it have to be this way? With the growing trend of people suffering from obesity showing no signs of abating, understanding these links has become vital in combating a major public health problem.
Winner of the 2009 Science Minister’s prize for Life Scientist of the year, Professor Michael Cowley has done much to solve this problem. He understands the metabolic pathways that enable the brain to regulate when one needs to consume, store and use fat and sugar and what goes wrong in obese people. This work has led to the creation of the biotech company Orexigen Therapeutics, based in the US. Orexigen has a number of drug candidates for obesity under development in phase 2b and phase 3.
At the March BioBreakfast Michael will discuss his research and his experiences with setting up his company Orexigen. Michael and his family returned to Australia in 2008, after many years living in the US.
About the Speakers
Professor Cowley is a physiologist and bioentrepreneur with a strong focus on obesity, diabetes, and metabolic disorders. Research within the Cowley lab has discovered how the brain detects how much fat the body has stored, as well as how much food has been consumed, and what kind of food. He has mapped the pathways that are engaged by signals of energy state. He was able to discover new signals within the body that regulate energy balance and describe how other known energy signals exert their effects on the brain. In early 2008 he moved back to Australia after a 10 year career in the USA.
Michael has published more than 60 papers and chapters, many in the highest profile journals. He is the inventor of 85 patents, and the founder and was Chief Scientific Officer of Orexigen Therapeutics, a publically listed (NASDAQ: OREX) San Diego biotech company that is translating his discoveries into human therapeutics. In 2009 he was awarded the prestigious Science Minister’s Prize for Life Scientist of the Year, and one of the 100 most influential Melbournians (The Age Melbourne Magazine).
He
Event Location
The BioBreakfast is held in the Supper Room, Melbourne Town Hall, Swanston Street Melbourne. Enter via the main entrance stairs on Swanston Street. A doorman will meet you at the main entrance and direct you to the Supper Room.
