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Go to here for the ‘at a glance’ view of the conference 0 Go to here for the ‘at a glance’ view of the conference 1 Go to here for the ‘at a glance’ view of the conference Welcome We are delighted to welcome you to Aberystwyth and to Aberystwyth University for the 2018 Spring Conference of the British Society for Parasitology. The BSP Spring meeting was last held at Aberystwyth in 1986, so we look forward to making 2018 a memorable meeting for you all. This conference will be a perfect opportunity to develop collaborations and share knowledge for the goal of controlling parasitic diseases. We have several diverse and interesting sessions and themes, symposia and workshops including the: • Trypanosomiasis & Leishmaniasis Symposium • British Ecological Society Symposium on Ecological Parasitology • British Association for Veterinary Parasitology symposium on Veterinary Parasitology • NC3Rs sponsored Workshop on in vitro Technologies in Cryptosporidium Research. The conference oral sessions will be held on Penglais Campus, starting at 8.45am on Monday morning with Plenary Talks at the Arts Centre Great Hall (please see maps in delegate bags). As well as a packed academic program we have a busy social program for delegates and accompanying families starting on Sunday evening with a Welcome Reception at Old College on the seafront (close to the pier). This is followed by a Public Lecture ‘Invasion of the parasites. A Hospital for Tropical Diseases Production. Coming soon to a theatre near you' by Professor Peter Chiodini. During the Poster Sessions on Monday and Tuesday evening we have specially designed parasite beers for delegates from Penlon Brewery. On Monday evening we are hosting a Science Café event at the Arts Centre ‘Parasites: the Good, the Bad and the Ugly’, plus the Young Parasitologist Party at Y Consti. On Tuesday evening we have the Conference Dinner, and the after dinner Ceilidh. Aberystwyth is situated on the beautiful West coast of Wales and there are lots of tourist attractions for delegates and their families to do and explore in the surrounding area (see guide to attractions in the delegate bags). BSP Spring 2018 Conference Organisers Justin Pachebat (Lead Organiser) 0 Go to here for the ‘at a glance’ view of the conference Jo Hamilton Russ Morphew Karl Hoffmann Organising Committee and Session Organisers Justin Pachebat (Lead Organiser, IBERS, Aberystwyth University) Jo Hamilton (Organiser, IBERS, AU) Russ Morphew (Organiser, IBERS, AU) Karl Hoffmann (Organiser, IBERS, AU) Siwan Griffiths (Conference Office, AU) Peter Brophy (IBERS, AU) Iain Chalmers (IBERS, AU) Kathy Geyer (IBERS, AU) Joe Ironside (IBERS, AU) Claire Risley (IBERS, AU) Martin Swain (IBERS, AU) Hefin Williams (IBERS, AU) Julian Fuller (BSP) Richard Wall (Bristol University) Shona Wilson (Cambridge University) Jo Cable (Cardiff University) Anna Paziewska - Harris (Cardiff University) Rachel Chalmers (Cryptosporidium Reference Unit, Public Health Wales) Mark Field (Dundee University) Paul Horrocks (Keele University) Helen Price (Keele University) Alvaro Acosta - Serrano (Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine) Lisa Reimer (LSTM) 1 Go to here for the ‘at a glance’ view of the conference Julius Hafalla (London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine) Shahid Khan (Leiden University Medical Centre, Holland) Damer Blake (Royal Veterinary College) Claire Alexander (Scottish Microbiology Reference Laboratories) 2 Go to here for the ‘at a glance’ view of the conference Brief history of Aberystwyth University Aberystwyth University was established as the University College of Wales in 1872 with twenty-six students. Based in an old hotel in the seafront it offering a variety of courses including chemistry. In 1884, the first female student was enrolled; in 1891 the Department of Agriculture was established, followed by the Department of Dairy Science in 1901; in 1918 after university authorities refused funding the Chair of Zoology R.D. Laurie and his colleagues built their own Zoology Department. In the 1960’s the University built the Penglais Campus where this meeting is being held. Parasitology in Aberystwyth There is a long history of parasitology at Aberystwyth. Dr Florence Gwendoline Rees (later becoming Prof. Rees; right) joined Aberystwyth University (AU) in 1930 and subsequently spent the rest of her professional career here, helping establish AU as a centre of excellence for parasitological research. Among her many achievements, Florence was a founding member of the British Society for Parasitology (BSP) where she later served as the president from 1974 to 1976. At the same time she was an honorary fellow of the American Society for Prof. Gwendolen Rees Parasitology (ASP), the Chairman of the editorial board of Parasitology (1970-81) and the first Welsh woman to become a fellow of the Royal Society. Her research was in the area of helminthology, concentrating on the systematics, comparative functional anatomy, histology and life cycles of trematodes and cestodes. The work of Florence was important in defining the relationship between parasites and their invertebrate intermediate hosts. Her papers were meticulously researched and illustrated with elaborate line drawings. During her time with AU, Florence was joined by several prominent parasitologists, including Dr John Barrett (later becoming Prof. Barret; below). Starting his research with AU in 1973, John was keen to study helminth Prof. John Barret 3 Go to here for the ‘at a glance’ view of the conference biochemistry with an emphasis on comparative energy metabolism and detoxification mechanisms. He was awarded the C. A. Wright medal from the BSP in 1985 and the Bueding-von Brand medal from the ASP in 2001. In 1991 he was elected Dean of Science and over the next three years was instrumental in steering the Faculty in its move to modularity and a two semester teaching year. In 2000, John was successively appointed Pro Vice- Chancellor of two different posts, the second one of which he held until his retirement in 2006. Shortly after, he became the president of the BSP from 2006 to 2008 and kept in touch with research activities in parasitology at AU until his death in 2011. As a hallmark of John’s legacy, Aberystwyth University’s Barret Centre for Helminth Control (BCHC) established in 2016, bears his name. In 2007, AU recruited three new research scientists; Prof. Peter Brophy from Liverpool University, Prof. Karl Hoffmann from the University of Cambridge and Prof. Chris Thomas from Durham University. In 2008, they formed the Parasitology and Epidemiology (PE) Group within the Institute of Biological, Environmental and Rural Sciences (IBERS). By engaging in basic-science-, co-evolutionary driven- and systems-based- investigations, the PE group collectively addresses some of the world’s major health problems caused by important biomedical and veterinary pathogens. In 2016, the BCHC was created and brings together an internationally-recognised team to lead the research community in the fight against parasitic worms causing agricultural, veterinary and biomedical diseases. It is one of ten Interdisciplinary Research Centres based at AU and is composed of members from IBERS and the Institute of Mathematics, Physics and Computer Science (IMPACS). The research at BCHC spans a variety of disciplines and is funded by the likes of Innovate UK, the Wellcome Trust, Life Sciences Research Network Wales (LSRNW), the BBSRC and the Welsh Government. In 2018 the strong and vibrant PE group consists of investigators with expertise in gene level investigations, application of single-molecule and functional genomics-based technologies, high-throughput compound screening, biomarker discovery, host-parasite interactions, immunological investigations, evolutionary studies, ecological epidemiology, mathematical modelling, GIS, satellite and aerial remote sensing and climate modelling. They are supported by advanced microscopy and bio-imaging, genomics and bio-informatics facilities, as well as the BCHC, and the Roboworm high throughput drug discovery platform . Our studies consider a range of infectious diseases caused by viruses, bacteria, protozoa, microsporidia and helminths. In 2018, AU will accept it’s first cohort of MRes students in Parasite Control, a one year PG course providing a range of vocational skills for professional employment or further post-graduate PhD studies in Parasitology or related disciplines (i.e. infectious diseases, public health, epidemiology, etc.). An aspect of this course that uniquely positions itself from other Masters level Parasitology courses in the UK is the 12-month dissertation project. Working under the supervision of active researchers in the field, students will collaboratively develop a 4 Go to here for the ‘at a glance’ view of the conference research project on diverse topics such as (but not inclusive) intermediate host and vector control, anthelmintic drug and target discovery, biomarker identification, visual cue selection for arthropod vectors, mathematical modelling of disease transmission, host responses to parasite biomolecules, parasite and host population studies and functional genomics manipulation of parasites. 5 Go to here for the ‘at a glance’ view of the conference Contents Welcome 0 BSP Spring 2018 Conference Organisers .............................................................................................................. 0 Organising Committee and Session Organisers ..................................................................................................