VPH 2012 Conference of the Virtual Physiological Human Network of Excellence

VPH 2012 is supported by the European Commission ICT for Health / DG Information Society and Media. The Virtual Physiological Human Network of Excellence is an umbrella project representing the Virtual Physiological Human Initiative set up by the European Commission with a budget of ~ 207 million Euros for the Framework 7 Program.

Four parallel sessions will be held on all days with talks and dedicated poster sessions. Similar to the format of the VPH 2010 - where after the meeting, the best VPH 2010 papers and posters were published in Interface Focus in a special themed issue on the Virtual Physiological Human.

Conference Theme Tracks:

1. Physiome: multiscale modelling of physiology and pathology
(Track chairs: Peter Hunter and S Randall Thomas)

1. Neuromusculoskeletal system
2. Cardiovascular and respiratory systems
3. Internal organs and metabolic modelling
4. Lymphatic and immune systems
5. Neurocognitive modelling
6. ... (any other system)

2. Virtual Physiological Human: infrastructures and technologies for integrative biomedical research
(Track chairs: Rod Hose and Ryutaro Himeno)

1. VPH Infostructure technologies
2. Data and model repositories
3. Multiscale modelling technologies
4. Clinical applications of multiscale modelling
5. Software, platforms and workflows

3. Digital Patient: ICT for integrating data, information, and knowledge in the clinical practice
(Track Chairs: Dipak Kalra and Marco Viceconti)

1. Multiscale visualisation
2. Integrative user interfaces for medical professionals
3. Clinical data fusion and integration
4. Integrative management of clinical information & health informatics
5. Hybrid personalised / population modelling
6. ... (other)

4. System Medicine: bridging Physiome / VPH and Systems Biology
(Track chairs: Adriano Henney and Hans Westerhoff)

1. Tissue modelling: missing link between cells and organs
2. PDE - ODE integration in tissue-cell multiscale models
3. Downward causation

5. Genomics, proteomics and bioinformatics
(Track chairs: Paul Kellam, Ferran Sanz & Nour Shublaq)

1. "Omics" research and its connection to the medical/clinical context. Case studies
2. Whole-genome analysis
3. Disease-based genomic studies
4. Tools and techniques
5. Integrated high-throughput analysis

6. Personal Health Forecasting: next-generation technology for Active and Healthy Ageing
(Track chairs: Filippo Castiglione and Emanuela Merelli)

1. Technology for Active and Healthy Ageing
2. Sensor-model integrated systems
3. Design of Public Health Interventions
4. Data security and storage in clinical applications in this context
5. Case studies - applications in clinical practice
6. ...(other)

7. In-silico clinical trials: integrative information management and integrative modelling to develop and assess medicines, medical devices, tissue engineering, and biotechnology products
(Track Chairs: Norbert Graf and Peter Kohl)

1. Toward deployment: technical assessment and clinical assessment
2. Verification, sensitivity, validation, benchmarking, accuracy, efficacy
3. Cost-benefit analysis & case studies
4. Regulatory aspects

VPH 2012 Scientific Committee

• Peter Coveney, University College London (Chair), UK
• Vanessa Diaz, University College London, UK
• Stephen Emmott, Microsoft Research Laboratory, UK
• Norbert Graf, University of Saarland, DE
• Peter Hunter, University of Auckland, NZ
• Paul Kellam, Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute, UK
• Peter Kohl, Imperial College London, UK
• Ferran Sanz, Universitat Pompeu Fabra, ES
• Jesper Tegner, Karolinska Institutet, SE
• Marco Viceconti, University of Sheffield, UK

VPH2012 Organisation Office

• Tara Chapman, Universite Libre de Bruxelles, BE
• Katherine Fletcher, University of Oxford, UK
• Miriam Mendes, University College London, UK

For further iformation and registration, please visit:
http://www.vph-noe.eu/vph2012

About the VPH Network of Excellence
The VPH Network of Excellence (VPH NoE) is designed to foster, harmonise and integrate pan-European research in the field of i) patient-specific computer models for personalised and predictive healthcare and ii) ICT-based tools for modelling and simulation of human physiology and disease-related processes.

The main objectives of the VPH Network of Excellence are to support the:

• Coordination of research portfolios of VPH NoE partners through initiation of Exemplar integrative research projects that encourage inter-institution and interdisciplinary VPH research.
• Integration of research infrastructures of VPH NoE partners through development of the VPH ToolKit: a shared and mutually accessible source of research equipment, managerial and research infrastructures, facilities and services.
• Development of a portfolio of interdisciplinary training activities including a formal consultation on, and assessment of, VPH careers.
• Establishment of a core set of VPH-related dissemination and networking activities which will engage everyone from partners within the VPH NoE/other VPH projects, to national policy makers, to the public at large.
• Creation of Industrial, Clinical and Scientific Advisory Boards that will jointly guide the direction of the VPH NoE and, through consultation, explore the practical and legal options for real and durable integration within the VPH research community.
• Implementation of key working groups that will pursue specific issues relating to VPH, notably integrating VPH research worldwide through international physiome initiatives.