Chairs:  

Hemlata Agnihotri - PhD Assistant Professor, Department of Biophysics

University of Delhi, India 

Shanu Jain - PhD Assistant Professor, Ramalingaswami Fellow, Biological Sciences and Bioengineering

Indian Institute of Technology-Kanpur, India

XXX is a globally recognized expert in GPCRs. 

This session will feature an introduction to GPCRs. 

Chair: 

Affiliation

XXX is a globally recognized expert in GPCRs. 

This session will feature an introduction to GPCRs in industry. 

Advances in GPCR Biology and Therapeutic Discovery

This session explores cutting-edge research on G protein-coupled receptors from structural mechanisms to translational therapeutics. Speakers will highlight pioneering work in migraine and neurological disorder therapies, orphan and class B GPCR biology, Wnt signalling pathways, and receptor-targeted drug discovery. 

Chair:  

Sarah Piper - PhD, Postdoctoral Research Fellow,  Drug Discovery Biology

Monash Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Melbourne, Australia

Sarah Piper obtained her PhD at the University of Queensland, Australia, focusing on protein biochemistry and cryo-electron microscopy. Since 2019, Sarah has been working on GPCR structures and dynamics at the Monash Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences (MIPS) in the lab of Prof. Patrick Sexton and Prof. Denise Wootten. In 2024, she received an early-career ARC DECRA fellowship to pursue her research on understanding the structure, dynamics and function of the PAC1 receptor. Sarah is also passionate about science visualisation to communicate biological processes to broad audiences.

Speaker Profiles:

Professor Debbie Hay (University of Otago, New Zealand) – Pharmacologist advancing migraine therapeutics through GPCR and receptor-modifying protein research, pioneering class B receptor biology, leading global collaborations, and mentoring future pharmacology leaders.

Dr. Alisa Glukhova (WEHI, University of Melbourne, Australia) – Structural biologist elucidating Wnt signalling mechanisms through x-ray crystallography and cryo-EM, advancing cancer therapeutics via atomic-level insights and multidisciplinary research collaborations.

Dr. Shane Hellyer (Monash Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Melbourne, Australia) – Neuroscientist and molecular pharmacologist investigating mGlu receptor mutations in neurological disorders, advancing CNS therapeutics through receptor pharmacology, electrophysiology, and neurotoxin-inspired drug discovery. 

Associate Professor Nicola J. Smith (Department of Pharmacology at UNSW Sydney, Australia) – Molecular pharmacologist pioneering orphan GPCR discovery, advancing ligand–receptor mapping and therapeutic exploration through cellular and animal models of cardiovascular and metabolic disease.

Dr. Jiajun Cao (Monash Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Melbourne, Australia) –  is an early-career researcher with multidisciplinary expertises in early drug discovery advancing GPCR-targeted therapeutics through cryo-EM studies, revealing amylin receptor mechanisms relevant to migraine treatment and leading translational collaborations bridging academia and industry innovation.

Session Summary:

Join us for a dynamic overview of multidisciplinary approaches combining pharmacology, structural biology, cryo-EM, electrophysiology, and molecular genetics, showcasing how fundamental insights into receptor function are driving innovative treatments for human disease. 

Chair: 

Affiliation 

This session will feature presentations by the poster prize winners of the 1st GPCR Forum conference in November 2024

Chairs:  

Silvia Sposini 

Department of Metabolism, Digestion and Reproduction, Imperial College London, UK, and Institut Interdisciplinaire de NeuroScience, Université de Bordeaux, France

Masha Niv

Robert H. Smith Faculty of Agriculture, Food and Environment, The Hebrew University, Israel

Silvia Sposini is a globally recognized expert in GPCRs. 

Masha Niv is a globally recognized expert in GPCRs. 

This session will feature the research of GPCR Ladies. 

Chair: Aashish Manglik

Departments of Pharmaceutical Chemistry and Anesthesia, UCSF, USA

Aashish Manglik is a globally recognized expert in GPCRs. 

This session will feature the GPCR research at the UCSF.