Metabolomics Conference 2009

The University of Auckland successfully hosted the 1st Australasian Symposium on Metabolomics held from 5 - 7 July 2009.

Over 125 experts from thirteen different countries and representatives from over 15 different companies and research institutions gathered at this event. Metabolomics, or metabolic profiling, is an emerging branch of biological sciences and the symposium has put The University of Auckland’s research team firmly on the international map of metabolomics research. The symposium covered six key themes in metabolomics (Human & Mammalian Metabolomics, Plant Metabolomics, Microbial Metabolomics, Fluxomics and Systems Biology, Advances in Analytical Methods and Data Analysis) defining the state-of-the-art in this field. Following the symposium, the School of Biological Sciences led a three-day practical & theoretical workshop on metabolomics for novices in the field.

The conference was managed by the Centre for Continuing Education. The centre helped the committee with the budgeting, planning, marketing and execution of the symposium and guided the committee through all the steps that lead to a successful conference. Dr Oliver Jones of The University of Cambridge commented on the symposium and said: "I have been to conferences with far more money and a bigger organising staff which were not half as well run".