Welcome to Canmore

The symposium on skeletal muscles in Canmore will be the fifth Rocky Mountain Symposium of its kind. The first was held in 1999 in Canmore, the second and third in 2002 and 2006 in Banff, and the fourth in 2019 in Canmore again. The goal of this fifth symposium is the same as that of the previous meetings: we would like to promote a scientific exchange of ideas on the highest level in a small setting with ample time for discussion and informal interaction.

Scientifically, skeletal muscle contraction and function will be addressed at all structural levels, varying from single actin-myosin interactions to the function and control of muscles during voluntary contractions in humans. This program will require some tolerance, as biophysicists working on the molecular level have a different view of muscles than physiologists working on the single fibre level, or biomechanists working in a clinical rehabilitation setting with human patients. Nevertheless, the success of the first four symposia instills confidence that there is a desire, and maybe even a need, to discuss muscle contraction and function at all scales and all structural levels.

Socially, the Canmore Nordic Centre is a fantastic and unique facility for small scale symposia. Built for the 1988 Winter Olympics and set in a Provincial Park just at the eastern edge of the Rocky Mountains, it is a destination for thousands of tourists each year and hosts world-class competitions for cross-country skiing, biathlon and Nordic combined. In the summer, you can enjoy, hiking, mountain biking and Frisbee Golf – a perfect location to discuss and use muscles!

The preliminary program shows that we have organized sessions in such a way that you can enjoy the outdoors each day and socialize in an informal way.

We are working very hard to make this 5th Rocky Mountain Muscle Symposium an unforgettable scientific and social experience. We hope that you take the opportunity to present, discuss, interact, and explore in the scientific sessions, and that you will make new friendships and renew old ones.

The official registration is expected to open in February 1, 2023.

Note that the meeting is limited to 80 attendees, first come first serve – due to space restrictions – and that there appears to be great interest already.

Abstract deadline: April 14, 2023

Walter Herzog

Scientific Organizer and Program Chair

5th Rocky Mountain Muscle Symposium