PROGRAMME

DAY 1: Monday 16 June 2008

SCIENTIFIC PROGRAMME
University Main Building, Modern side, Hall 5, Fabianinkatu 33 (City Centre)

18.00-18.45   Welcome lecture: A decade of Clostridium botulinum research in the University of Helsinki
Miia Lindström and Hannu Korkeala, Department of Food and Environmental Hygiene, University of Helsinki
Hall 5 (closest entrance at Fabianinkatu 33)

SOCIAL EVENT
University Main Building, Historical side, Teachers' Lounge, Unioninkatu 34 or guiding from Hall 5
(City Centre)

19:00-21:00   Reception hosted by Vice Rector Johanna Björkroth

For bus time shcedules for Tue-Thu, click here

DAY 2: Tuesday 17 June 2008

SCIENTIFIC PROGRAMME
Info Centre Korona, Hall 2, Viikinkaari 11 (Viikki Campus)

Session I: Epidemiology and prevention of Clostridium botulinum and botulism in humans and animals
Session chair Mike Peck, Institute of Food Research, UK

9.30-10.15 Baked potatoes to beluga whales - botulism in Canada from 1985 to 2007
Catherine Paul, Bureau of Microbial Hazards, Health Canada, Ottawa, Canada

10.15-10.40 Phylogenetic analysis of Clostridium botulinum type A by multi-locus sequence typing
Eric Johnson, University of Wisconsin, Madison, USA

10.40-11.10 Break

11.10-12.05 Infant botulism: Global occurrence and molecular epidemiology in California
Stephen Arnon, California Department of Public Health, California, USA

12.05-12.30 Increasing incidence of botulism in cattle in Flanders
Bart Pardon, Ghent University, Merelbeke, Belgium

12.30-12.55 Animal botulinum toxicoses - German experiences
Helge Böhnel, Georg-August-University, Göttingen, Germany

13.00-14.00 Lunch

Session II: Structure and function of botulinum neurotoxin
Session chair Nigel Minton, University of Nottingham, UK

14.00-14.45 Botulinum neurotoxin complexes: Genetics, structure and function
Eric Johnson, University of Wisconsin, Madison, USA

14.45-15.10 Subtypes of the type B botulinum neurotoxin gene are widely distributed on extrachromosomal elements
Giovanna Franciosa, The Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Rome, Italy

15.10-15.40 Break

15.40-16.05 Effect of carbon dioxide on neurotoxin gene expression in non-proteolytic Clostridium botulinum types B and E
Ingrid Artin, University of Lund, Sweden

16.05-16.30 Expression of the neurotoxin cluster genes in Clostridium botulinum type E at optimum and low temperature
Ying Chen, University of Helsinki, Finland

SOCIAL EVENT
City Centre

16:30-16:50 Bus departure from Viikki Info Centre Korona (Viikki campus) to the Hakaniemi Pier

17:00-18:45 Boat Tour in the archipelago of Helsinki, arrival at Market Square, South Harbour

19:00-20:00 Reception hosted by the City of Helsinki, Helsinki City Hall, Pohjoisesplanadi 11-13

DAY3: Wednesday 18 June 2008

SCIENTIFIC PROGRAMME
Info Centre Korona, Hall 2, Viikinkaari 11 (Viikki Campus)

Session III: Diagnostics of Clostridium botulinum and botulism
Session chair Dario De Medici, The Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Italy

9.30-10.15 Application of different PCR based technologies for rapid screening of botulinum neurotoxins A, B, E, F producing Clostridium botulinum, Clostridium baratii and Clostridium butyricum
Patrick Fach, AFSSA, French Food Safety Agency, Maisons-Alfort, France

10.15-10.40 Improved diagnosis of infant botulism by real time PCR of neurotoxin genes
Kathie Grant, Health Protection Agency, London, UK

10.40-11.05 Detection of Clostridium botulinum neurotoxin genes (bont) A, B, E and F with real-time-PCR Ute Messelhäusser, Bavarian Health and Food Safety Authority, Oberschleißheim, Germany

11.05-11.35 Break

11.35-12.00 Antibodies to Clostridium botulinum in blood in relation to the detection of C. botulinum in faeces of cows
Wieland Schroedl, University of Leipzig, Germany

12.00-12.25 MALDI-TOF MS fingerprinting as a powerful tool for the identification of Clostridia in the microbiological laboratory?
Anke Grosse-Herrenthey, University of Leipzig, Germany

Session IV: Food safety
Session chair Hannu Korkeala, University of Helsinki, Finland

12.30-13.15 Foodborne botulism, past present and future
Mike Peck, Institute of Food Research, Norwich, UK

13.15-14.45 Lunch

14.45-15.10 Growth of group I Clostridium botulinum at extreme temperatures
Katja Hinderink, University of Helsinki, Finland

15.10-15.35 Lag time variability in individual spores of non-proteolytic Clostridium botulinum
Mike Peck, Institute of Food Research, Norwich, UK

15.35-16.00 Clostridium botulinum, a pathogen for man and animal – a superior growth promoter for plants
Frank Gessler, miprolab, Göttingen, Germany

16.00-17.00 Poster session and refreshments

SOCIAL EVENT
City Centre

19:00-01:00   Congress Dinner, Restaurant Olivia, Siltavuorenpenger 20 R (City Centre)
Music by The Queen an' Tools

Day 4: Thursday 19 June 2008

SCIENTIFIC PROGRAMME
Info Centre Korona, Hall 2, Viikinkaari 11 (Viikki Campus)

Session V: Genetics and genomics of Clostridium botulinum
Session chair Holger Brüggemann, Max Planck Institute for Infection Biology, Germany

10.00-10.30 Biological highlights from the genome of proteolytic Clostridium botulinum
Mike Peck, Institute of Food Research, UK

10.30-10.55 The glycosylated flagella of Clostridium botulinum
Catherine Paul, Bureau of Microbial Hazards, Health Canada, Ottawa, Canada

10.55-11.20 Structural and genetic characterisation of flagellar glycosylation in Clostridium botulinum
Susan Logan, National Research Council Institute for Biological Sciences, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada

11.20-11.50 Break

11.50-12.35 Gene tools and their application to Clostridium botulinum
Nigel Minton, University of Nottingham, UK

12.35-13.00 Cold shock increases the expression of cspA and cspB but not cspC in Clostridium botulinum ATCC3502
Henna Söderholm, University of Helsinki, Finland

13.00-13.10 Closing of the congress
Miia Lindström, University of Helsinki, Finland

13.10-14.20 Lunch

 

Invited speakers:

Prof Nigel Minton - University of Nottingham, Nottingham, UK
Prof Mike Peck - Institute of Food Research, Norwich, UK
Prof Eric Johnson - University of Wisconsin, Madison, USA
Dr Stephen Arnon - California Department of Public Health, California, USA
Dr Catherine Paul - Bureau of Microbial Hazards, Health Canada, Ottawa, Canada
Dr Patrick Fach - The French Food Safety Agency, Maisons-Alfort, France
Dr Giovanna Franciosa - The Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Rome, Italy

 

SELECTED POSTER PRESENTATIONS

Amar et al. National specialtist and reference services for human botulism: The UK experience

Assmus et al. Development of a reverse-transcriptase real time-PCR for the detection of neurotoxin-production of Clostridium botulinum type A, B, E and F in foodstuff as an alternative to the mouse-bioassay

Babinszky et al. The first findings on the effect of several environmental factors to the occurrence of avian botulism outbreaks in a Hungarian wetland habitat

Bano et al. Avian botulism in Italy: Application of a duplex PCR assay as a useful tool for the isolation of neurotoxigenic strains

Berzins et al. Dried roach (“vobla”) as a possible source of Clostridium botulinum spores and recent recalls related to this product

Blount et al. The role of flagella in Clostridium botulinum Hall A

Brooks et al. Clostridium botulinum D toxin sandwich ELISA

Clarke et al. Recent studies on Clostridium botulinum in Northern Ireland

Cooksley et al. Characterisation of a putative agr system in Clostridium botulinum and Clostridium sporogenes

Fenicia et al. Human botulism in Italy, 1984-2007

Karnath et al. Characterisation of the neuronal uptake of BONT/C1 and D

Myllykoski et al. Type C bovine botulism outbreak: The first case in Finland

Pennington et al. The initiation of endospore formation in Clostridium botulinum

Renteria-Monterrubio et al. Spoilage of vacuum-packed raw meat due to Clostridium estertheticum

Sebaihia et al. Comparative genomics between group I (proteolytic) and group II (non-proteolytic) Clostridium botulinum strains

Skipper et al. An assay for the botulinum toxins that requires functional binding and catalytic domains within the neurotoxin

DOWNLOAD ABSTRACT BOOK pdf HERE