The Fourth International MELODI Workshop was organized by STUK – Radiation and Nuclear Safety Authority in Helsinki, Finland, on 12-14 September 2012.
The workshop offered an update of recent low-dose research issues, and an opportunity to participate in the MELODI Low Dose Research Platform, a major step in the long term goals that the European Low-Dose Risk research intends to achieve.
Publication of the 4th MELODI Workshop
Sisko Salomaa, Kevin M Prise, Michael J Atkinson, Andrzej Wojcik, Anssi Auvinen, Bernd Grosche, Laure Sabatier, Jean-René Jourdain, Eeva Salminen, Sarah Baatout, Ulrike Kulka, Hans Rabus, Eric Blanchardon, Dietrich Averbeck and Wolfgang Weiss
Abstract
The fourth workshop of the Multidisciplinary European Low Dose Initiative (MELODI) was organised by STUK—Radiation and Nuclear Safety Authority of Finland. It took place from 12 to 14 September 2012 in Helsinki, Finland. The meeting was attended by 179 scientists and professionals engaged in radiation research and radiation protection. We summarise the major scientific findings of the workshop and the recommendations for updating the MELODI Strategic Research Agenda and Road Map for future low dose research activities.
Presentations of the 4th MELODI Workshop
Tuesday 11 September 2012
Satellite event: DoReMi/MELODI Forum:
Education and Training for low dose risk research
Welcome and introduction to the Forum
Andrea Ottolenghi, Vere Smyth
THEME 1: EUROPEAN FRAMEWORK FOR SUPPORT OF E&T
The role of MELODI in the development and implementation of E&T
Wolfgang Weiss
E&T initiatives in other EURATOM platforms:
European Radioecology Alliance
Frank Hardeman
NERIS – European Platform on Preparedness for Nuclear and Radiological Emergency Response and Recovery
Raimo Mustonen
SNE-TP – Sustainable Nuclear Energy Technology Platform
Vere Smyth
IGD-TP – Implementating Geological Disposal of Radioactive Waste Technology Platform
Marjatta Palmu
EURATOM E&T approach for radiation protection
Annemarie Schmitt-Hannig
THEME 2: STRUCTURE AND INTEGRATION FOR E&T IN LOW-DOSE RESEARCH
Whom should we educate and train? Future careers of MSc radiobiology students
Klaus Trott
The planned new MSc course in radiation sciences in Munich
Michael Atkinson
Heraeus Physics School, Germany, and EURADOS activities
Werner Rühm
ECTS and ERASMUS MUNDUS
Andrzej Wojcik
4th International MELODI Workshop
Wednesday, 12 September
Day theme: “Low dose risk research – state of the art”
Welcome address
Chair Sisko Salomaa
STUK – Tero Varjoranta
Ministry of Social Affairs and Health – Jari Keinänen
MELODI – Jacques Repussard
UNSCEAR – Wolfgang Weiss
ICRP – William F. Morgan
WHO – Maria del Rosario Perez
How MELODI can contribute to Horizon 2020
Simon Webster
MELODI activities and the Strategic Research Agenda (SRA)
Dietrich Averbeck
Plenary session: Epidemiology
Chairs: Peter Jacob and Anssi Auvinen
The latest update on atomic-bomb survivor studies
Koturo Ozasa
Epidemiological studies on natural radiation and cancer risk
Richard Wakeford
Review of radiation-exposed cohorts potentially available for molecular epidemiological studies
Elisabeth Cardis
Radiation exposures from CT scans in childhood and subsequent risk of leukemia and brain tumours
Mark Pearce
Plenary session: Dose uncertainties
Chairs: Wolfgang Weiss and Maarit Muikku
Uncertainties of risk estimates attributed to uncertainty in dosimetry
Liz Ainsbury
Uncertainties in internal dose assessment
Matthew Puncher
Uncertainties related to the microdosimetry of internal emitters
Imre Balásházy
Implications of cardiovascular disease risk for radiation protection?
Peter Jacob
Orientation to the Workshop and to introduction to the Response system to be used
For the posters/corresponding slides presented during break-out sessions, see Poster section.
Thursday, 13 September
Day theme: “Emerging scientific challenges”
Plenary session: Epigenetics and Systems Biology
Chairs: Mats Harms-Ringdahl and Virpi Launonen
Epigenetic changes after radiation exposure
Olga Kovalchuk
Epigenetic events and radiation exposure: Impacts on radiation risk estimation
Ranajit Chakraborty
Modelling the responses of populations of cancer cells to therapeutic radiation exposure
David Fell
Plenary session: Biomarkers
Chairs: Michael Atkinson and Carita Lindholm
Molecular markers in radiation-induced thyroid cancer
Horst Zitzelsberger (presented by Kristian Unger)
Review of biomarkers that could be used for molecular epidemiological studies in radiation-exposed cohorts
Eileen Pernot
Finding genetic susceptibility to radiation effects: Will GWA studies help?
Alice Sigurdson
Plenary lecture: Stem cells
Chairs: Simon Bouffler and Eeva Salminen
Effects of low-dose ionizing radiation on stem cells (not publishable)
Guido Hildebrand
Reports from break-out session 1
Group A: Epidemiological approaches
Andrzej Wojcik
Group B: Cancer mechanisms and models
Michael Atkinson
Group C: Infrastructure and knowledge management
Bernd Grosche
For the posters/corresponding slides presented during break-out sessions, see Posters section.
Friday, 14 September
Day theme: “Integrating the research”
Reports from breakout session 2 and T&E Forum
Group A: Biomarkers and biobanks
Ulrike Kulka
Group B: Non-cancer effects
Eeva Salminen
Group C: Low dose dosimetry and dose concept
Eric Blanchardon
Report from T&E Forum (11 September)
Vere Smyth
MELODI Award Ceremony
MELODI Award speech: Integrative Radiation Biology
Kristian Unger
Highlights of Euratom projects
Chairs: Katerina Ptackova and Géza Sáfrány
CEREBRAD: Cognitive and cerebrovascular effects induced by low dose ionising radiation
Rafi Benotmane
SOLO: Highlights of progress to date
Richard Haylock
DoReMi: Radiation induced premature senescence in endothelial cells, a system biology approach
Mats Harms-Ringdahl
The SEDENTEXCT project on dental cone beam computed tomography: outcomes and impact
Christie Theodorakou
ALLEGRO to ANDANTE: An application of radiotherapy data to low-dose radiation research
Andrea Ottolenghi
EpiRadBio: Colon cancer risk among a-bomb survivors from multi-model inference with descriptive and mechanistic models (not publishable)
Christian Kaiser
From CARDIORISK to PROCARDIO
Klaus Trott (presented by Michael Atkinson)
Closing session
Workshop Summary
Wolfgang Weiss
Feedback from the participants
Satellite event: Training event by MELODI and Finnish Doctoral Programme in Environmental Health
UNSCEAR, BEIR VII and ICRP risk models and new developments
Radiation risk models for breast cancer
Markus Eidemüller
Estimation of radiation risk of lung cancer
Koturo Ozasa
Risk models for radiation-induced leukaemia
Richard Wakeford
Book of Abstracts
View Book of abstracts HERE.
Posters
Posters of the 4th MELODI Workshop
E-posters/corresponding slides available (publication subject to approval of presenter):
1A: Epidemiological approaches
Correcting for measurement errors when estimating lung cancer risk associated with radon exposure among uranium miners by Allodji et al.
Childhood leukaemia risks: Towards a better understanding of unexplained results by Laurier et al.
Lung cancer mortality (1950-1999) among Eldorado uranium workers: A comparison of models of carcinogenesis and empirical excess risk models by Eidemüller et al.
Monitoring of Thyroid Cancer Incidence in the Vicinity of Nuclear Sites in Belgium by Bollaerts et al.
A record-based case-control study of natural background radiation and the incidence of childhood leukaemia and other cancers in Great Britain during 1980-2006 by Kendall et al.
1B: Cancer mechanisms and models
A proteomic approach to identify phase-shifts in responses and processes at low doses and dose rates by Hauptmann et al.
1C: Infrastructures and knowledge management
Gamma irradiation facility for low dose/dose rate in vitro biological studies by Campa et al.
The PTB microbeam facility by Giesen et al.
STORE – a data-sharing infrastructure for radiobiology as a tool for knowledge management by Grosche et al.
RENEB – Realizing the European Network of Biological Dosimetry by Kulka et al.
2A: Biomarkers and biobanks
EU EPI-CT project: biomarkers of radiation sensitivity for children by El-Saghire et al.
The German Uranium Miners Biobank – current status and perspectives in radiation research by Gomolka et al.
2B: Non-cancer effects
Mouse lens epithelial cells and lymphocytes exhibit similar sensitivity to gamma irradiation by Graw et al.
Dose–responses from multi-model inference for the non-cancer disease mortality of atomic bomb survivors by Schoellnberger et al.
Low/intermediate dose ionising radiation induces an anti-inflammatory phenotype of activated peritoneal macrophages of BALB/c mice by Wunderlich.
CEREBRAD – Cognitive and Cer ebrovascular E ffects Induced b y Lo w Dose Ionising Radia tion by Benotmane et al.
2C: Low dose dosimetry and dose concept
How can the Eurados Network on Retrospective Dosimetry contribute to research in low doses? by Fattibene et al.
Cellular dosimetry of Sr-90 using Monte Carlo code MCNPX by Hocine et al.
A novel approach for assessing organ doses from paediatric CT scans in EPI-CT by Thierry-Chef et al.
Other low dose risk research (overall theme)
The DoReMi Network of Excellence is supporting the creation of the MELODI platform by Salomaa.
Programme
View Programme HERE.
Programme outline
View Programme ouline HERE.
DoReMi - MELODI T&E Forum
View Programme ouline HERE.
Fourth MELODI Workshop - Award
Dr. Kristian Unger has received the first MELODI Award dedicated to young scientists working on the effects of low dose ionising radiation. Dr. Unger is engaged in research in the field of bioinformatics and integrative biology in HelmholtzZentrum München. He will receive the Award certificate during the 4th MELODI workshop in Helsinki in September 14th.
MELODI-2012 Workshop Announcement
The Fourth International MELODI Workshop (www.melodi2012.org) is organized by STUK – Radiation and Nuclear Safety Authority in Helsinki, Finland, on 12-14 September 2012.
The workshop offers an update of recent low-dose research issues, and an opportunity to participate in the MELODI Low Dose Research Platform, a major step in the long term goals that the European Low-Dose Risk research intends to achieve. The main goal of MELODI (http://www.melodi-online.eu/) is to develop and maintain a Strategic Research Agenda (SRA) in the field of low-dose radiation research, and to actively promote its implementation. DoReMi Network of Excellence funded by the European Commission is supporting the setting up of the Platform and addressing some of its research needs (www.doremi-noe.net).
In line with one of the main SRA goals, a major aim of the workshop will be to set all topics in an interdisciplinary context. The environment of the workshop will provide to the attendants the possibility to actively participate in the discussion about the next steps for implementing the SRA.
The Workshop features plenary lectures, topical discussions in breakout sessions as well as poster contributions. The theme of the first day “Low dose risk research – state of the art” provides an introduction to the MELODI activities and the SRA and an update on recent epidemiological studies and dosimetric aspects of low dose studies. Potential implications of cardiovascular disease risk for radiation protection will be addressed. Followed by invited comments, discussion on the state-of- the art of MELODI SRA will follow in three break-out groups; the outcome will be reported the following day. The second day “Emerging scientific challenges” will feature the development of science and novel technologies, covering topics such as epigenetics, systems biology, stem cells and biomarkers that could be potentially used in molecular epidemiological studies. Three breakout sessions will be exploring the roadmap for future research, providing their reports on the final day. The third day “Integrating the research” will provide highlights of Euratom projects dedicated for research on low dose risk.
The attendants are encouraged to submit posters (abstract as well as a PDF of the full poster; paper poster as optional). Electronic posters will be available at the workshop web site. The electronic posters are seen as an important input to the discussions in the breakout sessions.
The full Workshop program will be duly posted together with the practical arrangements for registration, abstract submission, electronic poster preparation and accommodation. The maximum number of participants is 200. No registration fee is requested.
The MELODI Workshop will be preceded, on September 11, by a joint DoReMi-MELODI Forum on Training and Education. The focus of this Forum will be an exploration of ways for educational institutions to network in order to share course modules and students for the sake of making better use of European resources and providing more complete coverage of topics. A separate registration is requested. The maximum number of participants is 60.