UAlbany Breast Cancer Expert Chairing Premier Conference on Vitamin D Biology

An exterior shot of the Cancer Research Center. The buildign is a pale blue grey with a fully glass wall. Bright lights shine through the glass windows. Next to the center, the road is lit up in a bright red. A tree is in the right corner.
The UAlbany Cancer Research Center, where Distinguished Professor JoEllen Welsh conducts her research.

ALBANY, N.Y. (October 7, 2021) – On October 13 and 14, 2021, Distinguished Professor JoEllen Welsh is chairing a virtual conference on vitamin D, bringing together global research leaders and rising scientists to discuss the latest research advances and accelerate scientific discoveries that optimize the health effects of the vitamin D endocrine system.

The conference, initiated by the non-profit Vitamin D Workshop, is part of the Keystone Symposia’s eSymposia Conference Series. Welsh recently received a five year renewal of the National Institutes of Health R13 Conference Grant that supports the Vitamin D Workshop, which has been the premier conference on vitamin D biology since 1973. The 2021 meeting will be the 23rd Vitamin D Workshop. James C. Fleet from the University of Texas, Austin is co-chairing the conference alongside Welsh.

Participants in this conference will share insight into the molecular actions and translational potential of vitamin D in a variety of disease-relevant physiologic contexts. Three key scientific questions will be addressed:

  1. How does vitamin D signaling influence immune cells to alter the response to infectious disease (such as COVID-19) or inflammation-driven diseases?
  2. What molecular mechanisms explain the impact of vitamin D on traditional (calcium/bone) and non-traditional (stem cells/cancer/development/aging) endpoints?
  3. What new analytical or computational approaches are available to expand our understanding of vitamin D action?

Any scientist, clinician, nutritionist, or public health worker with an interest in vitamin D is welcome to participate. For more information, please visit the conference webpage.