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The Pittcon conference held recently in Atlanta was a huge success by any standard. It's dubbed the world's largest annual conference and exposition for laboratory science offering the latest technology. This year's meeting (March 13-18) convened at the Georgia World Congress Center.
More than 90 countries and Puerto Rico were represented by a record 17,098 attendees-conferees, exhibitors, students and media. There were 978 exhibits of cutting-edge technology and scientific principles. An entire section of the exhibits was dedicated to scores of posters; most representing the research of scientists from the United States and around the world.
Educational, Philanthropic
The spacious exhibit hall was accessible by foot (for the adventurous) or by trams traversing well-marked "streets" complete with road signs and trolley stops.
Pittcon is short for "Pittsburgh Conference," and according to Marian Nardozzi, senior marketing and communication specialist for the organization, the mission of Pittcon is both educational and philanthropic. "Our mission is to sponsor and sustain educational and charitable activities for the advancement and benefit of scientific endeavor.
Pittcon generates the funds to donate nearly a million dollars each year in the form of science equipment grants, research grants, scholarships and internships for students, awards to teachers and professors, and grants to public science centers, libraries and museums," she explained.
Medical Lab Applications
Pittcon 2011 commenced with a plenary lecture, "Polyvalent DNA Architectures: New Modalities For Intracellular Gene Regulation and Detection," presented by Chad Mirkin, PhD, professor of chemistry and biomedical engineering, from Northwestern University, Evanston, IL. He discussed the modification of nanoparticles to make functional materials with a variety of potential uses, including biodiagnostics and intracellular gene regulation.
The meeting continued with over 2,000 sessions from workshops to short lectures. Another interesting session was a lecture delivered by doctoral student, Thomas Linz, from the Institute of Bio-analytical Chemistry at the University of Kansas. He spoke about his research is based on the link between methylarginines and cardiovascular disease.
His premise is that because the methylated arginines, namely monomethylarginine (MMA), asymmetric dimethylarginine (ADMA) and symmetric dimethylarginine (SDMA), have been shown to be independent predictors of cardiovascular disease, these biomarkers could potentially track disease onset and progression. His research focuses on developing an analytical method capable of quantifying methylated arginines in human plasma utilizing capillary electrophoresis with laser induced fluorescence detection.
By adjusting variables like buffer strength, pH and electrical voltage he hopes to determine the optimal conditions for developing an analytical method which could be carried out using a microchip. With microanalysis, portability and fast turnaround time, this could become a useful diagnostic tool.
Informational Posters
The poster exhibit covered a variety of subjects; mostly original research in pure science and bio-diagnostics. Many had a distinctly environmental slant. Matthew Stephens, from the University of Tennessee in Chattanooga, explained his poster "More Than Just Litter: Quantification of Compounds Leached From Cigarettes."
Spurred by the fact that an estimated one billion cigarette butts are littered daily, Stephens and his colleagues decided to look at the pollutants, some toxic, that may leach from disposed cigarette butts which are very slow to biodegrade. They measured chemicals in unsmoked cigarettes and compared them to chemicals extracted from the filters and ash of smoked cigarettes. They concluded that discarded cigarettes are a possible point source for pollution and may release several toxic chemicals into the environment. If these cigarette butts are allowed to accumulate, they could pose a serious threat to the environment.
Promoting the Study of Science
Nardozzi said this is one of the most successful Pittcon conferences to date in terms of attendance, as well as the diversity and quality of technical programs provided. This year for the first time a Pittcon application for smartphones was made available. It allowed conferees access to real-time information on the conference and could be used to plan a personal agenda.
"About 10 percent of attendees used the mobile app. This was the first year for it and we plan on enhancing and expanding the functionality for 2012," indicated Nardozzi. Because one mission of Pittcon is to promote the study of science, the attendance by over more than undergraduate science students was also a significant achievement.
Pittcon 2012 will be held March 11-16 in Orlando.
Glen McDaniel (glenmcdan@aol.com) is a freelance writer, blogger and speaker whose interests include healthcare mediation, ethics and leadership.
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