Reproductive Bioengineering 2008 April 1-5, 2008, Wenns/Pitztal, Austria Tuesday  Wednesday  Thursday  Friday  Saturday  Sunday Tuesday, April 1, 2008 14:00 - 20:00 Arrival and Check-in 18:00 - 20:00 Dinner 21:00 – 23:00 Wine bar Wednesday, April 2, 2008 07:00 - 08:15 Breakfast 08:15 - 08:30 Opening Greetings, Ludwig Wildt 08:00 - 09:50 Uterine Peristalsis Ludwig Wildt, Medical University of Innsbruck, Austria Uterine mechanisms of spermatozoa transport: Physiology and physiopathology Edward Oczeretko, University of Bialystok, Poland Uterine contraction signals –application of the linear synchronization measures Stefan Kissler, Medical University of Frankfurt, Germany Adenomyosis uteri and dysmenorrhoe DISCUSSION 09:50 – 10:10 Coffee Break 10:10 - 11:30 Uterine Peristalsis Dirk Heute, Medical University of Innsbruck, Austria Hysterosalpingoszintigraphy: a valuable method for evaluating uterine function Dieter Schams, TU München - Weihenstephan, Germany Oxytocin - a transport hormone in the genital tract David Elad, Tel Aviv University, Israel Simulations of embryo transport in a closed channel DISCUSSION 11:30 - 16:00 Free Time + Lunch 16:00 – 16:20 Coffee Break 16:20 – 17:40 Myometrial Contractility and Calcium Transport Roger Young, University of Vermont, USA Evaluation of the mechanisms of tissue-level excitability with contact electrodes Teodor Burgyga, University of Liverpool, UK Vascular versus visceral smooth muscle calcium signaling Anatoly Shmygol, The University of Warwick Medical School, UK Stretch-induced phenomena in human myometrium: evidence for mechano-electrical feedback DISCUSSION 17:40 – 19:00 Myometrial Contractility and Calcium Transport Andy Blanks, The University of Warwick Medical School, UK Spatio-temporal aspects of Ca signaling in pregnant human myometrium Karen Noble, University of Liverpool, UK Store-operated calcium entry and contraction of the myometrium in the rat Michael Taggart, University of Newcastle upon Tyne, UK Mathematical modeling of uterine smooth muscle cell ionic currents DISCUSSION 19:00 – 21:00 Dinner 21:00 – 23:00 Music in the lobby & Wine bar Thursday, April 3, 2008 07:00 - 08:15 Breakfast 08:30 - 09:50 Myometrial Contractility Oksana Shynlova, Mount Sinai Hospital, Canada Integration of endocrine and mechanical signals in the regulation of myometrial function during pregnancy and labor Dietmar Schlembach, Medical University of Graz, Austria Monitoring the progress of pregnancy and labor using electromyography Peter Turton, University of Liverpool, UK Contractile properties of myometrium in twin pregnancies DISCUSSION 09:50 – 10:10 Coffee Break 10:10 - 11:30 Biomechanics of Pregnancy and Labor Hubert Preissl, University of Tübingen, Germany Uterine Magnetomyopgraphy: Data and Model Ofer Barnea, Tel Aviv University, Israel Real-time assessment of labor progress using the computerized labor monitor Dietmar Schlembach, Medical University of Graz, Austria Changes in hemodynamics parameters and autonomous nervous system measured non- invasively throughout pregnancy DISCUSSION 11:30 - 16:00 Free Time + Lunch 16:00 – 16:20 Coffee Break 16:20 - 17:40 Placenta Perfusion and Transport Pattern Reynolds Lawrence, North Dakota State University, USA Placental Microvascular Growth: Implications for Compromised Pregnancy Ariel Jaffa, Tel Aviv Medical Center, Israel Anthropometry of fetal vasculature in the chorionic plate Ronald Magness, University of Wisconsin-Madison, USA Uterine artery shear stress in normal and preeclamptic pregnant women DISCUSSION 17:40 – 19:00 Placenta Perfusion and Transport Pattern Michael Taggart, University of Newcastle upon Tyne, UK Towards understanding placental blood flow: Cellular mechanisms of tone regulation in the human placental vasculature Igor Chernyavsky, University of Nottingham A simple mathematical model of the placentone: Blood flow and nutrient transport Paul Debbage, Medical University Innsbruck, Austria Imaging of placental transport mechanisms DISCUSSION 19:00 – 23:00 Going by cable car for a Tyrolean Dinner at a "Mountain-Hut". Return down by toboggans (sleds). Friday, April 4, 2008 07:00 - 08:00 Breakfast 08:00 - 09:40 Pelvic Floor Mechanics James Ashton-Miller, University of Michigan, USA The biomechanics of vaginal birth: What have we learned to date? Margot Damaser, Cleveland Clinic Foundation, USA Biomechanics of cough, stress incontinence, and female pelvic floor Steve Abramowitch, University of Pittsburgh, USA A biomechanical testing protocol to identifying factors that negatively impact the integrity of pelvic connective tissue in the rat model Linda McLean, Queen's University, Canada Intravaginal pressure and pelvic floor muscle activation during coughing in women with and without stress urinary DISCUSSION 09:40 – 10:00 Coffee Break 10:00 - 11:20 Pelvic Floor Mechanics Chris Constantinou, Stanford University, USA Visualization of biomechanical properties of female pelvic floor function using video motion tracking of ultrasound imaging Marco Parente, Instituto Superior Tecnico, Portugal Study on the deformation of the pelvic floor muscles during a vaginal delivery Paul Hodges, The University of Queensland, Australia Contribution of the pelvic floor muscles to postural and respiratory functions: Physiology and pathophysiology DISCUSSION 11:20 – 12:40 Sperm Biomechanics Ralf Herwig, University of Vienna, Austria Oxidative stress and sperm transport, motility and morphological deficiencies Leo Pallwein, Medical University of Innsbruck, Austria Value of novel sonographic investigations in assessments of male fertility Ioannis Zervomanolakis, Medical University of Innsbruck, Austria Pharmacological modification of sperm transpotrt in the human female DISCUSSION 12:40 - 13:30 Lunch 13:30 – 19:00 Conference Tour to Swarovski Crystal Worlds and Innsbruck 19:15 - 21:00 Dinner 21:00 - 23:00 Wine bar Saturday, April 5, 2008 07:00 - 08:15 Breakfast 08:30 - 09:50 Biomechanics of Fetal Membranes Michelle Oyen, Cambridge University, UK Do we know the strength of the chorioamnion? A critical review and analysis Michael Sacks, University of Pittsburgh, USA Structure-mechanical function relationships of the fetal membrane Mahmood Jabareen, Swiss Federal Institute of Technology, Switzerland Mechanical and histological characterization of human fetal membranes DISCUSSION 09:50 – 10:10 Coffee Break 10:10 - 11:30 Mechanics of Pregnancy and Labor Margit Bauer, Gerhard Holzapfel, Graz University of Technology, Austria, Royal Institute of Technology, Sweden Assessment of biomechanical properties of the human uterine cervix Simona Socrate, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, USA Human cervical tissue anisotropy and structure-function relationships Simona Socrate, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, USA A constitutive model for the inhomogeneous, anisotropic response of cervical stroma DISCUSSION 11:30 - 16:00 Free Time + Lunch 16:00 – 16:20 Coffee Break 16:20 - 17:40 Mechanics of Pregnancy and Labor Michael House, Tufts-New England Medical Center, USA MRI-based, solid models of three-dimensional cervical anatomy in the second and third trimester of pregnancy Helen Carnaghan, Cambridge University, UK Amnioseal: Pre-sealing of the chorioamniotic membranes prior to fetoscopic surgery Dietmar Schlembach, Medical University of Graz, Austria Cervical ripening & insufficiency: From biochemical and molecular studies to in vivo clinical examination DISCUSSION 17:40 – 19:00 Mechanics of Pregnancy and Labor Virginia Ferguson, University of Colorado at Boulder, USA Biomechanics of umbilical cord tissues Leif Rune Hellevik, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Norway Wave propagation in the human fetal ductus venosus-umbilical vein bifurcation Peter Niederer, University of Zurich, Switzerland Fiber architecture and mechanical properties of the human uterus DISCUSSION 19:00 – 21:00 Dinner Banquet 21:00 – 23:00 Wine tasting Sunday, April 6, 2008 07:00 - 08:30 Breakfast 09:00 Depart