From Muscle Physiology to Pathogenesis and Therapies of Neuromuscular Diseases

• Wednesday
  9 September WED
  9 Sep
• Thursday
  10 September THU
  10 Sep
• Friday
  11 September FRI
  11 Sep
• Saturday
  12 September SAT
  12 Sep
• List of
  Posters List of
  Posters List
  of
  Post

• Morning Session reserved for attendees of the High Training Course in ADVANCED MYOLOGY UPDATE 2026
  9:30	Florian Bentzinger Fiber bundle whole-mount imaging of the skeletal muscle stem cell niche
  10:00	Elizabeth Chen Myoblast fusion: Lessons from flies, fish and mice
  10:30	Peter Currie In vitro and in vivo model systems to study muscle biology. Strengths and weaknesses
  11:00	Rita Perlingeiro Pluripotent stem cells: from development to therapeutics
  12:00	Light lunch
  15:00	Welcome and opening of the IIM meeting
  15:30	Lecture 1 Chair: Francesca Riuzzi Elizabeth Chen (UT Southwestern, Dallas, TX, USA) Muscle cell fusion and fission: Can they go hand in hand?
  16:30	Session 1: Muscle Atrophy Chairs: Nicoletta Filigheddu, Beatrice Auletta Francesco P. Zummo* (Turin, Italy) Targeting inflammasomes to counteract muscle wasting: NLRP3 inhibition mitigates cytokine-induced muscle atrophy in C2C12 myotubes Cristiana Sazzi* (Pavia, Italy) Fibro-adipogenic progenitors from hindlimb-suspended mice promote myotube atrophy in vitro Clara Sciorati (Milan, Italy) Muscle function is maintained during Tirzepatide-induced weight loss: evidence across preclinical and clinical studies
  17:15	Coffee break
  17:45	Session 2: Muscle Diseases Chairs: Antonio Musarò, Frida Karakashi Ivan Bianco* (Padua, Italy) Mapping muscular epigenome to identify new molecular mechanism in SBMA Letizia Claudione* (Bari, Italy) Conjugated linoleic acid improves antioxidant responses and skeletal muscle function in SOD1-G93A mouse model of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis Elena Gidaja* (Paris, France) Decoding the role of type I collagen in skeletal muscle: insights from osteogenesis imperfecta
  18:30	Technical talk (by Prodotti Gianni) Carlo Colombo Beyond serum: Trends in cell culture
  19:00	Dinner - Aperitivo Umbro and (only for participants registered for the Advanced Myology Update course) Roundtable Discussions with the Invited Speakers
  21:30	Scientific Speed Date Reserved for under-35 participants

  *Young Investigator. Eligible for Best Talk or Best Flash Talk awards.

• 9:00	Lecture 2 Chair: Frida Karakashi (Young IIM Committee) Florian Bentzinger (Sherbrooke University, Quebec, Canada) Novel roles of the extracellular matrix in the skeletal muscle stem cell niche
  10:00	Session 3: Muscle Stem Cells and Regeneration Chairs: Viviana Moresi, Francesca Colli Chiara D’Ercole* (Paris, France) Muscle-resident glial cells differentially respond to injury and support tissue regeneration Isabela A. Divino* (Limeira, Brazil) Nuclear Parkin regulates non-degradative ubiquitination and loss of Parkin reshapes the skeletal muscle ubiquitinome Massimo Ganassi (London, United Kingdom) Modelling muscle stem cell dysfunction to understand pathogenesis of neuromuscular disorders
  10:45	Coffee break
  11:15	Session 4: Advanced in vitro Models Chairs: Paola Costelli, Tommaso Raiteri Francesca De Paolis* (Rome, Italy) Recapitulating the human myotendinous junction in vitro using a 3D bioprinted model Alastair Khodabukus* (Durham, NC, USA) Dysferlin regulation of cholesterol homeostasis in a human tissue engineered LGMD2B myobundle model Pietro Chiolerio* (Padua, Italy) Human neuromuscular organoids mimic cancer-induced muscle cachexia
  12:00	Flash Talks Sasha Marco Maria Di Iorio* (Rome, Italy) A 3D skeletal muscle system for disease modelling and secretome profiling of Duchenne muscular dystrophy Martina Lupoli* (Rome, Italy) Cardio-specific miRNAs as possible biomarkers in transthyretin-related hereditary amyloidosis Daniele Durante* (Rome, Italy) Charme lncRNA controls myogenesis across evolution Yoann Le Toquin* (Leuven, Belgium) Engineering hypoimmune cell lines as universal cell therapy platforms for skeletal muscle pathologies Angela Gambardella* (Palermo, Italy) Unraveling the role of the chemokine receptor CXCR2 in muscle stem cell functional heterogeneity
  12:30	Lunch
  13:15-14:45	Poster Session 1 (Poster Walk for ODD NUMBERS)
  15:00	Bus departure to Foligno for guided tour and dinner at Rione Badia

  *Young Investigator. Eligible for Best Talk or Best Flash Talk awards.

• 9:00	Lecture 3 Chair: Maurilio Sampaolesi Peter Currie (Monash University, Melbourne, Australia) Understanding the in vivo dynamics of distinct muscle stem cell systems during growth and regeneration and their different niches across the vertebrate phylogeny
  10:00	Session 5: Muscle Metabolic and Epigenetic Regulation Chairs: Patrizia Rovere Querini, Giacomo Rubini Silvia Scalabrin* (Padua, Italy) An age-related microRNA improves mitochondrial function in skeletal muscle Paolo D’Angelo* (Rome, Italy) Role of polyamine biosynthesis and transport in skeletal muscle development and homeostasis Laura Salvadori (Perugia, Italy) The dietary advanced glycation end-product (AGE) accumulation as a driver of skeletal muscle dysfunction and therapeutic target in sarcobesity Pierre Klein (SFM; Paris, France) From neurogenesis to myogenesis: How m6A RNA methylation regulates cellular differentiation
  11:00	Coffee break
  11:30	Session 6: Cancer Cachexia Chairs: Marco Sandri, Chiara D’Ercole Zhongpeng Ge* (Leuven, Belgium) Investigating the mechanisms of aberrant adipogenesis in cancer cachexia-associated muscle atrophy Emma E. Cappellato* (Turin, Italy) Understanding metabolism in clinically relevant cancer cachexia preclinical models Guarnaccia Gabriele (San Diego, CA, USA) The SAA1-TLR4 axis promotes skeletal muscle wasting in pancreatic cancer cachexia
  12:15	Flash Talks Chiara Noviello (Turin, Italy) Investigation of the role of DUX4 in the pathogenesis of cancer-induced muscle wasting Ilaria Della Valle* (Rome, Italy) Targeting S100A4 to modulate inflammation and improve muscle regeneration in Duchenne muscular dystrophy Giorgia Nanni* (Rome, Italy) Advancing efficient gene delivery approaches using lipid nanoparticles for the treatment of Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy (DMD) Alessandro Panci* (Rome, Italy) Niclosamide reprograms macrophages and improves muscle integrity in Duchenne muscular dystrophy models Mohammed Wasil Shakir* (Urbino, Italy) Mutually exclusive VPS13B isoforms in skeletal muscle: implications for Cohen syndrome
  12:30	Lunch
  13:15-14:45	Poster Session 2 (Poster Walk for EVEN NUMBERS)
  15:00	Lecture 4 Chair: Marina Bouché Rita Perlingeiro (University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN, USA) Exploring pathogenic specificity in DMD using hiPSC-derived skeletal and cardiac muscles
  16:00	Coffee break
  16:30	Session 7: Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy and Therapeutic Frontiers Chairs: France Pietri-Rouxel, Yoann Le Toquin Francesca Colli* (Bologna, Italy) Utrophin overexpression by precise base editing as a universal therapeutic strategy for Duchenne muscular dystrophy Frida Karakashi* (Milan, Italy) Beyond the brain: investigating the impact of psychotropic drugs on skeletal muscle in Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD) Noemi Moio* (Modena, Italy) Genetic ablation of Cdkn1a ameliorates the dystrophic phenotype in FRG1-mice Viviana Moresi (Rome, Italy) HDAC4–adiponectin signaling controls fibro-adipogenic progenitor fate and disease progression in Duchenne muscular dystrophy Ilaria Zito (Parent Project; Rome, Italy) From patient voice to patient-generated evidence: the role of surveys, registries and the PaLaDIn project in shaping neuromuscular research
  17:45	IIM General meeting
  20:00	Social Dinner - Awards and prizes
  22:00	Dance with SAX & DJ

  *Young Investigator. Eligible for Best Talk or Best Flash Talk awards.

• Departure

• Posters always on display during the meeting

  Poster walks: ODD numbers – Thursday, 10 September (13:15-14:45)
  EVEN numbers – Friday, 11 September (13:15-14:45)

  P.1  Sasha Marco Maria Di Iorio** (Rome, Italy)
  A 3D skeletal muscle system for disease modelling and secretome profiling of Duchenne muscular dystrophy
  
  P.2  Chiara Noviello (Turin, Italy)
  Investigation of the role of DUX4 in the pathogenesis of cancer-induced muscle wasting
  
  P.3  Martina Lupoli** (Rome, Italy)
  Cardio-specific miRNAs as possible biomarkers in transthyretin-related hereditary amyloidosis
  
  P.4  Giacomo Rubini** (Turin, Italy)
  Interleukin-4 improves the immune response while preventing muscle wasting in tumor-bearing mice
  
  P.5  Monica Forino (Milan, Italy)
  Givinostat modulates TGFβ-driven fibrosis and refines the functional positioning of IL‑11 in DMD stromal cells
  
  P.6  Sara Chiappalupi (Perugia, Italy)
  Preliminary findings on the therapeutic potential of microencapsulated human umbilical cord-derived mesenchymal stem cells (hUC-MSC) for Duchenne muscular dystrophy
  
  P.7  Daniele Durante** (Rome, Italy)
  Charme lncRNA controls myogenesis across evolution
  
  P.8  Ilaria Della Valle** (Rome, Italy)
  Targeting S100A4 to modulate inflammation and improve muscle regeneration in Duchenne muscular dystrophy
  
  P.9  Chiara Giovino** (Rome, Italy)
  Blocking inflammaging to counteract sarcopenia and extend healthspan
  
  P.10  Giorgia Nanni** (Rome, Italy)
  Advancing efficient gene delivery approaches using lipid nanoparticles for the treatment of Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy (DMD)
  
  P.11  Alessandro Antonioli** (Novara, Italy)
  Fructose supplementation intensifies high-fat diet-induced muscle dysfunction
  
  P.12  Alessandro Panci** (Rome, Italy)
  Niclosamide reprograms macrophages and improves muscle integrity in Duchenne muscular dystrophy models
  
  P.13  Cassandra Genovesi** (Rome, Italy)
  Effects of estrogens on skeletal muscle regeneration during aging and Duchenne muscular dystrophy
  
  P.14  Mohammed Wasil Shakir** (Urbino, Italy)
  Mutually exclusive VPS13B isoforms in skeletal muscle: implications for Cohen syndrome
  
  P.15  Hajar Meskine** (Novara, Italy)
  Palmitate and advanced glycation end products synergistically impair skeletal muscle homeostasis: an in vitro study
  
  P.16  Beatrice Auletta** (Padua, Italy)
  hiPSC-derived neuromuscular organoids to model Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy
  
  P.17  Tommaso Raiteri** (Novara, Italy)
  Vaccinium macrocarpon extract preserves skeletal muscle and associated tissue homeostasis against AGE-driven ageing
  
  P.18  Giuseppina Caretti (Milan, Italy)
  Deciphering the Function of PERM1 in the Dystrophic Muscle
  
  P.19  Yoann Le Toquin** (Leuven, Belgium)
  Engineering hypoimmune cell lines as universal cell therapy platforms for skeletal muscle pathologies
  
  P.20  Saif Ullah** (Siena, Italy)
  Study of glucose handling in the RYR1^Y524S/+ mouse model of MHS
  
  P.21  Angela Gambardella** (Palermo, Italy)
  Unraveling the role of the chemokine receptor CXCR2 in muscle stem cell functional heterogeneity
  
  P.22  Fabrizio Rinaldi (Rome, Italy)
  The Pala Single Cell Sorter enables high-throughput iPSC engineering and preserves colony stemness and viability
  
  

  **Young Investigator. Eligible Best Poster awards.