We don’t just have sex to reproduce - new research suggests that using sex to manage social tension could be a trait that existed in the common ancestor of humans and apes six million years ago.

Since the discovery of actin in relation to muscle function more than 80 years ago by Albert Szent-Gyorgyi in Szeged, Hungary, actin research has become extremely diverse and now extends to plants and prokaryotes, as well as biochemical, biophysical, molecular, and cellular biology fields. The need for an international actin conference with comprehensive topics, where the latest results and research directions are presented, is critical for the community. Therefore, we decided to bring together the best experts in actin biology from across the world to build research synergies to tackle long-standing questions covering the enormous spectrum of the field of actin biology.

Hereby we kindly invite you to participate in the ACTIN ASSEMBLY FOR INTRACELLULAR FUNCTIONS 2025 conference between May 21-24, 2025. The meeting will take place in the new conference centre of the HUN-REN Biological Research Centre (BRC) Szeged, Hungary (https://www.brc.hu/en), where the lecture halls, the poster and company exhibition areas will all be located in one building, together with the restaurant and social rooms. This venue is ideal for catching up with colleagues, discussing your research, building collaborations, and sparking new ideas.

With 27 invited speakers already confirmed, 12 additional short presentations, three poster sessions, and social events, including the Wine Festival and Bridge Fair in Szeged, AAIF2025 is guaranteed to be a stimulating and enjoyable conference for all participants.

SESSION TOPICS

Actin protein dynamics

Actin in mechanotransduction

Actin in diseases

Actin in intracellular trafficking

Actin and phase separation

Actin across evolution

Actin and the genome

PLEASE VISIT THE CONFERENCE WEBSITE AT

https://aaif2025-szeged.hu

for all the information you need, including the programme, and where you can register.

For many young adults with anxiety sensitivity — the fear of experiencing anxiety symptoms and the negative health, social and emotional outcomes associated with them — alcohol use became a way to cope with those fears. But as a new Concordia study shows, drinking to cope with fears of anxiety probably made them feel worse.

The study, published in the Journal of American College Health, reveals that drinking to cope put young adults with anxiety sensitivity at further risk of problematic drinking and the negative consequences associated with it.

How where you live, what you eat, and which friends you keep affect how you age is the focus of a new study from The University of Texas at Arlington. Researchers are enrolling volunteers for the Arlington Study of Healthy Aging (ASHA), which will use advanced imaging, genetics, exercise science, neuroscience, and remote monitoring to investigate age-related health decline. The goal is to help individuals and health care practitioners better prevent the impact of disease on older adults.