image: Participants at the RACMEM conference in Shenzhen, Guangdong Province.
Credit: SIAT
Scientists worldwide are calling for accelerated development and standardization of energy metabolism measurement technologies to tackle pressing global challenges, from ecology under climate change to public health crises. The call to action came during the 6th Recent Advances and Controversies in the Measurement of Energy Metabolism (RACMEM) conference, held in Shenzhen, China, from October 13-17.
Energy metabolism, the fundamental biological process underpinning all life, is increasingly recognized as a key area of scientific focus. Understanding how organisms utilize energy is crucial, as global challenges from climate change to public health crises grow.
The RACMEM conference, organized by the Shenzhen Institutes of Advanced Technology (SIAT) of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS) and supported by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), brought together 221 delegates from 21 countries. Participants included researchers, clinical experts, industry representatives, and officials from international organizations.
Aiming to foster interdisciplinary collaboration and methodological progress, the conference discussions focused on the regulatory mechanisms of energy expenditure, the interplay between temperature and metabolism, the impact of protein intake, the role of brown fat, and the boundaries of metabolic limits.
"We need more advanced metabolism measurement technologies to truly grasp how complex our regulatory systems are," said Prof. Jan Nedergaard, former member of the Nobel Prize Committee and Academician of the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences.
Prof. John Speakman, conference host, SIAT researcher, and a Foreign Academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, emphasized the critical importance of energy metabolism research and urged increased investment in the field. Speakman is also a Foreign Associate of the U.S. National Academy of Sciences, and a Fellow of the Royal Society.
Participants agreed that improved energy metabolism measurement is essential for addressing climate change, public health challenges, and achieving the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. The significant contributions of Chinese science and investment in metabolic health research were widely acknowledged.
The conference also highlighted the importance of nurturing young scholars and students and promoting international knowledge exchange. Life Metabolism (Oxford University Press) provided international scholarships to encourage early-career researchers to engage in the field.
This was the first time the RACMEM conference has been held in China. Previous meetings took place in the United States (Denver), the Netherlands (Maastricht), Japan (Tokyo), Switzerland (Fribourg), and Canada (Quebec).