Barcelona – España
 Head of the Gastrointestinal Research Section at the Hospital General Vall d’Hebron in Barcelona, Spain, since 1987, he currently serves as Chair of the Gut Microbiota & Health section of the European Society of Neurogastroenterology and Motility. Prof. Azpiroz’s clinical practice takes place in a large referral unit and specifically focuses on functional gut disorders. His research programme investigates the origin of gastrointestinal symptoms and involves both physiological and pathophysiological aspects relating to the control mechanisms of gut motility, visceral sensitivity and more recently, intestinal gas dynamics. |
Dr. Karen Madsen is a Professor of Medicine at the University of Alberta and Director of the Centre of Excellence for Gastrointestinal Inflammation and Immunity Research (CEGIIR). She specializes in studying the gut microbiome's role in health and disease, focusing on therapies for inflammatory bowel disease and metabolic disorders. Dr. Madsen has published over 150 research papers and received multiple awards for her contributions to medical research and education. You can follow her on X at @madsen_ca.
Professor Everard is a researcher from the Belgian Fund for Scientific Research (FRS-FNRS-WEL Research Institute). She is leading a team at the Louvain Drug Research Institute (LDRI) from the University of Louvain (UCLouvain), Brussels, Belgium. The main topic of interest of her team in research is to study how gut microbes are able to impact eating behaviours. More specifically, she is investigating the interactions between the gut microbiota, the intestine and the brain in the context of obesity and eating disorders.