The Lipid Library

The Scottish Lipid Discussion Group

For more than 35 years now, the Scottish Lipid Discussion Group has been promoting all aspects of science relating to lipids. We include chemical, analytical, agricultural, pharmaceutical, biochemical and medical scientists, in short anyone who shares our interest in some aspect of lipid research.

The group has no formal organization or membership, and certainly no membership fees. Each year (usually in May-June) at a University or Institute somewhere in Scotland , a one-day meeting is organized that consists mainly of short papers, where young scientists especially are encouraged to make presentations, with often a plenary lecture from an invited speaker. Each meeting is self-supporting with a small registration fee, mainly to cover the cost of lunch and refreshments. Usually, between 60 and 80 persons attend. A committee made up of the organizers of the previous three meetings decide on the venue (and organizer) for the next.

For practical reasons, the participants come mainly from Scottish institutions from Ayr to Aberdeen. Then, no-one needs to stay overnight and all staff and students in each laboratory can hope to attend. Our lipid friends in the north of England are encouraged to come, and we are always pleased to welcome others from further away. Any informal grouping that remains active for such a length of time must be doing something right - please come to our meetings and see for yourself.

The lack of a formal structure does make it a little difficult for us to keep in touch with all who might be interested - click here for a copy of the programme for the 2004 meeting (PDF file - 25kb). The next meeting (2006) will be arranged by Dr Gordon Bell of Stirling University (g.j.bell@stir.ac.uk).