Reader in Musculoskeletal Physiology, Manchester Metropolitan University
Dr Alex Ireland is Reader in Musculoskeletal Physiology at Manchester Metropolitan University. He is a member of Manchester’s Conference Ambassador Programme and served as Chair of the Local Organising Committee for the Bone Research Society Annual Meeting in 2022.
Taking place at Manchester Met’s Business School 6-8 July 2022, the meeting attracted 200 leading experts in the field of bone research.
The Bone Research Society (BRS), formerly the Bone and Tooth Society, was founded in 1950. The BRS is one of the largest national scientific societies in Europe dedicated to clinical and basic research into mineralised tissues, and is the oldest such society in the world. Meetings are held annually, attracting a wide audience from throughout the UK and beyond. The presentations are traditionally balanced between clinical and laboratory studies.
Dr Ireland commented: “After three years without face-to-face meetings, it was great to meet with colleagues in person again. In particular, to welcome them to my home town and to showcase the University's new buildings and the wider Oxford Road corridor.”
Dr Ireland also serves on the Committees of the International Conference for Children's Bone Health and the European Calcified Tissue Society. His research work examines how the skeleton adapts to physical activity and disuse across the life course. This ranges from investigating how fetal movements shapes our bones and joints before joints, to assessing the impact of exercise in very old age on bone mass. He is also interested in the influence of muscle on the skeleton, and conversely how neuromuscular function is affected in individuals with skeletal pathologies.
