15th International Gut Microbiology Symposium

The 15th International Gut Microbiology Symposium is coming to New King's, University of Aberdeen, Old Aberdeen Campus, from 1 to 3 June 2027. It's a biennial conference, so it only happens every other year, and this one is put on jointly by the Rowett Institute here in Aberdeen and the INRAE Clermont-Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes-Centre over in France.

The whole thing centres on the gut microbiome—the complex microbial ecosystem in the digestive tracts of humans and animals—and how it helps maintain host health. A big part of that is looking at microbe-microbe and microbe-host interactions. The sessions cover a lot of ground: the microbiome as a driver of health and disease, the link between human and animal health, sustainability and food systems, new methodological advances, and how that research translates into health, agricultural and environmental solutions.

For the 2027 edition, the focus shifts a bit. It'll lean into the microbiome across the life course, and nutrition—personalised nutrition, ultra-processed food, and novel feed additives. One Health is another big theme, alongside new technologies in microbiota science. If you've been following the field, those are the areas where a lot of the current conversation is happening.

The local organising committee is led by Professor Alan Walker, Chair in Microbiome Science at the Rowett Institute, with Dr Petra Louis, Dr Indrani Mukhopadhya, Professor Karen Scott, Chair in Gut Microbiology, Sarah Owen and Rachel Elliott from CPD Services. It runs from 1 to 3 June 2027 at New King's, on the University of Aberdeen's Old Aberdeen Campus.