The “Alternative Muscle Club” (AMC) was born out of the idea to give junior researchers an opportunity to present their work in a more friendly and unintimidating environment. Therefore, attendees and organizers of the meeting typically hold junior faculty, postdoctoral, postgraduate student, or research technician positions. Historically, the AMC has been associated with the European Muscle Club
(EMC) - now the European Muscle Conference and the European Society for Muscle Research (ESMR). The first-ever AMC meeting was held at the Department of Zoology, Oxford University, in December 1980. The two-day conference featured talks and poster presentations that represented the entire spectrum of muscle-related research: studies on whole muscle and muscle fibers, structural characterization of myofilaments, and investigations into the biochemistry of muscle proteins. Successive AMCs were held at universities and research centers across the United Kingdom, with Oxford hosting the 28th AMC meeting in 2010. In keeping with the goals and the spirit of the European AMCs, UC San Diego was proud to host the first American Alternative Muscle Club meeting in the summer of 2013 (see the 2013 meeting homepage here). We aim to honor the same principles as the original AMC meetings: to allow junior researchers to present their work in a friendly and open environment.
