2016 Neural Development Gordon Research Conference and Gordon Research Seminar

Gordon Research Conferences, East Greenwich RI

Investigators

Abstract

Summary The nervous system is the most complex tissue in the human body. The formation and maintenance of this amazing structure entails sophisticated mechanisms that drive the specification of appropriate cell fates in along the spatial and temporal axes, and the formation and fine-tuning of highly specific cell-cell contacts that are crucial for organisms to properly sense and respond to their environment. Alterations in normal nervous system development can lead to devastating neurological disorders including Autism, Schizophrenia, and neurodegenerative disease. With the advent of new molecular approaches including whole genome sequencing, CRISPR/Cas9, and imaging techniques including CLARITY, multiphoton microscopy, and ultra- resolution microscopy, the field of developmental neurobiology is making tremendous leaps forward. The 2016 Neural Development Gordon Research Conference (GRC) in Newport, Rhode Island, will bring together an international group of scientists that have made breakthroughs in our understanding of nervous system development and significantly advanced the field. This meeting has been held biennially since 1981 and has remained the premier meeting in the field for the presentation of exciting new advances in the field, and for trainees, young investigators, and senior colleagues, to interact extensively in formal and informal settings. As with many GRCs the meeting is centered around talks and poster sessions, with extensive time for social and scientific interactions in the afternoons. Topics covered will include neural stem cell biology, specification and morphogenesis of neurons and glia, synaptogenesis, neural circuit refinement, and the mechanisms of neural dysfunction in disease. Our initial slate of speakers is an excellent mix of very promising young (10) and mid career scientist (11), along with outstanding senior researchers (13). The meeting is also designed to additionally highlight recent technical advances that have rapidly propelled the field forward, and a diversity of experimental approaches and model systems (e.g. C. elegans, Drosophila, zebrafish, mammals) will be represented. Several short talks by participants will be selected from submitted poster abstracts, and these will be targeted toward trainees and young investigators. Additional features unique to this meeting are lunchtime discussion with trainees on career relevant issues, and our first Power Hour (sponsored by the GRC to promote the mentoring of women in science). The main conference will be preceded by a Gordon Research Seminar, a 2 day event that is organize and run by trainees, where except for the keynote address all talks and posters are given by trainees?our first GRS two years ago added tremendous value the the GRC for the trainees. We anticipate this meeting will foster extensive interactions and collaborations between scientists at all stages of their careers, expose all attendees to exciting new breakthroughs in the field, and let us frame the next exciting set of questions to advance our understanding of nervous system assembly.