Conference "First International Symposium on Computational Cell Biology" held March 4-6, 2001 in Lenox, MA.

University Of Connecticut Health Center, Farmington CT

Investigators

Abstract

This grant provides partial support for the First International Symposium on Computational Cell Biology to be held March 4-6, 2001 in Lenox, MA. Computational Cell Biology is an emerging interdisciplinary field that responds to the need for computational methods to analyze and organize the abundance of experimental data on the structure and function of the cell. Whereas other meetings have been held that focus on bioinformatics and molecular and structural biology, this will be the first meeting geared to the use of computational modeling applications in cell biology, and will be primarily targeted to cell biologists. The major focus of the meeting will be on areas of cell biology for which modeling approaches are currently being developed, or that are ripe for computational modeling approaches. A key goal is to bring together cell biologists whose research addresses quantitative aspects of cellular mechanisms with computer scientists and mathematicians who can provide the computational tools. The symposium is being organized by The National Resource for Cell Analysis and Modeling (NRCAM), located in the Center for Biomedical Imaging Technology (CBIT) at the University of Connecticut Health Center. The organizing committee consists of Drs. Leslie M. Loew, Director of NRCAM and CBIT, John Carson, co-Director of NRCAM and Vladimir Rodionov, associate faculty of CBIT, and is chaired by Ann Cowan, Deputy Director of CBIT and head of dissemination and training for NRCAM. The members of the organizing committee feel that the time is ripe to bring together cell biologists, mathematicians, and computer scientists to develop a true community of scientists sharing the common goal of developing computational tools for cell biological modeling and simulation. Topics at the meetings will encompass a range of cellular mechanisms including regulation of the cytoskeleton and molecular motors, membrane and protein trafficking, regulation of calcium dynamics, signal transduction pathways, and cell cycle control. In each of these areas key researchers who utilize highly quantitative experimental approaches and/or are applying mathematical modeling approaches will be invited to speak. The meeting will be an intensive mix of platform sessions, poster sessions and small workshops and tutorials. The venue for the meeting is a resort in the Berkshire mountains that is limited to a maximum of 125 participants. This setting and meeting size will be ideal for encouraging individual interactions between this diverse group of scientists. It will also serve as an excellent educational activity for graduate and postdoctoral students working in this young and expanding field.