RoL: Conference: DESYN-C3: An International Conference on Engineering Synthetic Cells and Organelles

University Of New Mexico, Albuquerque NM

Investigators

Abstract

The International Conference on Engineering Synthetic Cells and Organelles will be held near Albuquerque, New Mexico during the summer of 2019. The conference focuses on synthetic biology, establishes the state-of-the-art of synthetic cell technology, and identifies grand challenges and opportunities for future work in this field. It features world leaders in synthetic cell technology from premier US and international universities and national laboratories. The meeting addresses the mission of NSF, which has been increasingly committed to integrating the engineering sciences with the life sciences, encouraging research and development in multidisciplinary areas, educating the next generation of young scientists, and supporting cutting edge science to answer current and future challenges as well as making sure US-based scientists are globally engaged. Topics of the conference will focus on development of foundational technologies for creating synthetic cells. The conference will hold sessions on five topics over 2.5 days in a single-track format. The topics will be (1) strategies to create synthetic cells and organelles; (2) spatial and temporal organization of synthetic cytoplasmic structures; (3) sensing, signaling, and circuits; (4) molecular machines, mechanics, and motility; and (5) implications of synthetic cell technology. The conference proceedings, and a companion technology roadmap, will be published subsequent to the conference. This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.