2007 Cell-Cell Fusion

Gordon Research Conferences, East Greenwich RI

Investigators

Abstract

[unreadable] DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): The first Gordon Research Conference on Cell-Cell Fusion will take place in 2007, at Colby-Sawyer College in New Hampshire, July 1-6. This new GRC follows two successive "Special Interest" subgroup meetings on "Cell-Cell Fusion" that took place in 2002 and 2003 at the American Society for Cell Biology, and which this principal investigator organized. The fusion of cells with themselves, and with other cells, has become the research focus of an increasing number of cell biologists and has grown to the point of becoming the theme of a new GRC. The Cell-Cell Fusion conference is unique in the novelty, breadth, and depth of its coverage of new developments in the emerging field of cell fusion. The Gordon Research Conference format differs from virtually all other scientific meetings in providing an extensive opportunity for open, free, and informal discussions. The number of participants is limited to about 130, and attendees include international leaders in the field from the academic and industrial sector, young investigators, post-doctoral fellows, and students. The success of this new Gordon Conference as a forum for the discussion of state-of-the-art research advances is attributable to its limited size, geographical isolation, and overall structure. This new conference will focus on an emerging area of biology, that of the fusion of cells with each other during development, repair, and disease. It will include two introductory sessions on membrane fusion and viral fusion, followed by sessions on sperm-oocyte fusion, myoblast fusion, as well as fusion in C. elegans, Neurospora crassa, Chlamydomonas, and yeast mating. The last three sessions will focus on macrophage fusion, stem cell fusion, and fusion of cancer cells. The discussion leaders and speakers selected to date are among the international leaders of cell fusion. The keynote address speaker is one of the world's foremost experts in membrane fusion. The purpose of this application is to request funds to defray the costs of speakers' registration and subsistence. These funds, if granted, will aid immeasurably in allowing the Gordon Research Conference to fulfill its function, which is to stimulate creativity and interaction in an emerging field of biology. [unreadable] [unreadable] [unreadable]