Conference: FASEB Conference on Dynamic DNA Structures in Biology

This award will support graduate student, postdoctoral and new investigator attendance at the Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology (FASEB) meeting at Crowne Plaza Melbourne-Oceanfront Hotel, Melbourne, USA from July 21-25, 2024. The meeting focuses on unique DNA and RNA structures and how they affect biological and mutational processes. The meeting is co-organized by Drs. Kirill Lobachev (Georgia Institute of Technology), Karen Usdin (NIH), Mitch McVey (Tufts University) and Guy-Franck Richard (Institut Pasteur). The format of the meeting is a combination of 45 invited talks, 18 talks selected from submitted abstracts, and several poster sessions. In addition, a keynote lecture by Lorraine Symington (Columbia University), and an EMBO keynote lecture by Petr Cejka (Institute for Research in Biomedicine, Bellinzona) will begin the meeting. There is also a dedicated 1-hour session for trainees to interact with leading experts and three separate poster sessions. A career development workshop will also be held for trainees. The organizers and session chairs will prioritize graduate students, postdocs, and new investigators in the selection of talks chosen from the abstracts. This meeting affords many formal and informal opportunities for sharing recent research findings and exploring collaborations, and seeks to broaden participation of researchers in this field. This premier and unique meeting on alternate DNA structures draws many national and international participants, and includes many NSF-funded investigators. The meeting began in 2008 and is held every other year. Recent advances in DNA repair, DNA replication, transcription, and non-canonical DNA and DNA-RNA structures will be highlighted in this conference. The session topics include “Biochemical and Single Molecule Analysis of DNA Structures”, “New Technologies for the Analysis of Dynamic DNA”, “Structure-induced Genome Instability”, “G quadruplexes and Telomeres”, “Structural Analysis of Replication and Repair”, “Expandable Repeats in Human Disorders”, “Gene Therapies for Expandable Repeat Diseases”, “Chromosome Fragility”, “Transposable Elements, Viruses and Parasites”, and “RNA-mediated Genome Instability”. The conference primarily highlights unpublished research findings and provides many opportunities for young researchers to learn about the field and devise future avenues for research. The program also offers career development training and mentoring for a new generation of researchers. This project is jointly funded by the Genetic Mechanisms program and the Molecular Biophysics program in the Division of Molecular and Cellular Biosciences of the Directorate for Biological Sciences. 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.