The Power of Fungi: From Cell Biology to Ecology

June 16 - 17, 2018

Chairs Dana Opulente and Brad Bartholomai

Holderness School

33 Chapel Lane

Holderness, NH, US

Venue and Travel Information

Conference Description

The Gordon Research Seminar on Cellular and Molecular Fungal Biology is a unique forum for graduate students, post-docs, and other scientists with comparable levels of experience and education to present and exchange new data and cutting edge ideas.

The focus of this meeting is to integrate, and synthesize multiple aspects and approaches in fungal research. It aims to facilitate the involvement and collaboration of early-career scientists immersed in multiple fields of fungal biology. Participants of the GRS will present their research and engage in scientific discussions, thereby gaining knowledge and confidence for their participation in the Gordon Research Conference on Cellular and Molecular Fungal Biology. This is a unique opportunity for young researchers to present their work, share ideas, and build connections with their colleagues and with respected authorities and leading international experts on fungal research.

Related Meeting

This GRS will be held in conjunction with the "Cellular and Molecular Fungal Biology" Gordon Research Seminar (GRS). Those interested in attending both meetings must submit an application for the GRC in addition to an application for the GRS. Refer to the associated GRC program page for more information.

Conference Program

Saturday
2:00 pm - 5:00 pm	Arrival and Check-in
3:30 pm - 3:45 pm	Introductory Comments by GRC Site Staff / Welcome from the GRS Chair
3:45 pm - 4:30 pm	Keynote Session: The Impact of Fungal Genome Size Changes on Adaptation Discussion Leader: Dana Opulente (University of Wisconsin-Madison, USA)
3:45 pm - 4:25 pm	Anna Selmecki (Creighton University School of Medicine, USA) "The Impact of Fungal Genome Size Changes on Adaptation"
4:25 pm - 4:30 pm	Discussion
4:30 pm - 6:00 pm	Poster Session
6:00 pm - 7:00 pm	Dinner
7:30 pm - 9:30 pm	Pathogens, Commensalism and Fungal Communication Discussion Leader: Brandon Ross (Geisel School of Medicine, Dartmouth College, USA)
7:30 pm - 7:45 pm	Caitlin Kowalski (Geisel School of Medicine, Dartmouth College, USA) "Experimental Evolution of Aspergillus fumigatus Identifies Novel Subtelomeric Genes that Promote Hypoxia Fitness and Virulence"
7:45 pm - 7:50 pm	Discussion
7:50 pm - 8:05 pm	Arnab Pradhan (MRC Centre for Medical Mycology, University of Aberdeen, United Kingdom) "Non-Canonical Signaling Mediates Changes in Fungal Cell Wall PAMPs that Drive Immune Evasion"
8:05 pm - 8:10 pm	Discussion
8:10 pm - 8:25 pm	Elisa Vesely (University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston, USA) "Characterization of Small ORFs Upregulated After Macrophage Phagocytosis Reveals the Novel Microadhesin Sma12"
8:25 pm - 8:30 pm	Discussion
8:30 pm - 8:45 pm	José Vargas-Muñiz (The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, USA) "Fishing for Fungi: Marine Fungi Provide New Models of Cell Division"
8:45 pm - 8:50 pm	Discussion
8:50 pm - 9:05 pm	Tran Thao (Murdoch University, Australia) "A Comparison of Genetic Diversity and Fungicide Tolerance of Monilinia Isolates from Organic and Conventional Stone Fruit Orchards"
9:05 pm - 9:10 pm	Discussion
9:10 pm - 9:25 pm	Brian Lovett (University of Maryland, USA) "Stopping Malaria with Transgenic Insect-Killing Fungi"
9:25 pm - 9:30 pm	Discussion
Sunday
7:30 am - 8:30 am	Breakfast
9:00 am - 11:00 am	Biotechnology, Systems Biology and Ecology Discussion Leader: Rebecca Shapiro (University of Guelph, Canada)
9:00 am - 9:15 am	Delma Childers (MRC Centre for Medical Mycology, University of Aberdeen, United Kingdom) "Fungal Transformers: Tracking a Moving Target"
9:15 am - 9:20 am	Discussion
9:20 am - 9:35 am	William Beckerson (University of Louisville, USA) "The First Cut Is the Deepest: Implementing CRISPR Cas9 as a Transformation System for Site Specific Gene Disruptions in the Fungal Pathogen Species Complex Microbotryum violaceum"
9:35 am - 9:40 am	Discussion
9:40 am - 9:55 am	Swati Bijlani (Tel Aviv University, Israel) "Autonomously Replicating Linear Plasmids for Analysis of Origin Function and Genetic Analysis in C. albicans"
9:55 am - 10:00 am	Discussion
10:00 am - 10:15 am	Cullen Roth (Duke University, USA) "Mapping Virulence QTLs in Cryptococcus"
10:15 am - 10:20 am	Discussion
10:20 am - 10:35 am	Abigail LaBella (Vanderbilt University, USA) "Using Codon Usage Bias to Predict Ecologically Adaptive Metabolic Pathways in the Budding Yeast Subphylum"
10:35 am - 10:40 am	Discussion
10:40 am - 10:55 am	Megan McDonald (The Australian National University, Australia) "A New Origin for ToxA?"
10:55 am - 11:00 am	Discussion
11:00 am - 12:30 pm	Poster Session Coffee will be served in the poster area from 11:00 am - 11:30 am
12:30 pm - 1:30 pm	Lunch
1:30 pm - 2:30 pm	Mentorship Component: Career Planning Discussion Leader: Brad Bartholomai (Geisel School of Medicine, Dartmouth College, USA)
1:30 pm - 2:30 pm	Panel Discussion Career Planning Judith Berman (Tel Aviv University, Israel) Armin Djamei (Gregor Mendel Institute of Molecular Plant Biology, Austria) Luis Larrondo (Pontificia Universidad Catolica de Chile, Chile) Nicholas Talbot (University of Exeter, United Kingdom) Kyria Boundy-Mills (University of California, Davis, USA) Dawn-Anne Thompson (Ginkgo Bioworks, USA)
2:30 pm - 3:00 pm	Evaluation Period Fill in GRS Evaluation Forms
3:00 pm	Seminar Concludes