Conference Description
The lifecycle of a typical virus is a remarkable manifestation of evolutionary design. In many virus families, formation of an infectious virus requires that hundreds or thousands of proteins co-assemble with other components, without external guidance or control, into a particular three-dimensional structure. Viral particles must exit a host cell during or after assembly, target and infect new cells, and hijack cellular machinery of infected cells to manufacture the components for new viral particles. Some viruses completely redesign the interior of their host cell, creating new compartments and complex processes to transport components.
As such, virology requires understanding processes over a wide spectrum of complexity levels. At the global level, viral epidemiology depends on modes of transmission and social networks; at the cellular level viruses repurpose protein interaction networks and remodel cellular compartments; on the local level the assembly and disassembly of a virus is governed by (and reveals) physical principles. Viruses also bridge multiple scientific disciplines. In biomedicine, understanding viral lifecycles provides essential information for developing antiviral agents that block infection. In more fundamental sciences, viruses are ideal model systems for studying mechanisms underlying self-assembly, genome packaging and release, allostery, membrane dynamics, and the efficient passage of nanoscale particles through membranes. In addition to advancing cell biology, the knowledge acquired from these studies and the viral particles themselves are enabling researchers to engineer virus-based platforms for biomedical and nanomaterials applications, such as gene delivery or optoelectronics.
This natural diversity requires collaborative efforts of researchers with a wide range of expertise. Therefore, this conference brings together scientists and engineers from a spectrum of disciplines bridging basic and applied science, including material science, biology, physics, biochemistry, mathematics, biomedical engineering, computer science, and chemistry. To foster cross-disciplinary communication and identify complementary areas of expertise, sessions include speakers from different disciplines focusing on similar aspects of virology.
In addition to the GRC, a Gordon Research Seminar (GRS) is organized by graduate students for graduate students and post-docs. The GRS is held in conjunction with the GRC and incorporates the goals and diverse scientific background of the parental GRC.
The topics, speakers, and discussion leaders for the conference sessions are displayed below. The conference chair is currently developing their detailed program, which will include the complete meeting schedule, as well as the talk titles for all speakers. The detailed program will be available by January 9, 2021. Please check back for updates.
From Virus Dynamics and Mechanics to Breaking Symmetry
Discussion Leaders
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Roya Zandi (University of California, Riverside, USA)
Speakers
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Audray Harris (National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, NIH, USA)
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Juan Perilla (University of Delaware, USA)
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Wouter Roos (University of Groningen, The Netherlands)
Virus Inspired Designs: From Materials to Other Organisms
Discussion Leaders
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Danielle Tullman-Ercek (Northwestern University, USA)
Speakers
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Seth Fraden (Brandeis University, USA)
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Cheryl Kerfeld (Michigan State University / Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, USA)
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Neil King (University of Washington, USA)
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Pamela Silver (Harvard University, USA)
Biomedical Applications
Discussion Leaders
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Reidun Twarock (University of York, United Kingdom)
Speakers
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Antonette Bennett (University of Florida, USA)
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Laura Palomares (Instituto de Biotecnologia, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Mexico)
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Priscilla Yang (Harvard Medical School, USA)
Principles that Govern Virus Assembly and Disassembly
Discussion Leaders
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Jodi Hadden (University of Delaware, USA)
Speakers
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Vikram Jadhao (Indiana University Bloomington, USA)
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Seema Lakdawala (University of Pittsburgh, USA)
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Shee-Mei Lok (Duke-NUS Medical School, Singapore)
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Carolyn Teschke (University of Connecticut, USA)
How Viruses Capture and Release Cargo
Discussion Leaders
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Paul van der Schoot (Eindhoven University, The Netherlands)
Speakers
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Robijn Bruinsma (University of California, Los Angeles, USA)
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Mauricio Comas-Garcia (Autonomous University of San Luis Potosi, Mexico)
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Tuli Mukhopadhyay (Indiana University Bloomington, USA)
Viruses and Membraneous Compartments
Discussion Leaders
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Nicole Tischler (Fundación Ciencia & Vida, Chile)
Speakers
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Stefanie Barbirz (University of Potsdam, Germany)
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Montserrat Barcena (Leiden University Medical Center, The Netherlands)
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Urs Greber (University of Zurich, Switzerland)
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Margaret Johnson (Johns Hopkins University, USA)
Virus-Host Protein Interaction Networks
Discussion Leaders
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Kelly Lee (University of Washington, USA)
Speakers
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Alfredo Castello (University of Oxford, United Kingdom)
From Viruses and Host Immune Interactions to Better Vaccines
Discussion Leaders
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Tobias Beck (University of Hamburg, Germany)
Speakers
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Arup Chakraborty (Massachusetts Institute of Technology, USA)
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Philippe Lemey (Rega Institute, KU Leuven, Belgium)
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Hanneke Schuitemaker (Janssen Vaccines and Prevention B.V., The Netherlands)
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Aleksandra Walczak (Ecole Normale Superieure, France)
Keynote Session: Connecting Fundamental and Applied Physical Virology
Discussion Leaders
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Rudolf Podgornik (University of Ljubljana, Slovenia)
Speakers
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Stephen Harrison (Harvard Medical School, USA)
The GRC Power Hour™
Organizers:
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Reidun Twarock (University of York, United Kingdom)
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Stefanie Barbirz (University of Potsdam, Germany)
