A Workshop on Horizontal Gene Flow in Microbial Communities, to be held on June 13-15, 2004 in Warrenton, VA.

垂直基因遗传涉及基因从双亲向后代的转移，而水平基因转移(HGT)描述了不同物种生物之间的基因交换。这是授予Barth Smets博士(康涅狄格大学)和Tamar Barkay博士(罗格斯大学)的赠款，以召开关于HGT介导的复杂微生物群落中的基因流动的科学研讨会，会议将于2004年6月13-15日左右在弗吉尼亚州沃伦顿举行。研讨会的目的是开始整合生命科学和工程学中不同领域的概念和实验方法，以了解HGT在塑造微生物群落的代谢多样性和潜力方面的潜在作用。活跃在进化生物学、分子生物学和微生物生态学/环境微生物学领域的30名高级职业科学家和10名博士后研究员，对HGT具有明确的专业知识和兴趣，将参加与这个非常及时的问题相关的陈述和讨论。最近对微生物基因组序列的研究和对不同环境微生物群落的分子分析得出的数据表明，HGT发生的频率甚至比五年前想象的要高得多。HGT对微生物进化有重要影响，影响现存微生物群落的遗传和代谢多样性，并影响生态系统功能、抗生素耐药性的传播、新的动植物病原体的出现以及有毒和顽固性环境污染物的持续存在。因此，HGT可能具有广泛的社会影响。拟议的研讨会通过促进来自看似不相关的科学学科的科学家之间的交流，可能会促进新的智力和概念框架，将HGT整合到对微生物群落及其活动的更好理解中。通过将大量早期职业科学家以及科学界代表性不足的群体成员包括在内，这次聚会还将对工作场所的教育、培训和多样性产生更广泛的影响。这次活动将产生一份总结演讲和讨论的报告，并包括对未来研究方向的建议。

Vertical gene inheritance involves the transfer of genes from parents to offspring, whereas horizontal gene transfer (HGT) describes the exchange of genes between different species of organisms. This is a grant award to Drs. Barth Smets (University of Connecticut) and Tamar Barkay (Rutgers) to convene a scientific workshop on HGT-mediated gene flow in complex microbial communities to be held at Warrenton, VA on or about June 13-15, 2004. The purpose of the workshop is to initiate the integration of concepts and experimental approaches from diverse fields within the life sciences and engineering to understand the potential role of HGT in shaping the metabolic diversity and potential of microbial communities. 30 advanced-career scientists and 10 postdoctoral fellows active in the fields of evolutionary biology, molecular biology, and microbial ecology/environmental microbiology, with explicit expertise and interest in HGT will participate in presentations and discussions relevant to this very timely issue. Data emerging from recent studies on microbial genome sequences and from molecular analysis of microbial communities from diverse environments suggest that HGT occurs far more frequently than imagined even five years ago. HGT has a significant effect on microbial evolution, influences the genetic and metabolic diversity of extant microbial communities, and affects such processes as ecosystem function, the spread of antibiotic resistance, the emergence of new plant and animal pathogens, and the persistence of toxic and recalcitrant environmental contaminants. As a result, HGT may have wide-reaching societal implications. The proposed workshop, by fostering communication between scientists from seemingly unrelated scientific disciplines, is likely to spur new intellectual and conceptual frameworks for the integration of HGT into a greater understanding of microbial communities and their activities. By including a significant number of early career scientists, as well as members of underrepresented groups in science, the gathering will also have a broader impact on education, training and diversity in the workplace. A report summarizing presentations and discussions, and including recommendations for future research directions will result from this event.