Conference: 2007 Epigenetics Gordon Research Conference to be held on August 5-10, 2007 in Plymouth, New Hampshire

戈登表观遗传学研究会议是展示当今最令人兴奋的生物科学领域之一的新发展的主要场所。这次会议始于1995年，现在已经是第七次会议，以产生新的研究途径以及促进更成熟的表观遗传学领域的进展而赢得了国际声誉。这次会议取得了这一程度的成功，因为它始终提供一个独特的环境，将不同的科学家群体聚集在一起，并跨越生物和方法论的界限，扩大表观遗传学研究的前沿。2007年的会议将由剑桥大学的哺乳动物生物学家Anne C Ferguson-Smith和加州大学洛杉矶分校的植物遗传学家Steve Jacobsen共同主持，他们都是表观遗传学领域的领导者，也是本次会议的长期参与者。表观遗传学的研究有助于理解基因组的功能。近年来，表观遗传学分析揭示了一些最不寻常的基因调控形式，并迅速成为遗传学和发育生物学中最令人兴奋的研究领域之一。尽管基因组计划正在提供一个又一个有机体的完整核苷酸序列，但研究人员正在转向表观遗传学领域，以了解该序列是如何在细胞或有机体的背景下解释的。表观遗传修饰，如DNA甲基化和核心组蛋白的翻译后修饰，会影响染色体的组织和包装。这些染色体标记既是动态的，也是可遗传的，这导致表观遗传学成为生物学中最有趣的方面之一，对发育、疾病和自然变异性具有广泛的影响。很明显，表观遗传过程包含了令人印象深刻的多样性的机制，包括RNA介导的基因调控、DNA甲基化、识别基因控制的新途径、由RNA和蛋白质介导的表达状态的遗传、细胞和核组织以及对环境提示的反应。这些生物过程的丰富性和多功能性已经通过对各种不同生物体的研究而得到阐明，这次会议以其包容性和尊重从各种模型系统中交流思想和学习的价值而自豪。拟议活动的广泛影响：这次会议一直强烈强调年轻研究人员的突出参与，因为正是这个群体经常定义研究工作的前沿。组织者努力吸引学生和博士后研究员进入该领域，并通过让学生、博士后研究员和新的主要研究人员参与口头和海报演示来促进他们的职业生涯。许多研究界的老牌成员认为，他们第一次参加这次会议是职业生涯的转折点，希望通过这次会议，类似的机会也能延伸到下一代年轻同事。正在作出协调一致的努力，支持女科学家，并将科学界代表性不足的种族/民族背景的参与者包括在内。表观遗传学戈登会议有支持女科学家的历史，这一领域有许多女性首席研究人员。在2007年会议上，到目前为止，确认发言的人中约有30%是女性。2005年，46%的与会者是妇女，预计2007年至少达到这一总体代表水平。这次会议是对基础研究和应用研究未来的一次投资。也许最重要的是，它将启动这一前沿领域的年轻科学家的职业生涯。

The Gordon Research Conference on Epigenetics is the premier venue for presenting new developments in one of the most exciting areas of the biological sciences today. Started in 1995 and now meeting for the seventh time, this conference has earned an international reputation for generating new research avenues as well as fostering progress in the more established areas of epigenetics. The conference has achieved this level of success by consistently providing a unique setting for bringing together a diverse group of scientists, and by cutting across boundaries of organism and methodology, to expand the frontiers of epigenetics research. In 2007 the conference will be co-chaired by mammalian biologist Anne C Ferguson-Smith of University of Cambridge, and plant geneticist Steve Jacobsen at the University of California Los Angeles, both leaders in the field of epigenetics and long time participants of this conference. The study of epigenetics leads to an understanding of genome function. In recent years, epigenetic analysis has revealed some of the most extraordinary forms of gene regulation and quickly become one of the most exciting research areas in genetics and developmental biology. Even as genome projects are providing the complete nucleotide sequence of organism after organism, researchers are turning to the field of epigenetics to understand how that sequence is interpreted in the context of the cell or the organism. Epigenetic modifications such as methylation of the DNA and posttranslational modification of core histones affect the organization and packaging of the chromosome. That these chromosomal marks are both dynamic and heritable leads to epigenetics being one of the most intriguing aspects of biology with a wide range of implications for development, disease and natural variability. It has become clear that epigenetic processes encompass an impressive diversity of mechanisms including RNA-mediated gene regulation, DNA methylation, identification of new pathways in gene control, inheritance of expression states as mediated by RNAs and proteins, cellular and nuclear organization, and response to environmental cues. The richness and versatility of these biological processes has been elucidated through the study of a wide range of diverse organisms and this conference prides itself on its inclusiveness and its respect for the exchange of ideas and value of learning from the full range of model systems.Broad Impacts of the proposed activity: This conference has always placed a strong emphasis on the prominent participation of young investigators, as it is this group that so often defines the leading edge of research efforts. The organizers strive to attract students and postdoctoral fellows to the field and promote the careers of students, postdoctoral fellows, and new principal investigators, by involving them in both the oral and poster presentations. Many established members of the research community consider their first attendance at this meeting to be a career turning point, and it is hoped that similar opportunities are extended to the next generation of young colleagues via this conference. Concerted efforts are being made to support women scientists and to include participants of racial/ethnic backgrounds that are underrepresented in science. The Epigenetics Gordon Conference has a history of supporting women scientists and there are many women principal investigators in this field. For the 2007 conference, ~30% of the confirmed speakers thus far are women. In 2005, 46% of the total attendees were women, and at least this level of overallrepresentation is expected in 2007. This conference serves as an investment in the future of basic and applied research. Perhaps most importantly, it will launch the careers of young scientists in this frontier area.