CONFERENCE: 2010 Rustbelt RNA Meeting to be held October 22-23, 2010 in Cleveland OH

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The 2010 Rustbelt RNA Meeting (RRM) will be held October 22-23, 2010 at the Crown Plaza City Center in Cleveland, OH. The intellectual objective of the RRM is to provide an inexpensive, high caliber, interdisciplinary meeting for RNA researchers in the Midwest. The field of RNA structure, function, and processing is growing at a rapid pace and RNA has been shown to be intimately involved in many important biological phenomena such as carcinogenesis and development beyond its obvious prominent role in transcription and translation. At the same time the methods used to study RNA are becoming more and more diverse ranging from synthetic and physical chemistry over biochemistry, genetics, and biophysical approaches all the way to computational methods. Consequently, research groups need a forum where they can hear and discuss new results and techniques in all areas of RNA research that can result in furthering an individual lab?s aims. The size and organization of the meeting has proven to be an excellent environment for active discussions between research groups, including those between principal investigators, principal investigators and trainees, as well as between trainees themselves. Such interactions are more difficult at larger national meetings. Due to the success and popularity of the RRM, this meeting includes research groups from Indiana, Michigan, Pennsylvania, Indiana, Illinois, Kentucky and other adjoining states.The broader impact of the RRM is in trainee and junior faculty development. The RRM strongly emphasizes trainee participation. The RRM features graduate and undergraduate student participation, from institutions ranging from large research-intensive universities to small, primarily undergraduate colleges. In addition to offering opportunities for interactions with Principal Investigators and other trainees, the RRM provides invaluable experience presenting research in an educational and supportive atmosphere. Importantly, trainees account for the vast majority (~ 90%) of both poster and oral presentations. Such presentations instill confidence in the trainees and inspire trainees in the audience to present their results orally in the future. To encourage the speakers further, prizes are awarded for outstanding trainee presentations. The smaller size of the RRM also benefits trainee poster presenters because of the greater attention paid to them by principal investigators. Finally, the RRM is an excellent forum for junior investigators to showcase their emerging research programs.