Conference: Bridging the divide between the C. elegans and parasitic nematode research communities: June 21-25th, 2017; Los Angeles, CA

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Parasitic roundworms, also known as parasitic nematodes, infect over one billion people worldwide and are major agricultural pests, causing the loss of billions of dollars in crops and reduced production from livestock. Despite this massive impact on public health and food security, a limited number of drugs and chemicals are available to combat these parasites, and resistance to particular drugs is emerging. Novel approaches are therefore needed to control parasitic roundworms. Caenorhabditis elegans is a non-parasitic nematode that is studied by a large, robust research community which possesses a powerful collection of tools to study its biology. However there is historically limited interaction between the C. elegans community and the parasitology community. This workshop will bring together C. elegans biologists and parasitologists during the International C. elegans Meeting (to be held in Los Angeles, CA June 21-25th, 2017) in order to bridge these communities and to drive new approaches and collaborations to control parasitic roundworms. Funds will be used to support travel expenses for experts on parasitic roundworms, including female and underrepresented minority speakers, and to allow underrepresented minority students to attend and participate in this workshop as well as the rest of the C. elegans meeting. The primary objective of this conference is to educate and promote interactions and collaborations between the parasitic roundworm community and C. elegans researchers. In particular, the goal is to increase awareness among C. elegans scientists of the issues and problems that parasitic roundworm researchers face, and pave the way for applying to parasitic roundworm studies the powerful approaches and technologies that have advanced C. elegans research. The upcoming International C. elegans Meeting provides the best opportunity to reach the majority of C. elegans researchers. A session will be organized at that meeting in which six experts on plant, animal and human parasitic nematodes speak on the life history and unique biology of parasitic species and on the outstanding issues in their field. In addition to educating the C. elegans community, time will be provided for researchers in the two communities to interact. The goal is to stimulate C. elegans researchers to think about problems facing the study and control of parasitic nematodes and to apply their expertise toward solving these problems. To this end, a second, more informal event will be hosted after the session to provide opportunities for one-on-one conversations with the invited speakers. This workshop is unique, because it is embedded within the C. elegans biannual meeting, ensuring exposure to a large number of C. elegans investigators.