GRC Animal-Microbe Symbioses 2019, Vermont, June 16 - 21, 2019

在过去的十年里，很明显，包括人类在内的所有动物的健康都依赖于与复杂的微生物群落的相互作用，这些微生物生活在动物宿主的肠道、表面和身体的其他位置。戈登动物-微生物共生研究会议为所有职业阶段的研究人员提供了一个独特的机会，让他们见面并讨论这一新兴科学学科的最新发展。这次会议的一个关键议题是微生物保护动物免受病原体侵袭的机制(作为第二免疫系统发挥作用)，提供营养，以及总体上维持动物宿主的健康和活力。会议的第二个重要主题是一种动物的微生物如何影响宿主与其他动物和植物的互动，有可能通过自然生态系统(如海洋、森林)以及受管理的农业景观产生连锁影响。这些科学讨论将得到与会者广博的专业知识的推动，包括国际知名的特邀演讲者和职业生涯早期的科学家，他们将在高度互动的会议上介绍他们的研究。除了提供在科学部分交流信息和观点的机会外，本次会议还设有关于专业发展的会议。特别是，为期两天的戈登研究研讨会为职业生涯早期的研究人员举行，其中包括与知名科学记者合作举办的关于科学传播的小组活动。因此，这次会议将塑造我们研究、理解和管理共生协会的未来。认识到所有高等生物都与微生物共生，开辟了生物学的新视角。动物和人类现在都被认为是复杂的生态系统，每个生态系统都由宿主及其相关的微生物群组成，它们共同充当选择的功能单位。就像俄罗斯娃娃一样，共生体的新陈代谢过程被转化为生物体功能，这可能对生态系统规模产生深远影响。会议讨论了在独特的广泛的宿主(从海绵到人类)和不同的共生体(从细胞器、病毒、细菌到真菌)方面的最新技术和概念进展。本次会议通过的广泛的制度和方法将有助于对形成不同联系的共同机制的新见解，并加强对共生平衡丧失(生态失调)的原因和后果的理解。链接的戈登研究研讨会将为研究生和博士后研究人员提供一个场所，在非正式的环境中介绍他们的发现并讨论想法，同时还将举行科学传播会议。戈登研究会议和动物-微生物共生研究研讨会都将促进不同学科背景、所有职业阶段和种族的科学家最充分地参与，特别关注确保性别平衡和对代表不足的少数群体的支持。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的智力优势和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

Over the last decade, it has become apparent that the health of all animals, including humans, are dependent on interactions with complex communities of microorganisms that live in the gut, on the surface, and at other locations in the body of the animal host. The Gordon Research Conference on Animal-Microbe Symbioses provides a unique opportunity for researchers at all career stages to meet and discuss the latest developments in this burgeoning scientific discipline. A key topic at this conference is the mechanisms by which microorganisms protect animals against pathogens (functioning as a "second immune system"), provide nutrients, and generally sustain the health and vigor of their animal host. A second important theme for the conference is how the microbial inhabitants of one animal influence the host's interactions with other animals and plants, with the potential for cascading effects through natural ecosystems (e.g., oceans, forests), as well as managed agricultural landscapes. These scientific discussions will be facilitated by the great breadth of expertise among the conference participants, including internationally-acclaimed invited speakers and also early-career scientists, who will present their research at highly-interactive sessions. In addition to providing the opportunity for the exchange of information and views in the science sections, this conference has sessions on professional development. In particular, the two-day Gordon Research Seminar for early-career researchers includes a panel event on Science Communication, in collaboration with distinguished science journalists. As such, the conference will shape the future of how we study, understand, and manage symbiotic associations. The recognition that all higher organisms live in symbiotic association with microorganisms has opened up a new perspective in biology. Animals and humans alike are now considered as complex ecosystems each consisting of the host and its associated microbiome, which together serve as functional units of selection. Like a Russian doll, the metabolic processes of the symbionts are translated into organism functions which can have profound effects on the ecosystem scale. The conference addresses recent technological and conceptual advances in a uniquely broad range of hosts (from sponges to humans) and with diverse symbionts (from organelles, viruses, bacteria to fungi). The broad sweep of systems and approaches adopted in this conference will facilitate new insights into common mechanisms shaping diverse associations, and enhance understanding of the causes and consequences of the loss of symbiotic equilibrium (dysbiosis). The linked Gordon Research Seminar will offer a venue for graduate students and postdoctoral researchers to present their findings and discuss ideas in an informal setting, in conjunction with sessions on Science Communication. Both the Gordon Research Conference and Research Seminar on Animal-Microbe Symbioses will promote the fullest participation of scientists of diverse disciplinary backgrounds, all career stages and ethnicities, with particular attention to ensuring gender balance and support for under-represented minorities.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.