Conference: 2024 Multiscale Plant Vascular Biology Gordon Research Conference and Seminar

该奖项支持大约75名研究科学家，大多数是处于职业生涯早期阶段的科学家，参加戈登研究会议和研讨会（GRC/GRS）关于多尺度植物血管生物学，这两次会议于2024年6月8日至14日在美国缅因州波特兰举行。这些会议的目标是：（a）在一系列尺度上分享植物维管生物学最新和最具影响力的研究，包括从基因网络和蛋白质到全球气候变化模型的一切;（B）建立一个具有代表性、包容性和公平的科学界，以确保该领域的研究继续向前发展，造福整个社会。由于植物是地球土壤和大气之间的关键联系，因此对植物维管生物学的理解是21世纪世纪一些最紧迫的社会和环境挑战的基础。这些措施包括改善全球粮食安全，减少农业用水量，增加生物能源生产，增加自然生态系统中的碳储存，以及生物修复（即，污染土壤的净化。在完整的GRC之前为期两天的GRS仅限于非常早期的职业科学家（即，博士生和博士后研究人员），并包括一个职业指导小组。因此，这次会议的主要预期成果之一是制定一个更加多样化的（即，在植物生物学领域，我们需要一支具有人口代表性、包容性和公平性的劳动力队伍，他们已经做好了应对这些挑战的专业准备。在这些会议上公开分享当前的科学成果预计将导致新的方向和富有成效的合作。2024年GRC和GRS多尺度植物维管生物学的主题分别是植物维管系统和土壤-植物-大气连续体以及植物对压力的适应能力。2024年的GRC计划包括31位演讲者和讨论领导人，他们参加了关于植物血管发育的会议;气孔控制和调节;根微生物组和互惠作用对植物耐受非生物胁迫的能力的作用;用于改善植物表型的计算和成像技术;维管生物学在可持续种植系统中的作用;从根际到景观的水力学;韧皮部运输和植物内碳动态;以及气候变化中的植物维管功能。今年的特别重点包括碳化合物和水的转移，包括双向转移（例如，进入土壤与土壤到大气）;土壤-根系生物界面的重要性;以及农业和集约管理系统中工作的更多代表性。全球资源中心/全球资源中心的结构包括充足的讨论时间，所有讨论都是在“非正式”政策下进行的，以促进最新和最具前瞻性的意见交流。预计这些会议将开展多种合作，从而有意义地推动该领域的发展。总体而言，与会者将确定我们对植物维管生物学的理解中最紧迫的差距，从而确定研究的最高优先级，以及解决这些问题的最有效和最有前途的技术。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的知识价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

This award supports the attendance of approximately 75 research scientists, mostly those at early stages of their career, at the Gordon Research Conference and Seminar (GRC/GRS) on Multiscale Plant Vascular Biology, two linked meetings held in Portland, Maine, USA from June 8-14, 2024. The goals of these meeting are to (a) share the most current and impactful research in plant vascular biology at a range of scales, which includes everything from gene networks and proteins to global climate change models; and (b) build a representative, inclusive and equitable scientific community to ensure that research in this field continues to advance for the benefit of society as a whole. Because plants serve as a critical link between the earth's soils and our atmosphere, an understanding of plant vascular biology underpins some of the most urgent societal and environmental challenges of the 21st century. These include improved global food security, reduced agricultural water consumption, increased bioenergy production, enhanced carbon storage in natural ecosystems, and bioremediation (i.e., decontamination) of contaminated soils. The two-day GRS that precedes the full GRC is restricted to very early career scientists (i.e., doctoral students and postdoctoral researchers) and includes a career mentoring panel. Thus, one of the primary expected outcomes of this conference is to develop a more diverse (i.e., demographically-representative), inclusive and equitable workforce in plant biology who are prepared professionally to tackle these challenges. The open sharing of current scientific results at these meetings is expected to lead to new directions and productive collaborations.Themes for the 2024 GRC and GRS Multiscale Plant Vascular Biology are Plant Vasculature and the Soil-Plant-Atmosphere Continuum and Plant Resilience to Stress, respectively. The 2024 GRC program includes 31 speakers and discussion leaders organized in sessions on plant vascular development; stomatal control and regulation; the role of the root microbiome and mutualisms on the ability of plants to tolerate abiotic stress; computational and imaging techniques for improved plant phenotyping; the role of vascular biology in sustainable cropping systems; hydraulics from the rhizosphere to landscape; phloem transport and within-plant carbon dynamics; and plant vascular function in a changing climate. Special emphases this year include the transfer of carbon compounds as well as water, including bidirectional transfer (e.g., into the soil vs. soil-to-atmosphere); the importance of the soil-root biotic interface; and greater representation of work in agricultural and intensively-managed systems. GRC/GRS structure includes ample time for discussion, all of which occurs under an “off-the-record” policy in order to foster the most up-to-date and forward-looking exchange of ideas. It is expected that multiple collaborations will develop from these meetings that will meaningfully advance the field. Collectively, attendees will identify the most pressing gaps in our understanding of plant vascular biology and thus the highest priorities for research, as well as the most effective and promising techniques to address them.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.