2008 Bacterial Cell Surfaces Gordon Research Conference

描述（由申请人提供）： 这项建议寻求支持第18届细菌细胞表面戈登会议，将于2008年6月22日至27日，在科尔比索耶学院在新伦敦，新罕布什尔州。会议的总体主题是细菌包膜和表面的结构和功能，包括细菌膜，细胞壁和表面附属物。这次会议的独特之处在于提出了一个多样化的计划，主题和方法结合生物化学，分子遗传学，结构生物学和成像。分子微生物学的基本方面将在9个会议上介绍分泌，蛋白质运输，包膜生物发生，细胞壁，表面聚合物，细胞包膜应激反应，分裂和形状，通道和转运蛋白，细胞区室化。会议的目标有两个方面：1）通过汇集处于各自领域最前沿的研究人员，突出这些领域的前沿研究; 2）为年轻科学家和研究生提供机会，以海报形式展示他们的工作，并与该领域的领导者交流思想。戈登会议的传统形式，有计划的讨论会和下午和晚上的非正式聚会的机会，传达了一种合议的气氛，与会者之间的互动很容易实现。虽然提出的科学是基本的性质，这个多方面的会议的主题是在发病机理，抗生素作用和耐药性，宿主-微生物相互作用等领域的生物医学界的实际利益，因为许多这些现象涉及在膜，细胞壁或细胞表面的水平过程。因此，这项建议与国家卫生研究院和过敏和传染病研究所的使命有关，即支持对新出现的传染病、耐药性、新抗生素开发和生物恐怖主义的研究。细菌表面和包膜的过程在细菌与其人类宿主之间的相互作用中发挥着重要作用，例如分泌毒素，适应宿主环境和对抗生素的抗性。在当前生物恐怖主义威胁和耐药生物体增加的公共卫生气候下，了解这些过程的分子基础至关重要。这些研究工作的成功是通过细菌细胞表面戈登会议促进的信息和想法的交流来加强的。

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): This proposal seeks support for the 18th Bacterial Cell Surfaces Gordon Conference, to be held from June 22 - 27, 2008, at Colby-Sawyer College in New London, New Hampshire. The overall theme of the meeting is the structure and function of bacterial envelopes and surfaces, including bacterial membranes, cell walls, and surface appendages. The uniqueness of this conference is to present a diverse program in topics and approaches combining biochemistry, molecular genetics, structural biology, and imaging. Fundamental aspects of molecular microbiology will be presented in 9 sessions on secretion, protein traffic, envelope biogenesis, cell walls, surface polymers, cell envelope stress response, division and shape, channels and transporters, and cellular compartmentalization. The objectives of the Conference are two-fold: 1) to highlight cutting-edge research in these areas by bringing together a collection of investigators who are at the forefront of their field, and 2) by providing opportunities for junior scientists and graduate students to present their work in poster format and exchange ideas with leaders in the field. The traditional format of the Gordon Conference, with programmed discussion sessions and opportunities for informal gatherings in the afternoons and evenings, conveys a collegial atmosphere where interactions between attendees are easily attained. Although the science presented is basic in nature, the topics of this multi-faceted conference are of practical interest to the biomedical community in the areas of pathogenesis, antibiotic action and resistance, and host-microbe interactions, as many of these phenomena involve processes at the level of membranes, cell walls or cell surface. Therefore, this proposal is relevant to the mission of the NIH and the Institute of Allergy and Infectious Disease to support research in emerging infectious diseases, drug-resistance, development of new antibiotics and bioterrorism. Processes at the bacterial surface and envelope play fundamental roles in the interplay between bacteria and their human hosts, for example for the secretion of toxins, adaptation to host environments and resistance to antibiotics. In the current public health climate of bioterrorism threats and increased drug-resistant organisms, understanding the molecular basis of these processes is of vital importance. Success in these research endeavors is enhanced by the exchange of information and ideas promoted by the Bacterial Cell Surfaces Gordon Conference.