2010 Biointerface Science Gordon Research Conference

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DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): This application requests partial support for the 2010 Gordon Research Conference on Biointerface Science to be held in Les Diablerets, Switzerland, September 5-10, 2010. The broad and long-term goal of the conference is to enhance our understanding of interactions between biomolecules and surfaces, and the behavior of complex macromolecular systems at materials interfaces, driven by the important role these interactions play in the fields of biology, biotechnology, diagnostics, and medicine. Approximately 160 scientists, engineers and medical scientists will participate, including 22 invited speakers and 9 discussion leaders, whose research interests are related to biointerface science. The specific aims of this meeting are 1) to expose biological scientists and medical researchers to the latest experimental and theoretical findings in the physical sciences and engineering; and 2) to accelerate the rate at which new developments in molecular/cellular biology and biomolecular design, are brought into the domain of physical scientists and engineers. Together, this intellectual interplay will lead new ways in which molecules are designed, studied, and exploited for the vast number of settings in which "biomolecules meet surfaces", including better understanding of interfacial phenomena in biological systems, and for inspiring new treatments and diagnostic strategies for human diseases. The 2010 conference will emphasize molecular-level descriptions of biointerfacial phenomena in nine oral sessions on the following aspects of biointerfaces: Theory, Computation and Modeling of Biointerfaces; Supported Membranes and Membrane Proteins; Interactions of Biomolecules with Crystal/Mineral Surfaces; Single Molecule Biophysics; Mechanochemistry and Biological Adhesion; Microbiology/Biofilms; Biolubrication; Interfaces of Proteins and Cells with Materials; Electrified Biointerfaces. In addition to oral sessions, two poster sessions as well as significant informal interactions will contribute to the goals of the conference. The significance of the application is that this conference has quickly become one of the main international conferences totally devoted to biointerface science, rather than the typical approach of being a small part of a larger conference. The health-relatedness of the application is that this fundamental research will lead to a myriad of new or improved healthcare technologies spanning genomics, proteomics, clinical diagnostics, biosensors, and biomaterials for regenerative medicine and dentistry. PUBLIC HEALTH RELEVANCE: The health-relatedness of the application is linked to enhanced understanding of experimental and theoretical aspects of biointerface science that will lead to a myriad of new or improved healthcare technologies spanning genomics, proteomics, clinical diagnostics, biosensors, and biomaterials for regenerative medicine and dentistry.