Visual System Development Gordon Research Conference

描述（由申请人提供）：戈登视觉系统发展研究会议（GRC）是两年一次的会议，汇集了研究视觉系统发展、疾病和进化的研究人员。多年来，这个会议提供了一个令人兴奋和独特的论坛，在这个论坛上，人们可以探索各种物种的视觉系统发展和功能的相似之处和差异。这个GRC的目标是培养对不同生物中视觉系统的构建和功能的共同原则的欣赏，并分享最新的令人兴奋的新想法和概念。通过包括突出具有转化影响的新兴主题的会议，例如“干细胞和祖细胞”和“视网膜发育和疾病”，会议还将扩大其范围，并刺激发育生物学家和专注于视觉科学转化方面的研究人员之间的交流。GRC会议的形式为思想交流和发展新的合作提供了一个高度互动和刺激的场所。GRC会议是高水平科学家展示未发表的工作并参与科学前沿思想和发现的激烈讨论的论坛。视觉系统开发GRC已经在该领域建立了领先的会议声誉。科学家们对视觉系统的发展有着共同的兴趣，但他们研究从苍蝇到哺乳动物的各种模型系统，在这样一个集中的环境中，很少有其他的机会进行科学的互动。目前的提案要求资金帮助支付与会者的会议费用。视觉系统开发GRC的项目将以该领域的前沿科学家为特色，仔细关注性别和种族多样性，并将科学家纳入其职业生涯的各个阶段。

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): The Gordon Research Conference (GRC) on Visual System Development is a biennial meeting that brings together investigators studying the development, disease, and evolution of the visual system. Over the years, this meeting has provided an exciting and unique forum in which to explore the similarities-and differences- underlying visual system development and function across a range of species. The goal of this GRC is to foster an appreciation of common principles that mediate the construction and function of the visual system in diverse organisms and to share the latest exciting new ideas and concepts. By including sessions that highlight emerging topics with translational impact, such as "Stem Cells and Progenitors" and "Retinal Development and Disease", the meeting will also expand its scope and stimulate cross talk between developmental biologists and investigators focused on translational aspects of vision science. The format of the GRC meetings provides a highly interactive and stimulating venue for cross-fertilization of ideas and for developing new collaborations. The GRC meetings are forums for high-caliber scientists to present unpublished work and engage in intense discussion of ideas and findings at the forefront of science. The Visual System Development GRC has established a reputation as the leading conference in its field. The scientists who share a common interest in the development of the visual system, but who work on diverse model systems from flies to mammals, have few other opportunities to interact scientifically in such a focused setting. The current proposal requests funds to help defray conference fees for attendees. The program of the Visual System Development GRC will feature scientists at the cutting edge of the field, with careful attention to gender and ethnic diversity and to the inclusion of scientists at various stages of their careers. PUBLIC HEALTH RELEVANCE: Diseases that affect the eye and vision are a serious public health problem: nearly 2 million Americans, and 160 million people world-wide, are considered blind and this number is increasing. This meeting seeks to bring basic researchers from a range of disciplines together with clinicians to promote understanding of development and disease in the visual system and to develop new approaches to treating loss of vision.