Partial support is requested for the Gordon Research Conference on Glycolipid & Sphingolipid Biology, to be held at the Hotel Galvez in Galveston Texas from February 11-16th, 2018. The purpose of the conference is to encourage the transfer of ideas and information within the community of scientists who work at the cutting edge of glycolipid and sphingolipid research, as well as to provide an environment where investigators from other scientific disciplines can learn about, and contribute to, this rapidly evolving field. Sphingolipids participate in many biological processes, including cell growth, differentiation and apoptosis. The research field of Glycolipid and Sphingolipid Biology has undergone a significant renaissance over the last several years, due to the elucidation of synergistic biophysical, biochemical and pharmacological properties of these lipid metabolites. The fundamental knowledge elucidated through research is now being transferred to the clinic as novel therapeutic options utilizing sphingolipid analogs and inhibitors of glyco- and sphingolipid metabolism are in preclinical or clinical trials. Multiple biological functions have been ascribed to sphingolipids and glycolipids. Some of the important accomplishments over the past couple of decades have been to decipher the intracellular signaling functions of the bioactive sphingolipids ceramide and sphingosine-1-phosphate, and to elucidate the functions of complex glycolipids, mainly in events that occur at the cell surface. In terms of cellular signaling, ceramide and sphingosine-1-phosphate are thought to exert opposite effects. Ceramide has been implicated in the actions of several chemotherapeutic agents. With the advent of new mass spectrometry strategies, multiple ceramide species of distinct chain length and sphingoid backbones have been identified and shown to exert unique biological actions. One of the exciting aspects to the 2018 conference, and of direct relevance to NIAID, our primary sponsoring agency, is the focus of the conference towards the role of glycolipids and sphingolipids in immunity, inflammation and infection. Glycolipid and sphingolipid metabolism is a crucial element to take into consideration when studying infection, immunity and inflammation. Of particular interest to our two other secondary sponsoring agencies, NCI and NIAID, is a session directed towards the roles of glyco- and sphingo- lipid metabolites at the nexus between inflammation, obesity and cancer. In addition, one of our sessions will hear ?real-time? updates from the three P01 NIH NCI P01 grants that investigate dysfunctional sphingolipid metabolism in solid and non-solid cancers. All of these targeted sessions have direct applicability to training the next generation of translational ?lipidologists? under the auspices of NIAID, NCI and NIDDK. The conference will include novel strategies to recruit participation and encourage discussion of post-doctoral students and junior faculty, with special emphasis on minority students and women.
The Gordon Research Conference on Glycolipid and Sphingolipid Biology assembles a group of scientists and physicians who are performing research on the cutting edge of their respective fields to define the roles for these complex and bioactive lipids not only in membrane structure, function, cell regulation, but also their roles in many inflammatory, infectious and autoimmune diseases.
