We request partial support for the ?Fibronectin, Integrins and Related Molecules? Gordon Research Conference (GRC) and Gordon Research Seminar (GRS), May 4-10, 2019 at the Renaissance Tuscany Il Ciocco, Italy. These conferences will focus on new unpublished findings in all of the most actively researched topic areas. In addition to the established invited speakers, each of the 9 sessions proposed will feature one or two talks from graduate students, postdoctoral fellows or early career investigators. These speakers will be selected from submitted abstracts in order to create opportunities for discussion of late-breaking discoveries and incorporate exciting research as oral presentations. Finally, two best speakers from the GRS (that is held in conjunction with the main conference) will be selected for a short talk. Historically, the conference has provided a unique forum for bringing together an international group of early career and senior scientists with a common interest in the mechanisms whereby cells interact with the extracellular matrix and its relevance to development and disease. During this conference, collaborations are established, new scientists are recruited to the field, and major discoveries on cell-extracellular matrix interactions are often reported for the first time at this conference. New topics relative to the conference in 2019 include structural biology utilizing cryo-electron microscopy, state-of- the-art light microscopy utilizing biosensors and single molecule techniques, spatial control of adhesion signaling, role of cell-extracellular matrix interactions in metabolism and adhesion signaling therapies. Updates on important topics such as tension sensing and signaling, cytoskeletal regulation, mechanisms of migration, and models of adhesion signaling in development are also included. Overall, this international conference will showcase the major advances in the field of cell-extracellular matrix interactions research and will be, as it has always been, the seminal conference in the field.
Partial support is sought for an international GRC on Fibronectin, Integrins and Related Molecules. The exchange of new ideas from the experts and trainees attending this conference will promote fresh understanding on how tissue integrity is formed and maintained throughout life, how cell-matrix interactions continually determine cell and tissue function, and the way that understanding this basic biology can lead to new strategies for repairing medically-important defects that arise when the system becomes perturbed.
