A Gordon Conference on Quantitative Genetics and Biotechnology will be held in Southern California on January 9 - 13. The Conference is designed to provide a forum for the interchange of recent and, in many cases, unpublished research findings that combine the fields of quantitative genetics and molecular biology as applied to natural and laboratory populations, humans, agronomic plants and livestock. Attention will be given to a diverse range of topics including the molecular basis of variation in quantitative traits, genotypic analysis of quantitative genetic variation in lipid metabolism, mutator systems affecting quantitative traits and molecular markers for identification of quantitative trait loci. The invited speakers, assembled by the PI and vice-chairman, Dr. John Dudley of the University of Illinois, include 31 established scientists. There will be nine scientific sessions. Following the presentations at each session, a discussion of the implications of the new findings will be led by a discussion leader prominent in the specific area. Emphasis will be placed on application of new molecular methods to quantitative genetic analysis. The new methodologies will be useful for studying the genetic basis for multifactorial diseases such as diabetes, high blood pressure, cardiovascular disease and obesity.
