The planned conference on the """"""""Neurobiology of Drosophila"""""""" will convene a group of junior and senior scientists to discuss the latest advances in the neurobiology research that are being made in the highly successful model system the fruit fly Drosophila melanogaster. This proposal seeks support for the 2009 conference, which is the 13th biennial international meeting in this series. This meeting focuses on advances made using the combined power of genetics, molecular biology, biochemistry, cell biology, electrophysiology, imaging, and behavioral analysis to address fundamental issues in neurobiology. The topics covered will range from (i) sensory systems coding and topographic mapping of inputs for odor, taste, vision and mechanosensation (ii) behavioral analyses of reproduction, locomotion, feeding, and social interactions;(iii) higher brain functions such as memory, learning, sleep, choice and attention;(iv) developmental and functional analysis of brain circuits;(v) synapse development and plasticity;(vi) embryonic and metamorphic development of the brain;and a newly-devised session on (vii) the impact of comparative genome analyses on neural evolution. By vote of the previous participants, the meeting will remain of moderate size (430 participants) and will have no parallel sessions so as to facilitate discussion, exchange of ideas and techniques, and to promote new collaborations in this rapidly-evolving field. All applicants will be encouraged to submit an abstract and the majority of participants will present a talk or poster. Speakers will be chosen by session leaders and meeting organizers from the most timely and interesting abstracts submitted a few months in advance of the conference: this will ensure that late-breaking science is covered in all of the talks. In the event that the conference is oversubscribed, participants will be chosen to include at least one representative from each participating laboratory. This conference has an excellent track record for highlighting the work of younger investigators and women. To encourage participation by junior investigators, a special lecture is presented by a graduate student who has written the best Ph.D. thesis since the previous meeting (The Elkins lecture, described below).
This Neurobiology of Drosophila conference focuses on advances made using the combined power of genetics, molecular biology, biochemistry, cell biology, electrophysiology, imaging, and behavioral analysis to address fundamental issues in neurobiology using the Model Organism Drosophila Melanogaster. The topics covered will range from molecular biology to complex behavior and include: Sensory Systems, Behavior, Higher Brain Functions, Neural Circuits, Synapse Development and Plasticity, Development and Metamorphosis of the Brain and Genome Studies and Neural Evolution. By vote of the previous participants, the meeting will remain of moderate size (430 participants) and will have no parallel sessions so as to facilitate discussion, exchange of ideas and techniques, and to promote new collaborations in this rapidly evolving field. All applicants will be encouraged to submit an abstract and the majority of participants will present a talk or poster. Speakers will be chosen by session leaders and the meeting organizers from the most timely and interesting abstracts submitted a few months in advance of the conference, ensuring that late-breaking science is covered in all of the talks.
