DNA molecules in a cell usually conform to the popularly described "spiral staircase" double helix structure, which is called "B-form" DNA. However DNA can transiently assume a variety of other shapes that can have deleterious consequences for cells and organisms. Non-B form structures are provoked in largely unknown situations and due to their characteristic instability, are difficult to detect. In some cases, the destructive effects of an alternative DNA structure are suspected only after the fact, when a large-scale genomic change is observed. Barriers to the study of alternatively structured DNA in cells have been so impenetrable that to the present day we lack basic knowledge. Consequently the ways in which alternative DNA structures might influence the aging process or produce genetically inherited defects has attracted little experimental attention. This can be hard to appreciate because the analysis of alternative DNA structures in isolation (outside of a cell) is a well-developed field where creative applications in nano-engineering and medicine are being energetically pursued. The meeting unites researchers from diverse areas of science -such as physics, medicine and molecular biology- who share an interest in alternatively structured DNA. "The Biological Impact of Alternatively Structured DNA" conference thus provides a unique opportunity for synergism, bringing together the questions, methods, and applications of different disciplines to generate fundamental insights into the biology of non-B form DNA.
"Biological Impact of Alternatively Structured DNA" will take place over a five-day period starting on July 5th, 2010. The meeting was first held in 2008. Then as now, a major goal was to fulfill an educational role. The previous conference seemed to be effective in coalescing interest among scientists and was summarized in a high-profile journal. An increasing number of articles have appeared on the subject of non-B form DNA, and particularly its in vivo effects, which suggests that this topic is coming into its own, and the Conference is especially timely. Some long-standing technical problems are being tackled, and overlooked scientific questions are at long last beginning to be addressed. Significantly, evidence continues to accumulate of non-canonical DNA structures that are involved in human diseases. The 2010 meeting, by highlighting new insights and exciting research, will continue to demonstrate to the scientific community that there are interesting fundamental discoveries yet to be made in this area. Younger investigators have been encouraged to apply, and are impressed by the fact that an entire meeting is dedicated to the biological implications of non-B DNA structures. The conference will demonstrate to the interested early-career scientist that working on a neglected area of DNA metabolism is valid and that a commitment to this area of reasearch will be rewarding. Ultimately basic discoveries fostered by conferences such as this can translate into inventive strategies for diagnoses, amelioration and treatment of disease.
As part of its mission to promote the dissemination of new research results and collaborative activities, for almost thirty years FASEB (the Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology) partially supports and helps organize a series of small focused meetings during the summer. The topics are proposed by scientists and chosen by the organization to highlight areas undergoing rapid change. Taking advantage of this opportunity, my co-organizers and I arranged a conference on the biological impact of special "structure-prone" DNA sequences. We received funding from the National Science Foundation as well as other sources, towards this end. The meeting considered a variety of DNA sequence motifs that, due to the particular linear arrangement of the component A,C,G and T nucleotides depart from the canonical twisted-ladder structure, and instead bulge, buckle or bend aberrantly. Although some such sequences are seen to have positive roles in gene expression and development, emerging evidence suggests that aberrant DNA structures can have a negative impact on genome stability. The program of the conference, held in July 2010, was designed to share the most up to date information available about DNA sequences that adopt unusual structures. This has been an overlooked topic in the past, and the ultimate goal remains to learn whether and how such sequences, which are to be found in any individual’s genome, play a role in genetic disease, cancer and perhaps also ageing. The impact of a given scientific conference is difficult to measure, because collaborations fostered at a meeting usually take several years to bear fruit. Just the fact of holding a new conference like this one emphasizes a biological problem and influences how researchers think about future projects. Experts who consider DNA structure and function from the perspective of widely different disciplines were able to meet and interact with one another, in some instances for the first time in their careers, at the 2010 meeting.
