This NSF award by the Biotechnology, Biochemical and Biomass Engineering program supports the participation of US investigators and graduate students in the 17th International Conference on Biochemical and Molecular Engineering (BME XVII) to be held in Seattle, WA from June 26-29, 2011. The conference is organized under the aegis of Engineering Conferences International (the successor program to United Engineering Foundation Conferences program). The chairpersons are Costas Maranas (Penn State), Francois Baneyx (University of Washington), and and Beth Junker (Merck). Intellectual Merit The Biochemical Engineering Conference is one of first among several conference series related to biotechnology sponsored by the Engineering Foundation (now ECI). Biochemical Engineering, which started in 1978, continues to be the preeminent venue for discussing research at the cutting edge of this diverse and rapidly expanding field. The 2011 meeting adopts the new title of ?Biochemical and Molecular Engineering? to emphasize the increasingly important role that molecular-level thinking and techniques play in the research of the biochemical engineering community. The conference will bring together established researchers, young investigators, private sector scientists and engineers as well as graduate students to assess the present and chart the future of the ever-changing field of biochemical and molecular engineering. In a series of plenary presentations, oral sessions, and poster sessions, BME XVII will explore a number of emerging and established subjects with a small conference atmosphere that enables high-level discussion and participation. The focus of the conference will be on research at the cutting-edge of biotechnology including biomolecular design, the nano-bio interface, biofuels, and bioremediation, vaccine engineering, nanotechnology, metabolic engineering, biomolecular networks, and stem cell differentiation in combination with core areas of biochemical engineering (protein engineering, process development, and scale up).
Broader Impact Biochemical and Molecular Engineering XVII will provide comprehensive coverage of present challenges and future directions in biochemical and molecular engineering. Sessions span a broad range of topics across the biotechnology field including molecular design and display, the cell-materials interface, biofuels and bioenergy, vaccines, nanotechnology, metabolic engineering, biochemical networks, and stem cell bioengineering in combination with core areas of biochemical engineering (protein stability and engineering, vaccine design, process development, and scale up). Organizers anticipate that the conference will have a profound impact on the future direction of biotechnology. The resulting cross-fertilization of ideas facilitated by the close proximity of participants from many countries will enrich and strengthen the discipline as a whole. NSF support will help ensure the success of the meeting by partially defraying conference costs for select US academic scientists and engineers with an emphasis on underrepresented groups and graduate students. In the absence of NSF support, many US academic scientists and graduate students would not be able to attend and benefit from interactions with the international community of biotechnology researchers. Many of these researchers and graduate students are currently funded by the National Science Foundation. Participation in the meeting will enhance and help advertise their NSF supported work.
The Biochemical Engineering Conference is one of first among several conference series related to biotechnology sponsored by the Engineering Foundation (now ECI). Biochemical Engineering, which started in 1978, continues to be the preeminent venue for discussing research at the cutting edge of this diverse and rapidly expanding field. The 2011 meeting adopted the new title of "Biochemical and Molecular Engineering" to emphasize the increasingly important role that molecular-level thinking and techniques plays in the research of the biochemical engineering community. It was held in Seattle, WA from June 26-29, 2011. The theme of the conference was Biochemical and Molecular Engineering XVII: Emerging Frontiers organized under the auspices of the non-profit Engineering Conferences International. The meeting was organized by co-Chairs François Baneyx (U. Washington), Costas D. Maranas (Penn State) and Beth Junker (Merck). Biochemical Engineering has evolved dramatically over the last 50 years from a primary focus on bioprocessing for chemicals, food, and biologics, to applications relevant to human health, design of new biomaterials and imaging technologies, the nano-bio interface and solving energy and environmental problems. This continuing series of conferences has changed to cover emerging areas, but has retained a vital role in defining the field of Biochemical Engineering & Biotechnology. Biochemical engineers have always embraced new challenges and modern biology with high energy and enthusiasm. The focus of the 2011 meeting was to address New Frontiers and showcase innovative solutions emerging from the general Biochemical Engineering community in response to these challenges. During this premier international conference, which was the seventeenth edition in the series, we brought together established researchers, young investigators, private sector scientists and engineers as well as graduate students to assess the present and chart the future of the ever-changing field of biochemical and molecular engineering. In a series of plenary presentations, oral sessions, and poster sessions, BME XVII explored a number of emerging and established subjects with a small conference atmosphere that allowed for high-level discussion and participation. The focus of the conference was on research at the cutting-edge of biotechnology including biomolecular design, the nano-bio interface, biofuels, and bioremediation, vaccine engineering, nanotechnology, metabolic engineering, biomolecular networks, and stem cell differentiation in combination with core areas of biochemical engineering (protein engineering, process development, and scale up). One of the sessions, Biomolecular Networks, was held in honor of the 65th anniversary of Prof. Mike Shuler who pioneered cellular modeling in engineering with the single-cell E. coli model effort that started over 30 years ago.
