In the next 10-15 years, biology will move from a descriptive to a predictive science. This 'next generation' research will have as its foundation, a detailed understanding of the systems that control the behavior of individual cells and the interactions between them, resulting in outputs at the whole organism level. Systems biology aims to transform molecular maps into networks of functional interactions within living cells, and develop mathematical platforms to integrate and interpret biological data obtained from diverse experimental approaches. This will require detailed knowledge of what happens as networks of genetic components are perturbed, through variation induced in the laboratory or by taking advantage of natural variation.
Nine years ago, a group of scientists met in a NSF sponsored workshop to discuss the grand challenges facing biology at that time. Their primary aim was to identify areas in which plant science could provide important and lasting contributions to addressing these challenges. A key recommendation from their report was to focus sufficient resources on the model plant Arabidopsis to be able to fully exploit its soon to be completed genome sequence. As the NSF 2010 program nears completion it seems appropriate to step back, assess progress and once again ask how plants can contribute to addressing the grand challenges in Biology. This workshop, to be held in Arlington, Virginia January 3-4, 2008, will bring together scientists from US and foreign institutions to discuss the future directions for plant research, building on the tools, resources and knowledge gained from Arabidopsis in facing future challenges.
Broader Impacts: Today, a host of real-world problems involve plants: escalating pressures for food, renewable and carbon neutral biofuels, and habitat preservation are being driven by the demands of an ever growing, and ever more prosperous human population. The ability to face these challenges is dependent on understanding the basic biology and ecology of plants. It is in addressing fundamental problems in biology that NSF funded plant research has provided the foundations for meeting some of these pressing problems. It is the expectation that by identifying the next set of grand challenges in biology and how they can best be met by plant research, this workshop will provide the best preparation for the unforeseen problems of tomorrow. A summary report describing the outcomes of the discussions will be disseminated broadly to the scientific community through the Arabidopsis Information Resource (TAIR) web site (www.arabidopsis.org).
