The Meiosis Gordon Conference is held biennially at Colby-Sawyer College in New London, New Hampshire. The 2006 meeting is scheduled for June 11-16. This conference focuses on research aimed at understanding the mechanisms of meiosis, the specialized cell division process that allows sexually reproducing organisms to form gametes. Approximately 175 scientists are expected to participate in the conference. Over forty percent of participants are doctoral students and postdoctoral fellows, and the conference provides an important venue for interactions among scientists at all career stages. The Meiosis Gordon Conference is one of only two meetings that concentrate on meiosis. The other meeting is held in alternate years in Europe and provides a more limited opportunity for participation, especially for scientists from the United States. The Meiosis Gordon Conference thus provides the most important forum for presenting and discussing new findings regarding a process central to sexual reproduction and to maintenance of genome integrity. Plenary sessions will cover pre-meiotic S and early meiotic events; regulation and cell cycle control of meiosis; recombination initiation; chromatin modifications and the epigenetics of meiosis; recombination mechanisms; kinetochores and cohesion; chromosome pairing, dynamics, and segregation; cross-over distribution; and the evolution of meiosis and sex chromosomes. In addition, one session will be devoted to a celebration of the 50th anniversary of the discovery of the synaptonemal complex. The chair and vice-chair of the meeting, Miriam Zolan and Scott Keeney, are international leaders in the field of meiosis, elected to their positions by the participants of the previous meeting. The meeting is organized according to the well-established guidelines for Gordon Research Conferences that allow ample time for formal and informal discussion and debate.
The conference provides an important venue for interactions among scientists at all career stages. Approximately 175 scientists are expected to participate in the conference. Over forty percent of participants will be doctoral students and postdoctoral fellows. Established scientists who have recently developed research interests in meiosis will also attend. These two groups of participants will benefit not only from the introduction to key concepts in the study of meiosis by leaders of sub-disciplines, but also from learning about new unpublished discoveries, and from interacting with established scientists in the field. The meeting has always been highly successful in attracting female participants and has been attended by scientists from throughout the US and the world. Outreach to minority scientists will be through contacts with scientists in the field and through international advertising. The meeting site is completely accessible to those with physical disabilities. This award will be used to defray the conference expenses of students, postdoctoral fellows, and junior faculty.
