The Fifth Gordon Research Conference (GRC) on Plant Cell Walls will be held August 2-7,2009, at Bryant University in Smithfield, Rhode Island. This year, for the first time, the Plant Cell Walls GRC will be immediately preceded, on August 1-2, by a Plant Cell Walls Gordon-Kenan Graduate Research Seminar program (GRS) offering an exceptional opportunity for graduate students and postdoctoral researchers entering this growing and increasingly important field. Plant cell walls are a complex cellular compartment essential for plant growth, development and response to biotic and abiotic stresses, and are a resource for renewable bioenergy and natural products. The 2009 Plant Cell Walls GRC will bring together an international mix of researchers from academic, industrial, research center and government labs to summarize and critically evaluate our current level of understanding of the plant cell wall. Specifically, the structure, synthesis and function of the whole plant cell wall, including the polysaccharides, proteins, lignin and waxes, and the enzymes and regulatory proteins that drive wall synthesis and modification will be discussed. Innovative techniques to study how both primary and secondary wall polymers are formed and modified throughout plant growth and the use of mutants and natural variants to understand and identify wall structure-function relationships will be emphasized. The research advances needed to work toward a systems biology level understanding of wall formation and remodeling will be highlighted. The critical biochemical foundations of wall structure and biology will be highlighted to enable use and modification of plant cell walls as a major resource to fill the void left by dwindling supplies of fossil fuels and to meet the associated growing need for alternative energy and industrial bioproducts.
Broader Impacts. This conference seeks to gather both leading researchers and younger scientists entering the field in an effort to seed new research goals and ideas. The requested NSF funds will be used to encourage and support the participation of young scientists, minorities and underrepresented scientists at the meeting. In accordance with GRC philosophy, a retreat-like atmosphere is designed for the meeting and its principal product is the summary and dispersal of ideas across the community. For the first time, the GRC will have an accompanying Plant Cell Walls Gordon-Kenan Graduate Research Seminar program (GRS), which will provide an opportunity for graduate students and postdoctoral researchers with an interest in plant walls to interact, exchange ideas, and share cutting-edge research in the area of plant cell wall structure and function. The GRS will include two science sessions, presented and attended primarily by graduate students and postdoctoral scholars. A small selected panel of established researchers will also participate and contribute to the discussions. The GRS discussion leaders and speakers will be selected from graduate students, post docs and senior researchers to facilitate and drive active discussions. The topics for the GRS include plant cell wall biosynthesis, structure and function, lignocellulosic biofuel production, and natural products derived from plant cell walls.
