Conference Description
The Animal-Microbe Symbioses GRS provides a unique forum for young doctoral and post-doctoral researchers to present their work, discuss new methods, cutting edge ideas, and pre-published data, as well as to build collaborative relationships with their peers. Experienced mentors and trainee moderators will facilitate active participation in scientific discussion to allow all attendees to be engaged participants rather than spectators.
For the third time in a row, the Gordon Research Conference (GRC) on Animal-Microbe Symbioses will be accompanied by a Gordon Research Seminar (GRS). It brings together an international group of graduate and post-doctoral researchers, as well as others with similar levels of expertise. Participants will present and discuss findings and directions at the frontier of symbiosis research in talks and posters. This opportunity to engage will promote collaborations, new research directions, and nurture professional networks with both peers and mentors before the start of the larger GRC. We strongly encourage participants to also consider attending the associated GRC, which will take place immediately after.
Symbiotic interactions are ubiquitous in nature, were both casual and intimate associations with microbes are found across the animal kingdom. While in some animals a core group of microbes stably accompanies the host, and may even be vertically inherited, other animals experience changes in the microbial associations throughout their life. How these associations are initiated, established, and maintained is at the core of understanding the diverse animal-microbe symbioses observed in nature. Is the match between host and symbiont specific? And what (molecular) factors drive and stabilize the intricate interactions between hosts and their symbionts? To explore these questions in light of novel research, we welcome diverse contributions from the field of Animal-Microbe Symbioses.
