International Social Insect Genomics Research Conference

2011 International Social Insect Genomics Research Conference

June 29-July 2, 2011 Shenzhen, China.

                                                 (Register on site on June 29, 2011)

On behalf of the committee of SIGC (International Social Insect Genomics Research Conference), it is our great honor to invite you to attend the “International Social Insect Genomics Research Conference” organized by the BGI, to be held from June 29-July 2, 2011 in Shenzhen, China.

Social insects (ants, bees, wasps and termites) are among the most diverse and ecologically important organisms on earth. They are particularly well suited for research based on de novosequenced genomes because they can be studied at multiple levels of biological organization, from gene to ecosystem services, and because so much is already known about their natural history, behavior, ecology and evolution.

As main conference organizer and venue provider BGI has successfully sequenced and compared the genomes of two socially divergent ant species (Science 2010 AUG 27; VOL329) and has just completed another ant genome representing a third subfamily. These efforts are part of "The 1000 Plant and Animal Reference Genomes Project" launched by BGI, which has promoted global development in genomics research and genomics-related industries. These projects have demonstrated that ants are – in addition to the honeybee that was sequenced some years ago – attractive models for genomic and epigenetic studies in fields as divergent as reproductive biology, aging, cognition, immunology, and symbiosis, and the same will apply for the termites, wasps and further bees and ants to be sequenced in the years to come.

With your active participation, the conference will not only be a scientifically rewarding and enjoyable experience, providing an opportunity to genome-related research advance on social insects and collaborative networks between disciplines and continents, but also be a timely opportunity for exploring potential research synergies across the national and taxonomic social insect research communities. It is anticipated that one of the key results of this conference will be a prioritized list of at least 100 target social insect species for future genome projects. Believe that together we can make it.

We would greatly appreciate receiving your expression of interest to participate in this meeting (meeting@genomics.cn). We would also welcome your further comments, questions, and suggestions.

                             Best wishes and looking forward to meeting you in Shenzhen!

                           A survey for interested social insects

Conference Venue

Kingkey Palace Hotel, Shenzhen, China.

Abstract Deadline

April 30, 2011

Provisional List of Topics

The evolution and elaboration of eusociality
          -Caste-specific gene expression and gene regulation during development
          -The role of methylation in the expression of eusocial traits
          -Divergent caste-specific patterns of aging
          -Convergent/idiosyncratic pathways among clades that evolved eusociality

Breeding and mating systems
          -Gametic (in)compatibility
          -Sperm viability
          -Hybridisation and introgression
          -Major transitions in gene expression during sexual maturation and insemination

Communication, recognition and social behavior
          -Signaling pathways for nestmate recognition and immunity
          -The genomics of perception: gene expression in the antennae and the brain
          -Genomic changes in social parasites
          -Genomic signatures of unicoloniality

Microbial symbionts of insect societies
          -Discovery and characterization of bacterial symbionts (including metagenomics)
          -Fungus farming in ants and termites
          -Diseases and reproductive parasites (Wolbachia)
          -Adaptive coevolution between symbionts and hosts

Future challenges
         -Data management
         -Comparative genomics in phylogenetic reconstructions

Program Committee Members

Jacobus J.Boomsma	Professor and Director of the Centre for Social Evolution, Department of Biology, University of Copenhagen, Denmark	CSE Copenhagen is one of the largest research institutions devoted to the integrated study of insect societies. They have just hosted the 16th World Congress of the International Union for the Study of Social Insects (IUSSI) and are rapidly expanding their efforts in genome sequencing of social insects.
Owain Edwards	Invertebrate Genomics and Evolution, Principal Research Scientist, CSIRO Ecosystem Sciences, Australia	CSIRO (Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organization), is the largest national research institution in Australia, and has a strong history of social insects research. Dr Edwards and the Division of Ecosystem Sciences are actively engaged in a number of insect genome projects related to agriculture, environment, and human health.
Jürgen Gadau	Associate Professor, School of Life Sciences, Arizona State University, USA	Represents the largest integrated social insect research institution in the USA, which completed the sequencing of three ant genomes and made contributions to two others. Dr Gadau’s group also had a major role in the genome sequencing of Nasonia wasps and they are currently coordinating a comparative analysis of the seven sequenced ant genomes.
Huanming Yang	Chairman and Professor, BGI, Academician, Chinese Academy of Sciences, China	Dr. Huanming Yang is one of China’s leading genetic scientists. As one of the co-founders of Beijing Genomics Insitute-Shezhen (BGI), he and his collaborators have made a significant contribution to the HGP and HapMap projects, as well as to sequencing and analysing genomes of rice, chicken, silkworm, giant panda, cucumber, and many microorganisms.
Guojie Zhang	Associate Director of the Bioinformatics Center, Leader of Genome Projects in BGI-Shenzhen, China	Dr. Guojie Zhang received a joint Ph.D. in Molecular Evolution and Genomics from the Kunming Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Science in 2010. Since joining BGI in 2005, he has led the BGI part of several genome projects, most recently working together with an international team on the first two-ant genomes, published in Science this year. Guojie Zhang is currently in charge of the 1000 Plant & Animal Genome Program at BGI.

Keynote Speakers

Jack Werren
Biology Department, University of Rochester, Professor
Laboratory Website        http://www.rochester.edu/college/bio/labs/WerrenLab/WerrenLab-Home.html

Gene Robinson
University of Illinois Champaign-Urbana, Professor
Laboratory Website      http://www.life.illinois.edu/robinson/

Amy Toth
Lowa State University, Postdoctoral Research Associate
Laboratory Website       http://www.public.iastate.edu/~amytoth/Toth_lab/Home.html

John Wang
Biodiversity Reasearch Center, Academia Sinica, Assistant Research Fellow, Ph.D. Stanford University
Laboratory Website          http://biodiv.sinica.edu.tw/research.php?pi=157

Jüergen Gadau
Arizona State University, School of Life Science, Arizona State University, Associate Professor
Laboratory Website          http://sols.asu.edu/people/faculty/jgadau.php

Invited Speakers (Updating)

Navdeep Mutti	Arizona State University
Yannick Wurm	University of Lausanne
Hugh Robertson	University of Illinois
Martin Helmkampf	Arizona State University
Jay Evans	United States Department of Agriculture
Chris D.Smith	San Francisco State University
Phil Ward	UC Davis Department of Entomology
Judith Korb	Universität Regensburg
Boris Baer	University of Western Australia
Christine Elsik	Georgetown College
Jørgen Liebig	Arizona State University

Contact Information

Meeting Organization Group
Fax: +86-755-25273092
Tel: +86-755-25273340/25273092
Email: meeting@genomics.org.cn

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