2022 Cytoskeletal Motors Molecular Machines: From Biophysics To Physiology To Disease

The Gordon Research Conference (GRC) and Gordon Research Seminar (GRS) on Cytoskeletal Motors will be held in Dover, VT on July 9-10, and July 10-15, respectively. The GRS is primarily attended by graduate students and postdoctoral fellows, and is designed to provide a supportive environment for trainees to present their scientific findings and network.

This will be followed by the GRC which in addition to trainees, will also bring together senior and junior scientists from broad ranging disciplines to discuss and advance our understanding of the molecular motors—cellular machines that drive many essential biological functions, including movement of chromosomes during cell division, movement of subcellular organelles, such as mitochondria, and movement of cells, such as occurs during development as well as in diseases. The diversity and range of molecular motors is enormous, and understanding of how these different cellular machines operate and are regulated is essential to understanding of how cells travel, grow and change shape, and divide.

The application of novel microscope and biophysical techniques, together with advances in computer simulations, has greatly increased our understanding of the function of these cell motors, and a conference to share these results will disseminate this knowledge rapidly to increase basic knowledge of cell motor function to allow its use in cellular manufacturing as well as medicine. The training and engagement of junior scientists (graduate students, postdoctoral fellows, and beginning assistant professors) is a priority of the conference.

Mentoring activities and professional development sessions are also planned as part of both the GRC and GRS. NSF support will be used to defray registration fee and/or travel costs to allow attendance of participants from these early stages of their careers, especially for women and other members of groups that have been historically under-represented in this field.

The science presented at the 2022 Molecular Motors GRC and GRS will cover all areas of the biophysics, biochemistry, and cell biology of the wide variety of these critical machines, including myosins, kinesins, and dyneins. Leading researchers will present and discuss recent findings on the structure of these proteins, computational modeling of changes to motor structure during function, the forces these motors apply in the cells, the effects of these motors on cell components, from movement of chromosomes in mitosis to plasma membrane cortical tension to cell morphology, and the effects these motors have both in normal cells as well as in cells where motor function is deranged.

GRS presentations will be divided into two scientific sessions: in which the most fundamental issues in motor function will be discussed: i) molecular motor interaction with their tracks (actin and microtubules); and ii) the effects of motor dysfunction. GRC presentations will be divided into eight scientific sessions ranging in topics from single molecule biophysics of motors and their tracks to motor structure, regulation, and involvement of cell physiology.

This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.