ASPB engages Latin America colleagues at Annual Meeting in Merida, Mexico June 22-25

The Joint Annual Meeting of the American Society of Plant Biologists (ASPB) and the Sociedad Mexicana De Bioquimica Rama: Bioquimica y Biologia Molecular de Plantas will be held June 22–25, 2008 in the Fiesta Americana Hotel in Merida, Mexico.

A major theme of this year's annual meeting is the biology and agriculture of plant species that originated in the America's. Presentations will also focus on the international collaborations to study and improve these crops – for example, maize, tomato, potato, and tropical species. This year represents an effort on the part of ASPB to reach out and engage our Latin American members and colleagues, noted Dr. Danny Schnell, Professor and Head, Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, University of Massachusetts. Schnell chairs the ASPB Program Committee that has collaborated with scientists in Mexico in planning this annual meeting.

Scientists will present their findings on leading research at six major symposia, many mini-symposia and several workshops. Following is information on the major symposia:

Symposium I: Opening Symposium - 2007 Charles Albert Shull Awardee: Samuel C. Zeeman, ETH Zurich, Switzerland – “What plants do in the dark: the conversion of transitory starch into sucrose in leaves.” 2007 Stephen Hales Prize Winner: Sarah Hake, Plant Gene Expression Center – “A genetic approach to plant morphology.”

Symposium II: Maize Biology Sponsored by Monsanto - Organizers: Sarah Hake and Jean Phillipe Vielle Calzada. John Jones – “The origins and early dispersal of Maize: The Palynological and Archaeological Evidence.” Vicki Chandler – “Epigenetic Silencing Across Generations.” Erik Vollbrecht – “The maize inflorescence: development, domestication and insights into grass evolution.” Jean Phillipe Vielle Calzada – “The Codifying Genome of the Palomero Mexican landrace.”

Symposium III: Biology of Tomato & Solanaceous Species - Organizers: Lukas Mueller and Lus (Stella) Barrero. Roland Schafleitner, CIP, Peru – “A genomics approach to identify drought resistance traits of potato.” Fernando Carrari, Argentina or Magdalenda Rossi, Brasil LAT-SOL, Argentina – “Development of rapid strategies for testing of candidate Solanaceae QTLs .“ Luz Stella Barrero, Corpioca, Colombia – “Application of genomics tools - case study: tomato – Solanaceae.” Felipe Cruz, Mexico –“Synthesis and transfer to the stigmatic surface of NaStEP, a vacuolar Kunitz proteinase inhibitor homolog and its role in pollen rejection in Nicotiana.” Esther Van Der Knaap, Ohio State University, USA - “Underlying mechanisms of diversity in tomato fruit morphology.”