NSF Award
1924691
This proposal will support attendance of young faculty, under-represented minority scientists, along with graduate students and post-docs at the 2019 International Gap Junction conference (IGJC) held July 27-31, 2019 at the Victoria Conference Center in Victoria, BC, Canada. The meeting will consist of 4 plenary talks, a large number of short talks, poster sessions, communal dining, and conversations that will provide ample opportunity for sharing latest research results and for exploring collaborative possibilities similarly to the setting of Gordon Research Conferences.<br/><br/>The IGJC has been held every 2 years since 1974, alternating mostly between North America and Europe, and really is the only meeting that brings together a diverse international community of basic science researchers that focus on connexins and pannexins, the proteins that comprise the gap junction and pannexin membrane channel, respectively. The topic is highly important as direct cell-to-cell communication is crucial to cells of multi-cellular organisms for all aspects of development, differentiation, and homeostasis. A better understanding of the complex biology of this important cell-cell channel will be needed to better understand cellular behavior in both, physiology and pathology. Typically, the meeting draws approximately 200 participants with about 80-100 from the US split about one-third PI and two-thirds trainees. Requested funds will be used to waive all or part of the registration fees for US-based graduate students, postdocs, junior scientists and three US-based keynote speakers. Financial assistance to assist under-represented minorities -several of which have attended these meetings in the past- is specifically requested. NSF funding will be announced on the conference web site and by list-server email and will allow more young scientists, e.g. female and self-declared minorities to attend. Drawing a consistent stream of young investigators to this conference is important as to support a continuous interest in this important research field in the future.<br/><br/>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.
