Uniting Eggs and Sperm, from Fundamentals to Applications

The union of egg and sperm creates a new totipotent cell – the zygote. In addition to starting the development of a new organism, fertilization also provides an excellent system in which to investigate important questions in developmental biology, physiology and cell/molecular biology, evolutionary biology, and basic and applied reproductive biology. All of these areas are brought together in this Gordon Research Conference, the 22nd in an exciting and stimulating series of conferences. The conference will consider mechanisms that lead to formation of fertilization-competent gametes, that bring these gametes together and fuse them to form the zygote, and that cause this zygote to transition to undertake early development. Through invited presentations by junior and senior field leaders who study these areas, enriched by late-breaking research presentations chosen from abstracts submitted by conference participants, we will hear the latest advances on these topics as they occur in a range of organisms. The GRC will be linked to, and immediately preceded by a Gordon Research Seminar in which graduate students, postdoctoral fellows, and early career scientists gather to present and exchange findings and ideas to one another, in a mentored setting. Findings and ideas to be presented at the GRC and GRS range from basic mechanistic work and evolutionary aspects, to applications such as environmental effects on fertility, assisted reproductive technologies, and the fertility of vectors or pathogens of diseases such as Zika and malaria, respectively. Intense, friendly, and lively discussion occurs during platform sessions, moderated by discussion leaders, and at poster sessions. The GRC keynote speaker, Dr. Allan Spradling, will emphasize the incredible conservation that underlies fertility across organisms, as well as the long-term effects on development, health, and biology of this critical early life stage. In addition to the formal sessions, the meeting has large blocks of time during the afternoons and after the evening session reserved for further informal discussion including interactions that can lead to collaboration or at least to "cross-fertilization" of approaches and ideas. These open times will also include some mentoring activities open to everyone but aimed at students, postdoctoral fellows, and junior faculty.