From parasites to plankton and back: comparative biology and ecology of apicomplexans and dinoflagellates

Chairperson: Ross Frederick Waller
Department of Biochemistry University of Cambridge Hopkins Building, Tennis Court Road Cambridge, CB2 1QW United Kingdom
Phone: +44(0)1223 766057
Email: rfw26@cam.ac.uk

Vice-chairperson: Laure Guillou
Station Biologique de Roscoff, Place Georges Teissier, 29680 Roscoff. France
Phone: +33 (0)6 67 97 24 73
Email: lguillou@sb-roscoff.fr

Apicomplexans (including chromerids and colpodellids) and dinoflagellates (including perkinsids and Syndiniales) represent two major sister lineages of unicellular myzozoan eukaryotes that are heavily studied due to their importance in symbiotic associations, either as mutualistic or parasitic symbionts. The symbiotic associations that they represent include: ancient and recently gained endosymbiotic organelles; beneficial associations with marine animals, such as corals and other protists; and parasitic associations that cause disease in humans and animals as well as play important roles in controlling large algal bloom events. The research communities that study these two important lineages seldom meet, however, due to their general focus on either human/animal parasitic disease, or the biology and ecology of aquatic systems, respectively. Yet both lineages are derived from a common ancestor and maintain many unique cellular traits including those for their versatility of trophic modes, facility to form symbioses, and strategy for host penetration, feeding and invasion. Plastid (chloroplast) retention and derived mitochondrial genome biology and biochemistry are hallmarks of these lineages, and both display singular mitosis and cytokinesis. Moreover, well-developed or nascent genetic transformation tools for experimental investigations are available in each lineage providing new opportunities for exploring common and divergent biological traits. This meeting aims to bring together researchers broadly representing both fields to facilitate discussion, sharing and collaboration across these diverse yet related, fascinating and important biological systems. The meeting will span: 1) the taxonomic diversity of Myzozoa, including phylogenies, new lineages, and species concepts; 2) life cycle, organelle and genome evolution; 3) adaptations for symbiotic/parasitic interactions; 4) ecological studies, including epidemiological/modelling approaches, 5) and emerging research tools development. With recent advances in genomic resources, experimental tools, and global sampling methods, it is very timely to foster interaction to maximise the benefits for comparative biology across and within such important eukaryotic groups.

Invited speakers
(provisional titles)
 

Catharina Alves-de-Souza (University of North Carolina Wilmington, Wilmington, NC 28409, USA)
Modeling dynamics of harmful dinoflagellate blooms and their alveolate parasites

Tsvetan R. Bachvaroff (Institute for Marine and Environmental Technology, Baltimore, USA)
Genome evolution in dinoflagellates

Lucie Bittner (Institut de Biologie Paris, Paris, France)
Capturing structure, functions, diversity and evolution of microbial eukaryotic communities using high-throughput sequencing

Rosa Figueroa (Centro Oceanográfico de Vigo, Vigo, Spain)
Complexity of live cycles in dinoflagellates

Isabelle Florent (Muséum National d-Histoire Naturelle, Paris, France)
Marine gregarines as models for early apicomplexan evolution

Laure Guillou (Station Biologique de Roscoff, Roscoff, France)
What make dinoflagellate parasites different from human parasites?

Mona Hoppenrath (Deutsches Zentrum für Marine Biodiversitätsforschung, Wilhelmshaven, Germany)
Diversity, taxonomy and phylogeny of taxa of dinoflagellates

Jan Janouskovec (University College London, London, United Kingdom)
Character evolution in Myzozoans

Cécile Jauzein (Institut Français de Recherche pour l'Exploitation de la Mer, Issy-les-Moulineaux, France)
Role of cell death in the interaction between parasites (Syndiniales) and their dinoflagellate hosts, from the use of chemical weapons towards cell suicide.

Maryse Lebrun (Campus Arnaud de Villeneuve, Montpellier, France)
Common exocytic machinery for myzozoan interactions with other organisms

Cécile Lepère (Université Blaise Pascal, Aubière, France)
Relevance of Perkinsozoa in freshwater systems

Senjie Lin (University of Connecticut, Groton, USA)
Molecular ecology of dinoflagellates

Markus Meissner (Ludwig-Maximilians-University, Munchen, Germany)
Dynamic cell biological processes for movement, invasion and replication in Toxoplasma

Shauna Murray (University of Technology Sydney, Broadway, Australia)
Evolution and molecular ecology of marine microbial biotoxins

Fabrice Not (Station Biologique de Roscoff, Roscoff, France)
Diversity, biology and ecology of mutualistic symbioses in marine plankton

Miroslav Oborník (Faculty of Science, Ceske Budejovice, Czech Republic)
Chromerids at the interface of phototrophy and parasitism

Arnab Pain (King Abdullah University of Science and Technology, Saudi Arabia)
Myzozoan genome evolution

Betina Porcel (Genoscope, Evry, France)
Comparative genomics and signatures of parasitism in marine alveolates

Sarah Reece (University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, United Kingdom)
Phenotypic plasticity and evolution for success in malaria parasites

David S. Roos (University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, USA)
Comparative biology in the ‘Omics Era’

Sonja Rueckert (Edinburgh Napier University, Edinburgh, United Kingdom)
Gregarine apicomplexan biology, diversity and systematics

Raffaele Siano (Ifremer, Plouzané, France)
History of dinoflagellate blooms as recorded from sediments

Timur Simdyanov (Lomonosov Moscow State University, Moscow, Fédération de Russie)
Parasitism in chrompodellids

Dominique Soldati-Favre (University of Geneva, Geneva, Switzerland)
Regulation and control of host-parasite interactions in apicomplexans

Boris Striepen (University of Georgia, Athens, USA)
Emerging models for Cryptosporidium research

Isabelle Tardieux (Univ. Grenoble Alpes, La Tronche, France)
Micro-biomechanics of the Toxoplasma tachyzoite cell

Rita Tewari (University of Nottingham, Nottingham, United Kingdom)
Molecular mechanisms of cell division, signalling and motility in Plasmodium

Leann Tilley (The University of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia)
Parasite-host interactions and remodelling in malaria

Fiona Tomley (The Royal Veterinary College, Hertfordshire, United Kingdom)
Host-pathogen interactions and control of coccidiosis caused by Eimeria

Ross F. Waller (University of Cambridge, Cambridge; United Kingdom)
New tools for evolutionary cell biology in Myzozoa
 

Deadline for application: May 3, 2021

Registration fee (including board and lodging)

• 470 € for PhD students
• 700 € for other participants

Application for registration

The total number of participants is limited to 115 and all participants are expected to attend for the whole duration of the conference. Selection is made on the basis of the affinity of potential participants with the topics of the conference. Scientists and PhD Students interested in the meeting should deposit online before the deadline: new site under construction

• their curriculum vitae
• the list of their main publications for the 3 last years
• the abstract of their presentation:

The abstract must respect the following template:

• First line: title
• Second line: list of authors. Presenting author underlined
• Third line: author's addresses
• Fourth line: e-mail of the presenting author

Abstracts should be no longer than an A4 page and preferably be submitted in Times New Roman, font size 10 pts. No figures. ".docx" file format.

After the deadline, the organizers will select the participants. Except in some particular cases approved by the Chairperson, it is recommended that all selected participants present their work during the conference, either in poster form or by a brief in- session talk. The organizers choose the form in which the presentations are made. No payment will be sent with application. Information on how and when to pay will be mailed in due time to those selected.