Conference: Travel support for trainees to attend Dynein 2025; Ann Arbor, Michigan; 22-24 July 2025

About This Grant

The Dynein 2025 meeting is an international conference dedicated exclusively to the study of dynein motor proteins. Dyneins are large proteins that act as cellular engines, driving directed movement along protein tracks called microtubules. They are essential for a wide range of processes within cells, such as transporting internal components and enabling the movement of structures like cilia and flagella. Held in Ann Arbor, Michigan, from July 22–24, 2025, this meeting provides a crucial forum for experts to discuss the latest discoveries and future directions in this rapidly advancing field. It offers a unique opportunity for researchers to share unpublished findings, initiate collaborations, and debate new models. A key focus is fostering the next generation of US-based scientists; students, post-doctoral fellows, and young faculty will present their work, gain visibility, and connect with established leaders in the field through presentations, poster sessions, and networking opportunities. This in-person gathering is the first since 2016, emphasizing vibrant, interactive discussions to drive the field forward. The Dynein 2025 conference focuses on recent, often unpublished, transformative advances in dynein biology, building on breakthroughs in cryo-EM, biophysics, and cell biology. The program will highlight new insights into dynein architecture, regulation, and diverse cellular roles. Key discussion areas include near-atomic resolution structures of different classes of dyneins, mechanistic understanding of axonemal dynein assembly and ciliary beating, and innovative reconstitution studies revealing how dyneins coordinate with regulatory molecules. The meeting unites researchers employing multidisciplinary approaches, including single-molecule biophysics, structural biology, advanced cell imaging, genetics, and computational modeling, to address unresolved questions in the field. Topics range from the mechanisms controlling cytoplasmic dynein activity and cargo interactions to the physical principles underlying motor function, intraflagellar transport, and axonemal dynein regulation. Discussions are designed to bridge gaps between structural models, single-molecule mechanics, and physiological contexts, fostering interdisciplinary collaboration and novel hypotheses. This uniquely focused meeting facilitates candid exchanges on emerging work and ideas, providing a critical platform for synthesizing progress across the dynein field. This award is funded by the Cellular Dynamics and Function Cluster of the Division of Molecular and Cellular Biosciences in the Directorate for Biological Sciences. 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.