Invited Speakers and Concurrent Sessions

Perkins/Metzenberg Lecture

The Perkins/Metzenberg Lecture is a thought-provoking perspective given by a leader in the field of fungal genetics that often includes an historical perspective, thoughts for the future, and some humor. We are pleased to announce the 2024 Perkins/Metzenberg Lecture will be given by N. Louise Glass, University of California at Berkeley.

N. Louise Glass

N. Louise Glass is an Emeritus Professor in the Plant and Microbial Biology Department at the University of California, Berkeley. Her research interests include applying systems biology approaches to dissect nutrient signaling and plant cell wall deconstruction by fungi and defining molecular mechanisms associated with cooperative (cell/hyphal fusion) and antagonistic (allorecognition and fungal innate immunity) interactions between fungi. More recently, Glass has been involved in the development of functional genomics approaches for non-model fungi.

Previous Perkins/Metzenberg Lectures:
2022 – Gillian Turgeon, Cornell University
2019 – John Taylor, University of California, Berkeley
2017 – Jay Dunlap, Geisel School of Medicine, Dartmouth University
2015 – Michael J. Hynes, University of Melbourne
2013 – Regine Kahmann, Max Planck Institute for Terrestrial Microbiology
2011 – Salomon Barnicki-Garcia, Cicese
2009 – Claudio Scazzocchio, University of Paris
2007 – June Kwon Chung, National Institutes of Health
2005 – Joan Bennett, Tulane University
2003 – Hans VanEtten, University of Arizona
2001 – Ronald Morris, Rutgers University
1999 – Rowland Davis, University of CA, Irvine
1997 – Lorna Casselton, University of Oxford
1995 – Robert Metzenberg, University of Wisconsin, Madison
1993 – Cardy Raper, University of Vermont
1991 – David Perkins, Stanford University
1989 – Charles Yanofsky, Stanford University

Invited Plenary Speakers

Functional genomics illuminates foundational biology and evolution
Melania Figueroa
Victoriano Garre
Thorsten Langner
Anna Selmecki

Multilevel regulatory circuits to understand fungal metabolism
Zachary Lewis
Jolanda van Munster
Koon Ho Wong
Bing Zhai

Underneath, within, and around: pathogens and symbionts
Andrea Genre
Ksenia Krasileva
Marcio Rodrigues
Barbara Valent

Interactions of fungi with the biosphere
Mukesh Dubey
Charissa de Bekker
Yen-Ping Hsueh
Marc Orbach

Concurrent Sessions

Gene regulation
Genetic control of primary and secondary metabolism, Chairs: Maria Cristina Stroe (Germany), Richard Wilson (US)
Chromatin and chromosome biology, Chairs: Slavica Janevska (Germany), Mareike Moeller (Australia)
Phase separation and sequestration, Chairs: Amy Gladfelter (US), Yansong Miao (Singapore)
RNA biology, Chairs: Anita Sil (US), Qiang Cai (China)
Connections between light, clocks, and stress, Chairs: Jennifer Hurley (US), Monika Schmoll (Austria)
Signaling in the gas phase, Chairs: Joan Bennett (US), David Ezra (Israel)

Morphology and development
Polarized growth: 100 years with a Spitzenkoerper, Chairs: Meritxell Riquelme (Mexico), Juergen Wendland (Germany)
Morphogenesis at multiple scales, Chairs: Rob Arkowitz (France), Nancy Keller (US)
Cytoskeleton and intracellular transport, Chairs: Xin Xiang (US), Rosa Mourino Perez (Mexico)
Multicellular development, Chairs: Ines Teichert (Germany), Jan Dijksterhuis (The Netherlands)

Evolution
Beyond the Dikarya: Studies on basal fungi, Chairs: Lillian Fritz-Laylin (US), Kerstin Voigt (Germany)
Mobile elements and dynamic genomes, Chairs: Aaron Vogan (Sweden), Emile Gluck-Thaler (Switzerland)
Horizontal gene transfer, meiotic drive, and related phenomena Like Fokkens (The Netherlands), Sarah Zanders (US)
Experimental evolution with fungi, Chairs: Shay Covo (Israel), Rob Cramer (US)
Evolving metabolomes by divergent genome architectures, Chairs: Milton Drott (US), Tomas Rush (US)

Molecular Ecology
Fungi in microbial ecosystems, Chairs: Jesse Uehling (US), Bart Thomma (Germany)
Multi-trophic fungal interactions: integrating chemical, molecular, and metagenomic approaches Kai Heimel (Germany), Jeffrey A. Rollins (US)
Extremophilic and anaerobic fungi, Chairs: Michelle O’Malley (US), Cene Gostinčar (Slovenia)
Diversity and biotechnology of marine and estuarine fungi, Chairs: Frank Kempken (Germany), Cassandra Ettinger (US)
Mycoviruses, Chairs: Ioly Kotta-Loizou (UK), Marc Meneghini (Canada)

Pathology
Understanding fungal pathogenesis by genomics, Chairs: Daniel Croll (Switzerland), Aleeza Gerstein (Canada)
Biofilms, biocontrol, and disease prevention by genome engineering, Chairs: Joanna Tannous (US), Federico Lopez (Spain)
New technologies to understand and control antifungal resistance, Chairs: Christian Landry (Canada), Sabine Fillinger (France)
Mechanisms of resistance to fungicides, Chairs: Matthew Fisher (UK), Daniel Santos (Brazil)

Biotechnology
Fermentation, biorenewables, and the built environment, Chairs: Han Woesten (The Netherlands), Roberto Nascimento Silva (Brazil)
Fungi for sustainable food production, Chairs: Maiko Umemura (Japan), Debbie Yaver (US)

Tools and novel topics
Machine Learning in Fungal Genetics; Chairs: Abbe (Abigail) LaBella (US), Benjamin Schwessinger (Australia)
Fungi at the cutting edge – microfluidics and other new tools, Chairs: Erin Bredeweg (US), Norio Takeshita (Japan)