This conference brought together leading scientists in both traditional and emerging areas of mitochondrial biology. It is becoming increasingly obvious that although cellular energy production remains a critical feature of mitochondrial function, there are now exciting implications for the mitochondrial network in diverse cellular signaling pathways. This occasion provided a forum to assess our current understanding of the new opportunities in mitochondrial research.

New optical imaging methods were discussed, including super resolution techniques, adaptive optics, and coherent control.

This meeting covered the post-synaptic mechanisms of memory formation in dendrites, with both developmental and functional foci.

The meeting focused on novel approaches to the study of attention and decision-making.

Recent technical innovations have made identified neurons accessible to in vivo electrophysiology and imaging in Drosophila, zebrafish and C. elegans. In addition, ongoing miniaturization is allowing the mouse to be used in place of the rat in many studies. This meeting brought together scientists who use physiology and genetic tools in these organisms to understand neural circuit function. The focus of the meeting was on the design and interpretation of experiments rather than on technique development.

A fundamental challenge in biology is to understand the reproducibility of developmental programs between individuals of the same species. This developmental precision reflects the integration of spatial and sexual patterning cues with temporal control mechanisms so that important developmental transitions occur at the appropriate time. Both intrinsic gene expression programs and extrinsic cues, such as nutrition, temperature and light cycles can affect timing events. This meeting focused on discussing the molecular mechanisms that control developmental timing in a wide range of species including, but not limited to, C. elegans, Drosophila, plants, and man.

This meeting follows from the twin meetings held here last spring: Neuroanatomy and Stereotypy of the Adult Drosophila Nervous System and Insect Behavior: Small Brains, Big Functions. These two meetings were well received and we are following them with this fused conference for next year.

Recent structural data has shed new light on the mechanism of action of mechanically gated channels in prokaryotes. Genetics of simple animals like worms and flies has revealed good candidates for mechanically gated channels that mediate touch sensation in eukaryotes. Still unclear are what channels underlie senses like hearing and touch in mammals, and how any of the eukaryotic channels gate in response to mechanical force. This meeting brought together structural and sensory biologists working at all different levels of mechanosensation, to focus on the mechanisms of mechanical sensing by ion channels.

This meeting focused mainly on gene regulation at the transcriptional level.

Participants at this conference will consider current challenges and recent progress in computer vision and image analysis techniques that may advance neuroscience studies. We will explore such topics as deriving meaningful 3D reconstructions of cellular architecture and wiring diagrams of the brain, and how neuroscience can provide insights into the design of more powerful computer vision and image analysis algorithms, image systems, and image-mining mechanisms.

This meeting will promote understanding of the role of chromatin regulatory mechanisms in pluripotency and will help resolve controversy surrounding the role of specific genes and processes. Current evidence suggests that stem cells have a specific chromatin state essential to their self-renewal and ability to give rise to multiple lineages. A number of genes have been implicated in establishing this pluripotent state, and some of these are also likely to be involved in reprogramming somatic nuclei to a pluripotent state. A clear understanding of these mechanisms could pave the way to the production of cell types and organs for regenerative medicine.

This meeting focuses on Drosophila larval neuroanatomy, behavior, and development. The types of larval behavior and physiological responses under investigation have been steadily increasing. These include different forms of movement (peristalsis, crawling, digging), feeding behavior and growth, ecdysis behavior, social behaviors (aggregation, selection of pupation sites), escape responses, reaction to sensory stimuli of diverse modalities, and learning and memory. Because of their relatively simplified nervous system, fly larvae provide distinct advantages over adults for linking behavior to underlying neural circuits. The projections of most classes of sensory and motor neurons have been described, which greatly facilitates identification of interneuronal components of distinct behavioral circuits. Electrophysiological studies of larval motor and sensory neurons are possible, and tools are becoming available for automated tracking of behavior of entire populations of larvae. Therefore, a great opportunity exists for attributing specific behaviors to clearly identifiable circuits and for altering and monitoring the activity of circuits at a fine cellular resolution. In addition, the larval nervous system provides unique insights into how hormones influence circuit growth and remodeling, and how identified stem cells relate to defined circuit components. Coupled with the powerful genetic tools available in Drosophila this is an excellent model system for investigating the way in which genes act in defined neuronal circuits to specify behavior.

In recent years, a number of genetic reagents have been developed for the exogenous control of neural circuit activity. Naturally evolved light-gated ion channels and pumps, mutagenized temperature-sensitive synaptic transmission components, rationally designed photo-switches, and "orthogonal" drug—receptor pairs are only a few of the novel technologies unveiled. This meeting will bring together leaders in the field to highlight recent progress in tool development and applications.

This workshop will focus on recent advances in our understanding of the mechanisms of learning and memory in Drosophila and the honeybee. It will include discussions of learning that occurs through several different sensory systems along with the anatomy, cell and molecular biology, physiology, and genetics that supports memory formation and persistence.