Project Grant R13AR088378

CSHL 2026 CONFERENCE ON CELL AND MEMBRANE FUSION - PROJECT SUMMARY THIS APPLICATION SEEKS PARTIAL SUPPORT FOR THE SECOND COLD SPRING HARBOR MEETING ON CELL & MEMBRANE FUSION , TO BE HELD NOVEMBER 11-14, 2026 AT COLD SPRING HARBOR LABORATORY, NEW YORK. THIS IS THE ONLY CONFERENCE THAT BRINGS TOGETHER RESEARCHERS STUDYING CELL-CELL FUSION, VIRUS-CELL FUSION, AND INTRACELLULAR FUSION IN A SINGLE VENUE, FOSTERING CROSS-FERTILIZATION OF IDEAS ACROSS TRADITIONALLY SEPARATE FIELDS. CELL AND MEMBRANE FUSION EVENTS ARE FUNDAMENTAL TO ALL LIVING ORGANISMS AND PARTICULARLY CRITICAL FOR MUSCLE DEVELOPMENT AND REGENERATION, OSTEOCLAST FUNCTION IN BONE REMODELING, FERTILIZATION, VIRAL INFECTION, AND ORGANELLE BIOGENESIS. FAILURES IN FUSION LEAD TO CONGENITAL MYOPATHY, OSTEOPOROSIS, INFERTILITY, IMMUNE DEFICIENCY, AND SYNAPTIC TRANSMISSION DEFECTS. WE EXPECT APPROXIMATELY 150 ATTENDEES FROM AROUND THE WORLD, OF WHOM ~50% ARE EXPECTED TO BE FROM INTERNATIONAL INSTITUTIONS AND ~60% JUNIOR RESEARCHERS. THE OVERALL OBJECTIVES INCLUDE: 1) TO PROVIDE COMPREHENSIVE ANALYSIS OF RECENT DISCOVERIES IN MEMBRANE FUSION MECHANISMS; 2) TO FOSTER EXCHANGE BETWEEN BIOPHYSICISTS, STRUCTURAL BIOLOGISTS, VIROLOGISTS, AND CELL BIOLOGISTS WHO RARELY INTERACT AT DISCIPLINE-SPECIFIC MEETINGS; AND 3) TO PROVIDE OPPORTUNITIES FOR JUNIOR INVESTIGATORS TO PRESENT THEIR WORK. OUR KEYNOTE SPEAKERS ARE PROF. REINHARD JAHN (MPI GOTTINGEN) AND PROF. GIA VOELTZ (HHMI, UNIVERSITY OF COLORADO BOULDER). SIX PLENARY SESSIONS WILL PRESENT ~50 SPEAKERS (14 CONFIRMED INVITED SPEAKERS AND ~36 SELECTED FROM ABSTRACTS). SESSION TOPICS INCLUDE MECHANISMS OF MEMBRANE FUSION, STRUCTURAL BIOLOGY OF FUSOGENS, CELL-CELL FUSION IN DEVELOPMENT AND DISEASE, MEMBRANE REMODELING, FERTILIZATION, AND EMERGING TECHNOLOGIES. THIS MEETING DIRECTLY ADDRESSES NIAMS PRIORITIES BY ACCELERATING UNDERSTANDING OF MUSCLE CELL FUSION ESSENTIAL FOR REGENERATION AND GENE DELIVERY APPROACHES FOR TREATING GENETIC MUSCLE DISORDERS AND OSTEOPOROSIS.