“Nothing in biology makes sense except in the light of evolution”
–T. Dobzhansky

The 2013 symposium "Evolution and Core Processes in Gene Regulation" will begin in the afternoon on Thursday, July 25th and conclude with lunch on Sunday, July 28th. Organisms have evolved a diverse set of mechanisms to orchestrate the expression of their genes. The core machinery of gene expression is instrumental to this process but also subject to the ever-changing needs required to survive and reproduce. This special symposium aims to bring together current perspectives on regulatory evolution with mechanistic insights into gene expression. Topics will include complex transcriptional processes, RNA processing and translational machines with an emphasis on evolutionary insights and quantitative models. These topics will be covered by a panel of invited speakers recognized for recent advancements in mechanistic and evolutionary studies of gene expression with the objective of achieving cross-fertilization between disciplines. This focused, three-day meeting will allow extensive informal interactions for participants to gain a better understanding of key challenges in the respective areas of study and to forge collaborations. 

Confirmed Speakers: 

Do transcription factors always play the same game?  Deep perturbation analysis and thermodynamic modeling of developmental enhancers
David Arnosti, Michigan State University

The interface between gene regulation, signaling, modeling, development, and evolution: a case study in TF binding affinity
Scott Barolo, University of Michigan

Historical recombination and gene flow in Saccharomyces cerevisiae
Rachel Brem, University of California, Berkeley

Evolution of lipogenesis in animals: Role of mitochondrial protein acetylation
Charles Brenner, University of Iowa

Examining cell cycle gene regulation in different states of G0
Laura Buttitta, University of Michigan

Why don't transcription factors get lost?
Barak Cohen, Washington University

Structural studies of bacterial transcription
Seth Darst, The Rockefeller University

Transcriptional Evolution: Hidden layers of complexity
Robin Dowell, University of Colorado at Boulder

How genetic background impacts the analysis of mutations, genes and evolution
Ian Dworkin, Michigan State University

A large transcription/DNA repair complex. Mutations in one of the components result in a genetic disorder
Jean-Marc Egly, Institut de Genetique et de Biologie Moléculaire et Cellulaire (IGBMC)

Evolution of concentration-threshold sensitive transcriptional activation
Albert Erives, University of Iowa

Genome-wide distribution and effects of linker histone H1 in embryonic stem cells
Yuhong Fan, Georgia Institute of Technology

Loss of co-regulated amyloid disaggregases during the evolution of Metazoa
Jan Fassler, University of Iowa

Divergence of the yeast transcription factor FZF1 affects sulfite resistance.
Justin Fay, Washington University

Changes in chromatin architecture upon induction of pro-inflammatory genes in primary macrophages
Monique Floer, Michigan State University

Learning from ribosomes that make mistakes
Kurt Frederick, Ohio State University

The evolution of epigenetic and genetic regulatory mechanisms in primates
Yoav Gilad, University of Chicago

Genetic basis for the distinct expression behaviors displayed by related bacterial species
Eduardo Groisman, Yale School of Medicine and Howard Hughes Medical Institute

Consequences of eukaryotic enhancer architecture for gene expression dynamics, development and fitness
Martin Kreitman, University of Chicago

Mechanism and regulation of transcriptional pausing
Robert Landick, University of Wisconsin

Chromatin remodeling complex NURF is a cell-type-restricted regulator of gene expression in part through the ubiquitous multivalent factor CTCF
Joseph Landry, Virginia Commonwealth University

Global analysis of the Dorsal-ventral patterning regulatory network in the wasp Nasonia vitripennis
Jeremy Lynch, University of Illinois at Chicago

Comparative studies of fungal mediators reveal a key role in fungal pathogenesis and a new functional domain in the complex
Lawrence C. Myers, Dartmouth College

Evolutionary conservation and therapeutic targeting of a transcription factor interface in Mediator
Anders Naar, Harvard University

Behavior of HP1 in heterochromatin assembly from fission yeast to humans
Geeta Narlikar, University of California, San Francisco

Are segregating deletions of Hunchback binding sites in even-skipped indication of TF-enhancer co-evolution?
Arnar Palsson, University of Iceland

Deciphering molecular circuits from genetic variation underlying transcriptional responsiveness to stimuli
Aviv Regev, Broad Institute and Howard Hughes Medical Institute

A synthetic biology approach to the development of transcriptional regulatory models
John Reinitz, University of Chicago

Developmental gene expression evolution
Ilya Ruvinsky, University of Chicago

Epigenetic and symbiotic responses to unforeseen stress: Mechanisms and transgenerational implications
Yoav Soen, Weizmann Institute of Science

Establishing fidelity in pre-mRNA splicing
Jonathan Staley, University of Chicago  

Molecular basis for RNA polymerization by Qbeta replicase: Translational factors as RNA replication factors
Kozo Tomita, National Institute of Advanced Industrial Sciences and Technology

Fitness landscape changes and bacterial termination
Saeed Tavazoie, Columbia University

Disentangling the sources of species-specific gene expression patterns in Drosophila embryos
Zeba Wunderlich, Harvard University

Transcriptional enhancers in development, evolution and variation
Joanna Wysocka, Stanford Cancer Institute

Minimal Pol II pausing before the Drosophila midblastula transition
Julia Zeitlinger, Stowers Institute

Unmask the “CTD code” of RNA Pol II for transcription regulation
Yan Jessie Zhang, University of Texas, Austin