First International Conference on Functional Annotation of the Mammalian Genome (FANG 2008)

At this conference (23-25 Jan 2008) the latest cutting-edge mouse mutagenesis and forward/reverse genetics technologies will be discussed, together with recent advances in epigenetic mechanisms of genome and gene regulation, and the latest developments in the generation of pluripotent embryonic stem cells.

Thirty international experts will picture the latest developments.

Conference themes include:

• International large scale mutagenesis resources with presentations of EUCOMM (European Conditional Mouse Mutagenesis Program), KOMP (Knockout Mouse Project), and NorCOMM (North American Conditional Mouse Mutagenesis Project)
• Emerging centralization of phenotyping and mouse production units
• Fundamental and applied aspects of RNAi and miRNA
• Epigenetics, reprogramming, and new ways to manipulate the germ line
• Different cutting-edge mutagenesis approaches, as e.g. transposon mutagenesis and conditional gene trapping

Taken together, the First International Conference on Functional Annotation of the Mammalian Genome will focus on scientific and technological developments furthering the use of the mouse as an experimental model.

For more information and registration: www.FANG2008.org

Manipulation of mouse ES cells training course

The EUCOMM program is adapting mouse ES cell technologies for high throughput, systematic, mutagenesis. This course (6th July) will provide the theoretical background of the tools and strategies encompassed by the program, in a review format.

Bioinformatics Course

The workshop consists of the several modules. Most modules consist of a presentation, followed by the opportunity to do exercises. Participants are encouraged to bring problems/questions about their research to try to tackle these during the workshop using Ensembl.

EU, US and Canada to collaborate to increase understanding of the genetic make-up of human diseases

The European Commission, US National Institutes of Health and Genome Canada are today announcing a global collaborative research programme designed to lead to better understanding of human diseases. Although many genes have been linked to major diseases or conditions such as cancer, heart disease, neurological disorders, diabetes and obesity, research is still needed into why these genes are important and what their role is in the disease. As mice and humans share 99% of their genetic make-up, this international collaborative programme will study the activity of genes in mice, using a process that “knocks out” specific genes. This programme will help researchers unravel the genetic networks underlying disease. The project will cost a total of €56.6m, with the EU’s Research Framework Programme contributing €13m. The information on mutations in the mouse genome generated by the programme will be rapidly accessible to the worldwide scientific community, constituting a significant resource to help translate basic research into improvements in human health.

EU commits to study genetic make-up of complex diseases

The sequence of the human and mouse genomes are rich resources for biomedical research. To bring real benefit from genome sequence, scientists must study the ways that the genes identified by DNA sequencing are used in living cells.

EU's Sixth Research Framework Programme Press release

A major conference was held in Venice, on 14 and 15 October 2005: – EUROMOUSE: Understanding Human Disease through Mouse Genetics – Top researchers, experts and policy-makers from the EU member states and beyond will attend. Fifteen large collaborative projects in this field, all funded by the EU’s Sixth Research Framework Programme (2002-2006) will be presented and discussed. These projects strongly support the importance of the mouse model to investigate human gene function in health and disease. The launch of a new major EU initiative (EUCOMM) aiming at mutagenizing 20,000 genes of the mouse genome will be announced.