Design and Development of a New Diagnostic Microbiology and Epidemiology Track in the General Meeting of the American Society for Microbiology

Abstract

The mission of the General Meeting Program Committee (GMPC) states, “The ASM General Meeting showcases the central role of microbes in the biosphere by reporting today’s best science in the diverse areas influenced by microbes. The breadth of this meeting provides participants opportunities for immersion in fields of specialization as well as forays into different disciplines.” Underscoring the critical role of ASM in fostering knowledge of public health and the diagnosis, detection, epidemiology, and treatment of human infectious diseases, the GMPC enthusiastically announces a new Diagnostic Microbiology and Epidemiology Track. This novel track offers more than 24 sessions to be held within the 111th General ASM Meeting in New Orleans in 2011. The new development of a medical microbiology track parallels the innovative design of a different structure for presenting leading ideas and outstanding speakers in basic microbiology throughout the General ASM Meeting (please refer to the companion editorial [J. F. Miller, M. McFall-Ngai, and A. Casadevall, mBio 1 (5) : e00240-10, 2010]). This new structure of the General Meeting will highlight broadly based topics presented by internationally recognized leaders in the morning sessions. The afternoon symposia are focused on more specific topics, while also including potentially more than 100 openings for presentations of abstracts by trainees and junior faculty. The topics include microbial pathogenesis, molecular genetics, cellular and molecular immunology, molecular biology, environmental microbiology, microbial ecology, evolutionary biology, …