3rd ASM Conference on Salmonella: Biology, Pathogenesis & Prevention

Recipient Organization
AMERICAN SOCIETY FOR MICROBIOLOGY
1752 N STREET, NW
WASHINGTON,DC 20036

Performing Department
(N/A)

Non Technical Summary
Salmonella represents one of the most prominent food safety problems in the United States and also poses a threat to animal health and public safety. The emergence of multi-resistant Salmonella strains has complicated efforts to prevent and treat infections in humans and animals. This diverse international meeting will include sessions on Salmonella evolution, genomics, genetics, physiology, epidemiology, clinical aspects (including antimicrobial resistance), animal infections, food safety, pathogenesis (including systems, molecular and cellular biology), immunology and vaccines. The focus of this meeting specifically addresses the priorities of the USDA program on Food Safety: Biological Approaches, NRI, which include Salmonella associated with seafood, fresh fruits, nuts and vegetables, and methods to reduce the Salmonella burden in poultry and swine. The meeting is also relevant to the program on Animal Protection and Biosecurity or Food Safety: Epidemiological Approaches.

Animal Health Component

(N/A)

Research Effort Categories

Basic

100%

Applied

(N/A)

Developmental

(N/A)

Classification

Knowledge Area (KA)	Subject of Investigation (SOI)	Field of Science (FOS)	Percent
712	4010	1100	50%
712	4010	1160	50%

Knowledge Area
712 - Protect Food from Contamination by Pathogenic Microorganisms, Parasites, and Naturally Occurring Toxins;

Subject Of Investigation
4010 - Bacteria;

Field Of Science
1160 - Pathology; 1100 - Bacteriology;

Keywords

antimicrobial resistance

immunology

vaccines

Goals / Objectives
The goal of this project is to assemble a diverse international meeting to bring together the world's leading experts from diverse disciplines to discuss new insights into Salmonella biology and novel strategies for control. Salmonella represents one of the most prominent foodborne infections in the United States and also poses a threat to animal health and public safety. Attendees should emerge from the meeting with new insights into Salmonella biology and novel strategies for Salmonella detection, prevention, and treatment.

Project Methods
The meeting will take place from 5-9 October 2009 in Aix-en-Provence, France. Attendees will include 300-350 scientists, administrators, fellows and students, with approximately 40% coming from the United States. Speakers will included invited scientists with prominence in the field as well as individuals selected on the basis of submitted abstracts.

Progress 09/01/08 to 08/31/10

Outputs
OUTPUTS: The 3rd ASM Conference on Salmonella: Biology, Pathogenesis and Prevention took place from 5 to 9 October 2009 in Aix-en-Provence, France. For more than 325 scientists from 43 countries, the meeting provided an opportunity to learn about recent discoveries regarding the epidemiology, biology, and pathogenesis of Salmonella and to identify promising new approaches for the diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of Salmonella infections. PARTICIPANTS: Ferric C. Fang, principal investigator and conference chair, was assisted by conference co-organizers Olivia Steele-Mortimer, Richard Strugnell, Duncan Maskell, and Stephane Meresse in selecting speakers and poster presenters on behalf of the American Society for Microbiology. Twenty graduate students received travel grants to support attendance and presentation of their research at the conference. TARGET AUDIENCES: The conference target audience was Salmonella researchers and clinicians, as well as graduate and postdoctoral students. The conference was open to all and target audience members came from 43 countries. The conference included four days of lectures in an auditorium as well as three poster sessions with dedicated time to speak with presenting authors. PROJECT MODIFICATIONS: Not relevant to this project.

Impacts
The presentations made at the conference led to a change in knowledge of the current field of Salmonella research. Salmonella infections continue to cause substantial morbidity and mortality throughout the world. However, recent discoveries and new paradigms promise to lead to novel strategies to diagnose, treat, and prevent Salmonella infections. These discoveries were presented during the conference and the information in presentations has also been disseminated through the conference program and abstracts, available free online through the ASM website, as well as through a meeting review article published in Infection and Immunity (citation in Publications section of this report).

Publications

ANDREWS-POLYMENIS HL , Baumler AJ, McCormick BA, Fang FC, et al (2010). Taming the elephant: Salmonella biology, pathogenesis, and prevention. Infect Immun. 2010;78:2356-69.