Abstract

The Nucleosides, Nucleotides and Oligonucleotides (NNO) Gordon Research Conference is dedicated to understanding the fundamental chemistry and biology of its title compounds and developing technology for the diagnosis and treatment of human disease. Nucleosides and nucleotides are important chemical probes, pharmaceutical lead compounds and clinically approved drugs for the treatment of a variety of metabolic, infectious and genetic diseases. Separately, they are also essential precursors to many classes of oligonucleotides, which are widely used in molecular and chemical biology and, increasingly, in the clinic as diagnostics and therapeutics. Emerging areas like gene editing and mRNA therapeutics are being built on the knowledge and experience utilizing the monomers and methods developed for NNOs. The 2019 edition will be the 20th offering of the NNO GRC and will reflect the evolution of the field and the current explosive growth of NNO based therapeutics, from its original focus on purine chemistry and biology to the much broader current scope. The conference will bring together academic, industrial and government scientists to present and discuss the latest research concerning the design, synthesis and characterization of both small molecules and oligomers. Notably, industrial representation at the meeting is typically three times the GRC average, providing collaboration opportunities for established scientists and giving students networking opportunities that could prove beneficial in future job searches. The scientific program will begin with a keynote lecture on therapeutic oligonucleotides and the eight subsequent sessions will cover topics that include the discovery and development of anticancer and antiviral drugs, small molecule recognition of DNA and RNA, nucleic acids chemical biology, backbone-modified oligonucleotides and DNA modification and repair. In addition, several poster presentations will be selected for short talks based on the abstracts submitted. Finally, the NNO GRC is further enhanced by a vibrant social environment, a GRC Power Hour to discuss issues faced by women in science, and an affiliated Gordon Research Seminar (GRS) to promote discussion and networking by students and postdocs.