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ISCE NEWSLETTER ISSUE 1 2012.

Content

Secretary / Editor’s Message

Dear members! This newsletter contains information about the election of the new Vice President, and four new Councilors. The current executives thank our candidates in this election for volunteering! The latest news from the upcoming ISCE meeting in Vilnius 22-26 of July is presented together with a link to the website.

Vote for new councilors!

Please read the curricula vitae or statements of the candidates and then vote by filling out the online ballot at the ISCE website. You can also print and fill out the ballot and sent it to our president (Paulo Zarbin) by May 20, 2012. (Prof. Dr. Paulo Henrique G. Zarbin, Departamento de Química – UFPR, CP 19081 CEP 81531-990, Curitiba – PR, Brasil). If sent by mail please do not write your name on the ballot itself, but please do write your name, as shown on ISCE records, on your envelope or in your e-mail text/signature.

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News about 2012 ISCE Meeting in Vilnius, Lithuania

Our local host Dr. Vincas Buda welcomes you to the 28th ISCE meeting to be held in Vilnius, the beautiful capital of Lithuania, one of the new EU member states with a 1000 year history.  Lithuania is famous for its amber where ancient insects are often embedded!

The registration for the conference opened on March 15th. Please read and follow the instructions for submission of your abstract. You can also choose and book the hotel at the same time as you register. Various alternatives for lodging and prices are available! Please, remember to register before April 30, as it will be more expensive after that date. Information will be uploaded continuously at the conference website:http://www.isce2012.gf.vu.lt/

Support for researchers from developing countries and from former Soviet Union countries will be available and students are encouraged to apply for student travel awards. The range of support for the travel awards is from 300 to 750 USD.

Photos from Vilnius and surroundings

Our current Vice President and designated ISCE President 2012-2013

Ring T. Cardé is Distinguished Professor of Entomology, holder of the A.M. Boyce Chair in Entomology, and until 2009 was Chair of the Department of Entomology, University of California, Riverside, which he joined in 1996.  His previous post was Distinguished University Professor and Head of Entomology at the University of Massachusetts.  He started his academic career in 1975 at Michigan State University, following a postdoctoral with Wendell Roelofs at Cornell University’s New York State Agricultural Experiment Station in Geneva.  Ring grew up with a fascination for studying insects, particularly moths, and received a B.S. in Biology from Tufts University and M.S. and Ph.D. degrees in Entomology from Cornell University.  His interests in moth biology led him to graduate work deciphering taxonomic and biological relationships in an obscure group of hard-to-tell-apart moths.  In turn this led him to study pheromone communication in moths and how distinctive chemical channels foster reproductive isolation among closely related species.  Of late his research group has concentrated on how flying male moths and female mosquitoes use odor plumes to navigate a course to an odor source, respectively, a pheromone-emitting female moth or a prospective vertebrate host.  Such studies rely principally on analyses of video records of flight tracks and an understanding of the fluid dynamics of odor dispersion.

He has published 235 scientific papers and reviews and edited 7 books on insect chemical ecology, pheromones, and insect biology.  He is a Fellow of the Entomological Society of America, the Entomological Society of Canada, the American Association for the Advancement of Science, and the Royal Entomological Society.  In 2009 he was awarded our society’s Silver Medal.

Please vote for the next ISCE Vice President!

Nomination of next ISCE Vice President (2012-2013):  Stefan Schulz

Vice-President

Dr. Stefan Schulz is Full Professor of Organic Chemistry, University of Braunschweig – Institute of Technology, since 1997. Since 2006 he serves as the head of the Institute of Organic Chemistry of this University. He studied Chemistry in Hamburg and obtained his PhD in the group of Wittko Francke in 1987, working on the chemistry of butterflies. A post-doc time with Jerrold Meinwald at Cornell University, Ithaca, USA, followed in 1988. After returning to Hamburg he joined a priority program on Chemical Ecology of the German Science foundation and obtained his habilitation in 1994, working on arthropod chemical communication. After moving to Braunschweig, his main research interest is the Chemistry of Chemical Communication, concentrating on the analysis, synthesis and biosynthesis of semiochemicals and related compounds in the broadest sense. He lectures courses on chemical synthesis and natural products. After initial interest in butterflies and spiders, he currently is engaged also in bacterial communication and reptile as well as amphibian pheromone and chemical defense systems. He has published almost 140 papers and edited two books, concentrating on the chemical side of Chemical Ecology.

Please vote for the four new Councilors (you can vote for four colleagues)!

Nomination of ISCE Councilors 2012:

Dr. Junwei (Jerry) Zhu is a Research Chemical Ecologist/Entomologist with the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service, Agroecosystem Management Research Unit in Lincoln, Nebraska, USA. He received his Ph.D. in Chemical Ecology from Lund University, Sweden in 1995 under the supervision of Prof. Christer Löfstedt. He did his postdoctoral training with Prof. Kenneth Haynes in the University of Kentucky (1995-96), before joining as a Faculty member in Lund University (1997-1998). During his research career at Iowa State University (1998-2007), Dr. Zhu started his entrepreneurship with a start-up Biotech company (MSTRS Technologies, Inc.), together with the ISCE Silver Medal Award Winner Prof. Tom Baker, that researches, develops and manufactures semiochemical-based products for controlling insect pests in agricultural and urban settings. The company received the 2007 National Tibbetts Award (top 40 among 4000 small companies selected in the US). In 2008, Dr. Zhu joined the USDA-ARS, with his research focusing on medical and veterinary entomology including infochemical interactions among pest insects, hosts and their environment (microbial community). He regularly publishes and reviews manuscripts in many peer-reviewed scientific journals, with over 50 of his publications in Chemical Ecology. Dr. Zhu has currently served as the Secretary of the Asia Pacific Chemical Ecologist Association, a sister society of ISCE.

Dr. Ann M. Ray is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Biology at Xavier University, a position she has held since 2010.  She completed an undergraduate degree in biology with a minor concentration in chemistry at Bellarmine University, in Louisville, KY.  She earned her M.S. and Ph.D. at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, where her research focused on the chemical ecology of longhorned beetles and evolution of volatile pheromone use within the longhorned beetle subfamily Cerambycinae.  Following graduation in 2009, she accepted a post-doctoral position in the research group of former ISCE president, Jocelyn Millar, at the University of California, Riverside.  Annie’s research continues to focus on identification of volatile pheromones and on the role of volatile pheromones in the evolution of mating systems of longhorned beetles. Annie maintains active research collaborations with Dr. Millar, and with her Ph.D. advisor, Lawrence Hanks.  She has conducted research projects in Kentucky, Illinois, California, and Arizona in the US, and in Sonora, Mexico.  She recently extended her field work to include sites in Ohio in the US, and in the Atlantic rainforests of Costa Rica.  Her current academic appointment includes directing the research of undergraduate students who are completing independent projects on chemical ecology of longhorned beetles. Since 2003, Annie has authored/co-authored 13 publications on pheromones of longhorned beetles, seven of which have appeared in Journal of Chemical Ecology.

Dr. Matthias Erb heads the research group „Root-Herbivore Interactions“ at the Max Planck Institute for Chemical Ecology in Jena, Germany. He is interested in understanding the chemical interface between below ground herbivores and their host plants, including root volatiles, exudates and defensive secondary metabolites.  His group also works on indirect interactions between above- and below ground feeders, with the aim to unravel the systemic plant signals that connect leaves and roots. As a PhD student, Matthias won several prizes, including the presentation award of the ISCE in 2008. Three years and 25 publications later, he serves on the editorial board of the Journal of Chemical Ecology and enjoys supporting the ISCE in any way possible.

Dr. Birgit Piechulla studied Biology (Diplom) at the University of Oldenburg and Göttingen (major subjects Microbiology, Biochemistry and Organic Chemistry) (Prof. G. Gottschalk). The PhD thesis (“Mitochondrial elongation factor of yeast”) was performed at the Max-Planck-Institut for Experimental Medicine (Göttingen). I was postdoc at UC Berkeley in Willi Gruissem’s lab and studied plant molecular biology (‚chloroplast differentiation during tomato fruit development’)(1984-1986). After returning to Germany I joined the plant biochemistry group of Prof. HW. Heldt (University of Göttingen) where I habilitated (1992) (“Molecular mechanisms of the circadian clock in tomato”). Since 1996 I have been full professor at the University of Rostock being responsible for the biochemistry education of diploma, bachelor, master and PhD students. A textbook “Plant Biochemistry” was published together with Prof. HW. Heldt. My recent research interest focused on secondary metabolites, i) plant volatile synthesis (enzyme isolation, characterization, evolution and regulation) and ii) bacterial volatile emission. Regarding the latter topic, it was only recently recognized that bacteria, including rhizobacteria, emit a wealth of volatiles. These bacterial blends affect plant and fungal growth dramatically and therefore it is my major future goal to unravel the complex volatile spectra and determine the biological functions and relevance of the volatiles in the respective ecosystems, e.g. in the soil.

Robert A. Raguso Professor, Dept. of Neurobiology and Behavior, Cornell University, USA

I became a chemical ecologist to better understand how complex interactions between insects and plants are mediated in ecological and evolutionary time. My doctoral thesis explored evolutionary shifts in floral volatile production by Clarkia breweri plants, at the chemical, genetic, physiological and ecological levels of organization. As a postdoc, I shifted my attention to insect electrophysiological and behavioral responses to floral volatiles as a postdoc, working with Manduca sexta moths and a guild of night-blooming plants pollinated by them, and using phylogenetic methods to parse signal from noise in complex volatile blends. Since then, my research program has expanded to include several plant lineages and model pollination systems, with the common goal of understanding how natural variation in chemical signals produced by plants is generated and maintained, and how pollinators and other animals integrate such information in their foraging behavior.

 Positions Available

Positions available are continuously posted at the website.

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Issue 2011:3

Content:
President’s Message
ISCE meeting in Vancouver 2011
ISCE Meeting 2012
Future Chemical Ecology Meetings
Call for Nominations
Other News
Upcoming meetings
Positions Available
Secretary / Editor’s Message

President’s Message

            I am writing this message from the south of Brazil, where we can feel the warm breezes that soon will bring us another wonderful summer. I am particularly happy that, for the first time in the history of our Society, this message will reach you filled with warmth from South America.

After attending my first ISCE meeting in Chile as a Ph.D. student in 1995, I decided to pursue a career in chemical ecology. At the meeting in Chile I met people that, until then, were simply author names of my favorite papers. To this day, my conversations then with Wittko Francke (ISCE president, 1989-1990) and Kenji Mori (ISCE president 1992-1993) are still fresh in my mind. And, I remember well the social lecture (I think it was a social lecture!) given by John Pickett (ISCE president, 1995-1996), which was the most outstanding and hilarious lecture that I had ever heard at a scientific meeting. Definitely, that atmosphere and all that science conquered me!

The multidisciplinary nature of chemical ecology requires each of us to be members of various “parent” scientific societies (chemistry, entomology, etc.). However, the International Society of Chemical Ecology is unique compared to other societies, exactly because it promotes the integration and socialization among researchers from disparate, although complementary, backgrounds.  Synergisms created by collaborations among various professionals are undoubtedly largely responsible for the wealth of knowledge that flows from our studies of inter- and intra-specific chemical communication, the main focus of our “still young” discipline.  Being President of such a Society is reason to be very proud, which I am!

During my 16-year career in chemical ecology, great economic and social changes have occurred around the world, and the same is true for the field of chemical ecology. I do not refer merely to the revelations in the various avenues of semiochemical research (pheromones, insect-plant interactions, allelopathy, etc.) we have seen through the years in the Journal of Chemical Ecology, most recently from the tireless efforts of our editor, John Romeo. I also refer to the geographical evolution of chemical ecology.

Nowadays we have newly established associations that conduct semi-international meetings of outstanding scientific quality, such as the Asia-Pacific Association of Chemical Ecologists (APACE) and the Latin American Association of Chemical Ecologists (ALAEQ). In addition, there are national chemical ecology meetings in Brazil and China, for example, that communicate and promote regional advances in chemical ecology.  Plus, there are workshops such as those taking place in the African continent aiming to establish cooperation among African and non-African researchers.  The ISCE shall always be supportive of these regional events to help further the common goals of Chemical Ecology. This fact, along with the increasing number of young researchers and students pursuing chemical ecology, ensures healthy growth of our discipline across the planet.

I cannot forget in this message to thank Erika Plettner and her team for having organized our last annual meeting in Canada some months ago. Indeed, I would like to invite all of you to attend our next meeting that will be held in Vilnius, Lithuania in 2012, where Vincas Buda has been working to organize another great scientific conference. Also, I would like to call attention to the first joint APACE-ISCE meeting that will be held in Melbourne, Australia, in 2013; this will certainly be a milestone in the globalization of Chemical Ecology.

Finally, I wish to express my personal gratitude to my predecessors, Monika Hilker (ISCE president, 2010-2011) and Jeffrey Aldrich (ISCE president, 2009-2010) for their support, encouragement and nomination. I am particularly grateful to Walter Leal (ISCE President, 2000-2001) for all he has taught me about chemical ecology (and I hope I have learned!), and for his unwavering support throughout my career. I remember some words from Walter during his speech at the 2000 ISCE annual meeting in Poços de Caldas, Brazil: “The International Society of Chemical Ecology is like a big family”. I fully agree with this sentiment. I hope and trust that this family remains united with truly fraternal bonds, and continues to grow in good health. See you all in Lithuania in 2012, if not before. Saúde!

Paulo H. G. Zarbin

ISCE president

ISCE meeting 2011 in Burnaby, Vancouver

Parts of the Simon Fraser University–you can easily recognize the chemistry buildings with the ventilation channels on the roof.

The meeting host Erika Plettner and President Monika Hilker during a break with the beautiful Vancouver Bay in the background.

The Indians know the importance of insects.  Here are examples of bumble bee masks (photo from the impressive ethnographic museum in Vancouver).

ISCE people socializing during the final banquet

In total, 209 researchers and accompanying persons participated in the Vancouver meeting, the majority from USA and Canada but also from Europe; Germany and Sweden had several representatives. The conference was held at Simon Fraser University Campus in Burnaby. The university is located outside Vancouver surrounded by beautiful mountains. The buildings in concrete form an impressive complex and show many interesting architectural solutions. For those who were lodged within the campus, a 10 minutes’ walk each morning was made in a nice summer temperature (20 degrees) to the conference localities where breakfast was served just outside the lecture rooms.

The scientific program was comprised of 9 symposia:

1. Efficient synthesis and new methods for the identification of semiochemicals and natural products (organizers: B. Torto and J. Bergmann)

2. Chemical ecology and natural products of marine organisms (organizer: K. VanAlstyne)

3. Multimodal communication (integration of olfaction, taste, vision, acoustics and mechanoreception) in arthropods (organizers: G. Gries, J. Millar)

4. Chemical ecology of microorganisms, including symbionts and pathogens of plants and animals; soil microorganisms (organizer: S. Schulz)

5. Social insects (organizers: Y. LeConte, R. Van der Meer)

6. Neural function and modulation underlying chemosensory driven behavior (organizers: B. Hansson, M. Ozaki)

7. Chemical ecology in forest ecosystems (organizers: C. Keeling, D. Huber, B. Aukema)

8. Genomics and chemical ecology (organizers: C. Keeling, D. Huber)

9. Plant natural products and chemical ecology (organizers: T. Hartmann, M. Heil)

For those who did not attend, please visit the abstract book, which was uploaded to our website under “Meetings.”

This year we had two inspiring Silverstein-Simeone- award lectures:

Coby Schal, Chemoreception in the German cockroach: A Potpourri of Novel

Semiochemistry, Behavior and Adaptive Evolution.

and

Kenneth Raffa: Terpenes Tell Different Tales at Different Scales: The Chemical Ecology Of

Conifer – Bark Beetle -Microbial Interactions.

We also had the pleasure to listen Paul Feeny’s stimulating Silver Medal Lecture: Fifty Years of Exploration and Adventure as a Chemical Ecologist.

The lectures showed clearly that what is needed to be successful in science: combine research areas that are not easily connected and think interdisciplinarily.

This year 19 travel stipends were funded. The travel award winners 2011 are:

Lynne Jeffares

Erin Clark

Claudia Dussaubat

Ricarda Kather

Patrick Lhomme

Marion Chartier

Mohamed Saveer Ahmed

Ezra Schwartzberg

Anja Strauss

Simon Zebelo

Mohammed Shabab

Yang Yu

Brinda Prasad

Carolina Sellanes

Ayuka Fombong

Yuanyuan Song

Christian Salcedo

Domancar Orona-Tamayo

Rosario Razo-Belmán

Students are encouraged to apply for travel stipends for the meeting in Vilnius.  Information will be found on the ISCE website early next year.

ISCE meeting 2012

The ISCE meeting 2012 will be located in the beautiful city of Vilnius in Lithuania from July 22-25, and Prof. Vincas Buda will be our host.

Preliminary symposia titles are:

1. Plant-animal interactions

2. Chemical ecology meets evolutionary and molecular biology

3. Biosynthesis and chemistry of natural products

4. Chemical ecology of microorganisms

5. Chemical ecology of vertebrates

6. Aquatic chemical ecology

7. Climate change, invasive species and chemical ecology

8. Applied chemical ecology

Future Chemical Ecology Meetings

VII Brazilian Meeting on Chemical Ecology (VII EBEQ)

Dear Colleagues,

We are pleased to invited you to participate in the VII Brazilian Meeting on Chemical Ecology (VII EBEQ) at Universidade Federal Fluminense, Niterói, Rio de Janeiro from 4th – 7th December 2011.  Details of conference, organizers, accommodation, registration are given at our website https://www.metaeventos.net/ebeq2011/

Contact information:
Prof. Carolina Spiegel
Universidade Federal Fluminense, Niterói, RJ, Brazil
carolina.spiegel@gmail.com

2^nd Meeting of ALAEQ:

The 2nd Meeting of the Latin American Association for Chemical Ecology (ALAEQ) will be December 2-5, 2012 in Huerta Grande, Cordoba province, Argentina.  After the success of our first meeting in Uruguay in 2010, we were encouraged to organize this event again, hoping to bring together highly qualified speakers and very enthusiastic Latin-American students and postdocs.  Areas of research to be represented will include insect-plant interactions, pest control, pheromone chemistry, vectors of disease, olfactory behavior, neurobiology of olfaction and taste, molecular biology of olfaction.  The meeting will include conference talks, symposia, student talks and poster sessions.

A hilly landscape and favorable weather conditions are distinctive of the Córdoba province, in the heart of Argentina. Little towns, historical antiquities and traditional farmhouses are found in a pleasant valley landscape, high plains and gorges. Outdoors activities include mountaineering, climbing, trekking, horseback riding, mountain biking, photography safaris, plant and animal (condor!) watching, paragliding flights and ballooning. Córdoba’s rivers and streams crossing hillsides with crystal-clear waters with plenty of trout are ideal for fly fishing.  Huerta Grande is a small town situated 80 km NW from Cordoba city, a city of ca. 1 million people with an international airport.  The meeting will be held in Casa Serrana, a hotel compound that includes hotel rooms, conference rooms, ample gardens and a sports area.

Contact information:
Pablo G. Guerenstein, Ph.D.
Full Professor UNER
Researcher-National Research Council
Entre Rios, Argentina
pabloguerenstein@cicyttp.org.ar.

Joint ISCE-APACE meeting in Melbourne, Australia, 2013

Presentation of the joint host-organization team will be made in the first newsletter in 2012.

Call for Nominations for the Year 2012 ISCE Silver Medal and Silverstein-Simeone Awards.

The ISCE Silver Medal Award recognizes career achievement by an outstanding scientist working in the field of chemical ecology. The Silverstein-Simeone Award, established in 1995, to honor Milt Silverstein and John Simeone, is made on the basis of recent or current work of an outstanding nature at the “cutting edge” of chemical ecology. The recipient must deliver a plenary lecture at the annual ISCE meeting and publish a paper on the same topic in the Journal of Chemical Ecology. The expenses of the recipient of the Silverstein-Simeone Award to attend the annual meeting are paid by the society through the generous sponsorship of Springer Publishers. Nominators should be ISCE members in good standing. Nominations will be reviewed by the President and Vice President for relevance to the appropriate award, before forwarding them to the full ISCE Executive Committee. Should a nomination for one award be considered more relevant for the other award, the President will contact the nominator(s) regarding reconsideration. Current ISCE officers or councilors are not eligible for the awards because of possible conflict of interest. Note that previous, unsuccessful nominations must be re-nominated to be considered for the awards. It would be helpful to resubmit the nomination packets for these individuals. 

The nomination process is the same for both awards and is as follows: 

• A nomination letter explaining why the nominee should be recognized for the award, stressing either their current cutting-edge research (for the Silverstein-Simeone award) or their career achievements (for the Silver Medal award). 

• Curriculum vitae, including a list of publications pertinent to the research on which the award is based (for the Silverstein-Simeone award), or a full list of publications (for the Silver Medal award). Supporting letters from other colleagues may be included. 

Please submit all parts of the packet in electronic format (including supporting letters) along with one paper copy to: 

Prof. Paulo H G Zarbin, ISCE President, 

E-mail: pzarbin@ufpr.br

Telephone:  +55 41 3361 3174  Fax:  +55 41 3361 3186

Deadline for receipt of nominations: 31 January 2012.

Call for Nominations for ISCE Vice-President, and Councilors for 2012.

Nominations for the positions of Vice-President and three new councilors are called. The position of Vice-President is prestigious in that he/she will assume the position of Society President in the year following the tenure as Vice-President.

     ISCE councilors are elected for a term of three years. Councilors must commit to attending at least two ISCE executive meetings during this period. Their other principal responsibilities are participation in the selection of the Silver Medal and Silverstein-Simeone Awards, and to provide general guidance and assistance to the Executive Committee. It is expected that all people nominated for the above positions have a strong record of participation in Society activities and meetings. It is highly desirable that the elections have competition for the positions, i.e., that there is more than one candidate for Vice-President and at least 4 candidates for the councilor positions. 

Please send names, contact addresses, phone and fax numbers, and e-mail addresses of candidates along with a short description of why you think the candidate(s) would be suitable for office, to:

Prof. Paulo H G Zarbin, ISCE President, 

E-mail: pzarbin@ufpr.br

Telephone:  +55 41 3361 3174  Fax:  +55 41 3361 3186

Deadline for receipt of nominations: 31 January 2012 

Other News

Upcoming meetings:

Information of any upcoming meetings in related areas is published on the website as soon as we receive it from our members. 

Positions Available

During the last two month several new positions have been posted on our website, under “new positions.”

Secretary / Editor’s Message

Dear members! The newsletter will reflect your interests. You are cordially invited to submit what you think could interest our members. Photos, new findings, ideas to discuss, see also link to twitter. Please send information about courses and meetings of interest!

New for this autumn is the free access to commentaries that are published in the Journal of Chemical Ecology.  These commentaries are meant as a base for further discussions of research and research direction in chemical ecology—read and discuss ! We are grateful to the editor of JCE, John Romeo, and Springer for the free-access link.

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Content

Secretary / Editor’s Message

Our new councillors, treasurer and vice president

Advertisements of available positions

Secretary / Editor’s Message

Dear members! The next annual meeting of our society is coming closer. Erika Plettner, the host of the meeting in Vancouver, Canada, is busy preparing our get-together. For further information on this next ISCE meeting, please have a look at http://www.sfu.ca/~isce/

The preliminary date for the ISCE meeting in 2012 in Vilnius, Lithuania, is July 22 – 26, 2012. Vincas Buda will be the host of this meeting.

During the last weeks, we have presented several candidates for vacant councilor positions and other executive committee positions. Finally 218 of our members have voted, and the results are shown below. We welcome our new Vice President Ring T.Cardé, our new Treasurer Jeremy D. Allison and our four new Councilors Hans T. Alborn, Carmen Rossini Caridad, Maria Carolina Blassioli Moraes and Alejandra J. Troncoso. Our councilors are important for our society life, for all scientific, business, and social issues of the ISCE. We look forward to the input of our new councilors and members of the executive committee!

And we are looking forward to meeting you in Vancouver and having the chance to present and discuss our recent scientific results, to promote new ideas and projects, and to enjoy our society life!

The ISCE home page is continously updated, so please visit regurlary the homepage for recent news.

Our new councillors:

Hans T. Alborn is a research chemist at USDA ARS Center for Medical, Agricultural and Veterinary Entomology, Gainesville FL.  He might be best known as an analytical chemist/mass spectrometrist with a keen interest in the development and optimizing of GC/MS and LC/MS based techniques.  However, his main research has always been focused on plant – insect interactions with a specific interest in host plant attraction and selection for feeding as well as oviposition and how these behaviors are affected by feeding induced plant responses.  He is also interested in synergistic interactions between insect pheromones and constitutive as well as induced host plant volatiles.  In addition he is also involved in below ground chemical ecology, studying nematode behavior such as host attraction and pheromone mediated interactions.  Dr. Alborn has authored/co-authored more than 60 publications of which 15 have been in the Journal of Chemical Ecology.
 

Carmen Rossini Caridad was born in Uruguay (January 8th, 1967). She graduated as a Bachelor (Chemistry) in 1989 and with a Pharmaceutical Chemist degree in 1992, both at the Universidad de la República (Uruguay). She completed her doctoral studies at Cornell University with Professor Thomas Eisner (1999) where she studied dynamics of chemical defenses in insects. She has also spent a time with Professor Isao Kubo at Berkeley (2005) and two periods of time at the Consejo Superior de Invetigaciones Científicas (CSIC), Madrid with Dr. Azucena González-Coloma (2007, 2009), in both cases working with chemical defenses from plants.  Currently she is an Associated Professor at the Chemistry School (Universidad de la República) where she co-founded the Chemical Ecology Laboratory (http://leq.fq.edu.uy/). At present, Carmen teaches Biology for the Chemistry Major, and Chemical Ecology (Chemistry Major and graduated students). She has published 41 papers which include different topics on Bioactive Natural Products (CV at http://www.anii.org.uy/SNI_areas.php?area=1). Since her coming back to Uruguay, she has got several international and national grants; and has been awarded national and international awards including the National Prize of the Veterinary Academy (2009), and a TWAS-Rolac award for young scientist (2006) for her studies on semiochemicals. Recently, she co-organized the 1^st Meeting of the Latin American Association of Chemical Ecology (ALAEQ), being currently a member of the ALAEQ board. Carmen is now working on chemical and biological characterization of secondary metabolites (chemical defenses from plant and insects, botanicals and insect-plant interactions).

Maria Carolina Blassioli Moraes was born in Brazil in November 20^th November, 1970. She graduated with a Bachelors Degree in Chemical Technology from the University of Campinas – SP, Brazil (1995), a Master’s degree in Chemistry from the University of São Paulo – São Paulo – SP, Brazil (1997), and a Ph.D. in Analytical Chemistry from the University of São Paulo – SP, Brazil (2001). She spent two periods of time as a Post-Doctoral Research Fellow , the first one in 2002 at the Centre for Nuclear Energy in Agriculture (Cena / USP), After completing the first fellowship, she officially joined the staff at Embrapa Genetic Resources and Biotechnology (CENARGEN, Brasilia) in 2002  as a research scientist in the Chemical Ecology group. At the start of her employment with CENARGEN, Dr. Moraes has visited the Laboratory of Jeffrey Aldrich (USDA-ARS) and Jocelyn Millar (University of California – Riverside) to gain experience with her new research area. In 2005, she undertook her second post doctorate at Rothamsted Research – England, alongside Mike Birkett and John Pickett, from where she gained experience in Chemistry with emphasis in analytical chemistry, acting on the following topics: elucidating the chemical basis ofcis-jasmone induced defence in wheat and soybean for aphid and stinkbug control, the identification of stinkbug sex pheromones, including deployment of novel analytical techniques for undertaking these investigations. She has been an ISCE member since 2005 and has been attending the ISCE meeting regularly since then. She has been building her curriculum with relevant works regarding the Chemical Ecology subjects. During the last five years she has published 23 papers about Chemical Ecology studies and she is scientific adviser of the recently created Latin American Association of Chemical Ecology (ALAEQ), it shows her commitment to promoting chemical ecology in Latin America. She is academic councilor of Master and Ph.D. students from distinguished Universities from Brazil covering the main research subjects of chemical ecology such as, chemical characterization of volatiles molecules, insect behavior, and development analytical methods for semiochemicals studies involving tritrophic interactions.  She received an award as distinct young scientist by the Distrito Federal State Foundation in 2009, and was also awarded several times by the Brazilian Agricultural Research Corporation (Embrapa) for her achievements on Chemical Ecology studies.

Alejandra J. Troncoso is currently working at the Laboratorio de Química Ecológica, Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad de Chile. She obtained her licentiate degree in Biology at the Universidad Mayor de San Simón (UMSS) in Cochabamba, Bolivia in 2002. The same year, she started a LANBIO fellowship at the Laboratory of Chemical Ecology at the Universidad de Chile under the guidance of Dr. Hermann Niemeyer. In 2005 she entered the PhD program in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology at the Universidad the Chile and continued her ecological chemistry training. To date, she has guided the research work of three LANBIO fellows from Bolivia, and two undergrads from Chile in diverse ecological chemistry research themes. Once she obtains her PhD degree she plans to return to Bolivia and start the first Ecological Chemistry Laboratory in Bolivia centered at UMSS and sheltered by the first Chile – Bolivia collaboration in Ecological Chemistry. Her research focuses on the influence of multitrophic interactions (mediated by both physical and chemical cues) on the evolution of barriers to gene flow in sympatry.

Our new treasurer:

Dr. Jeremy D. Allison is an Assistant Professor at Louisiana State University.  He received his undergraduate degree in Biology at the University of Guelph, and a Master of Pest Management (MPM) at Simon Fraser University (SFU). His MPM degree dealt with chemical ecology studies of long-horned beetles and bark beetles. His Ph.D. is from the University of California at Riverside (UCR) with a research focus on studies of the evolution of pheromone communication in Lepidoptera. He has had the pleasure of conducting studies with two ISCE Silver Medal Award winners (Professors John Borden at SFU and Professor Ring Cardé at UCR). His current research and teaching focus on integrated pest management and chemical ecology of forest insect pests. Some of his current projects include: 1) Investigation of chemically-mediated interspecific sub-cortical interactions among larval bark and cerambycid beetles; and 2) The role of pheromones in reproductive isolation and niche partitioning in southern Ips bark beetles.

Our new vice president:

Ring T. Cardé is Distinguished Professor of Entomology, holder of the A.M. Boyce Chair in Entomology, and until 2009 Chair of the Department of Entomology, University of California, Riverside, which he joined in 1996.  His previous post was Distinguished University Professor and Head of Entomology at the University of Massachusetts.  He started his academic career in 1975 at Michigan State University, following a postdoctoral with Wendell Roelofs at Cornell University’s New York State Agricultural Experiment Station in Geneva.  Ring grew up with a fascination for studying insects, particularly moths, and received a B.S. in Biology from Tufts University and M.S. and Ph.D. degrees in Entomology from Cornell University.  His interests in moth biology led him to graduate work deciphering taxonomic and biological relationships in an obscure group of hard-to-tell-apart moths.  In turn this led him to study pheromone communication in moths and how distinctive chemical channels foster reproductive isolation among closely related species.  Of late his research group has concentrated on how flying male moths and female mosquitoes use odor plumes to navigate a course to an odor’s source, respectively, a pheromone-emitting female moth or a prospective vertebrate host.  Such studies rely principally on analyses of video records of flight tracks and an understanding of the fluid dynamics of odor dispersion. He has published 230 scientific papers and reviews and edited 6 books on insect chemical ecology, pheromones, and insect biology.  He is a Fellow of the Entomological Society of America, the Entomological Society of Canada, the American Association for the Advancement of Science, and the Royal Entomological Society.  In 2009 he was awarded our society’s Silver Medal.

Advertisements of available positions

Information of available positions is continuously updated, so please visit the ISCE homepage!

Follow @ISCEweb

Follow @ISCEweb

Secretary / Editor’s Message

Dear members! This newsletter contains the link to the latest news from the upcoming ISCE meeting in Vancouver, presentation of the award winners and information about the election of the new Vice President, a new Treasurer, and new Councilors. The current executives also thank all our candidates in this election for volunteering!

Please read the candidates ‘curricula vitae or statements and then fill in the ballot on the ISCE webpage before June 1 2011.https://sites.google.com/a/chemecol.org/welcome/ballot

There are very sad news: in March, Prof. em. Tom Eisner has passed away. We all are sorely missing him. Please find below an obituary written by Prof. Robert A. Raguso.

ISCE Award Winners for 2012 Awards

Silver Medal Award: Tom Baker
Congratulations on your selection to receive the Silver Medal Award
of the International Society of Chemical Ecology for 2012.

http://ento.psu.edu/chemical-ecology

Silverstein-Simeone Award: Julia Kubanek 
Congratulations on your selection to receive the Silverstein-Simeone Award of the International Society of Chemical Ecology for 2012.

Follow @ISCEweb

Follow @ISCEweb

CONTENTS

IN THIS ISSUE

• President’s Message
• Secretary / Editor’s Message
• ISCE meeting 2010
• Future ISCE Meeting Sites (Hosts)
• ISCE Medal Award Winners 2011
• Call for Nominations
• Member News
• Upcoming meetings
• Positions Available

President’s Message

Perception of and appropriate response to environmental signals is essential for all organisms, including ourselves, ISCE members. The ISCE is dedicated to chemical signals and the fascinating, “silent” chemical language used by organisms for intra- and interspecific communication.

The life of our society is fueled by the many diverse secrets that we try to disclose when analyzing chemical information transfer among organisms: How are the words of the chemical language spelled, i.e. what are their chemical structures? What is the syntax of a communicative channel, i.e. which words are used and in which sequence and doses? How are the words formed,  i.e. what are the biosynthetic pathways and which genes need to be expressed to form the words?  How are the words perceived and the sentences integrated, i.e. what are the receptors, and how do the chemicals reach the receptor and activate intraorganismic signalling? Why do the organisms studied convey information with a specific chemical word or set of words, i.e. what is the benefit of using these words?  These are just some of the scientific aspects we members of the ISCE are addressing.

It is an honor and a pleasure to be the President of such a spirited society. As much as chemical information transfer among organisms is our scientific focus, lively communication among chemical ecologists worldwide – from East to West, from North to South – is a matter close to our heart.  The need for intense cooperation as well as intercontinental meetings of chemical and molecular ecologists (such as with APACE and ALAEQ) is an important issue that was discussed extensively at the most recent annual ISCE meeting. I definitely want to promote this issue and hope to bring it closer to fruition. Another important issue that I feel our society needs to address is to encourage students and young scientists to join us and become members. Energetic, great personalities founded the ISCE in the early 1980´s, and the society was strengthened during the last decades by both excellent scientific contributions and numerous social activities. Among such are: hosting and attending meetings, over taking society duties, providing recognition medals for service and accomplishments, creating entertainment and amusement, and even washing the President´s yellow tie. The “parents” of the society can look back on the significant accomplishments achieved thus far. Like any family, we need the young people, as they infuse the society with new ideas and innovation which enrich old traditions. Thus continuing and intensifying our efforts to integrate the young, bright students and scientists into our society is crucial.

Finally, I would like to take this opportunity to express my warmest thanks to Anne-Genevieve Bagneres who hosted the 26th annual ISCE meeting this summer in Tours, France. She allowed us not only to experience a highly interesting scientific meeting, but also to enjoy the odor and taste of delicious French wine and food that included royal atmosphere at the final banquet. Wonderful!  Thank you, Anne-Gen! I also thank Erika Plettner, who is currently  preparing and organizing our next annual meeting in 2011 in Vancouver, Canada, and who already has compiled an excellent programme. The hosting of a meeting is an enormous task and I am grateful  for her diligent efforts. I also express many thanks to my immediate predecessors Jeff Aldrich (ISCE President 2009-2010) and Willi Boland (ISCE President 2008-2009) for their support and commitments.

Finally, last but not least, I want to encourage all of you to “get involved!” in the society´s affairs, to communicate and discuss ISCE issues not only during a meeting, but also in between. Please communicate with each other and with me! I look forward to your ideas and suggestions.

Monika Hilker
President, ISCE

Secretary/Editors Message

Next year UNESCO has appointed 2011 to be the International Year of Chemistry. As chemical ecologists we should be able to give many examples of positive, good chemistry. There is a general impression that chemistry is dangerous and thus no alternative for young people. As we need highly qualified chemists also in the future, we have to find new ways to increase the number of students that like chemistry. With the recent catastrophe in Hungary in mind we need to announce that chemistry to the main part should be associated with something very positive.

Therefore if we can list examples where chemistry has played a significant positive role, I would very much appreciate and look forward to ideas from you that we can add to the webpage for next year 2011, so students can find examples of good chemistry. During teaching we could recommend undergraduate students to go to the home page of ISCE to find these examples.

Reminder: To all members who have changed their mail address in the last year, please send me the new address. akbk@kth.se

ISCE Meeting2010

Report by Anne-Gen Bagnères, organizer of the congress

This congress seems to have been a historic step in the life of the society, not only because of the largest attendance in 26 years (over 350 registrants from 42 countries, with 195 scientists and 131

students, plus accompanying persons) but also because of the overall quality of the science. “We could see our field maturing in the depth and range of its studies in a most impressive way,” wrote Jerry Meinwald to me. His words echo my feelings. Christer Löfstedt said he returned home
“refreshed, with many new ideas!” This is how one should feel coming back from a congress! I received so many thanks that it is difficult to cite them all but they all went directly to my heart.

I wish to thank all those who helped make this congress such a success (symposium organizers, moderators, speakers, organizing committee, etc). This success is due to their efforts.

Thanks also go to the

sponsors, first of all the CNRS, our mainstay, but also the

Region Centre, my Institute (IRBI), BASF, ChemTica, etc, (a full list of these generous organizations can be found on the web page http://www.atout-org.com/isce2010/sponsors) and also to Trécé Inc., Suterra LLC and Springer for funding the Student Travel Awards, Silver Medal Award and the Silverstein Simeone Award, respectively.
John Borden, who received the silver medal, was a wonderful example of how to be a great scientist, a great applied researcher and a wonderful mentor, and Frank Schroeder, who received the Silverstein Simeone Award, organized nicely a workshop entitled “Identification of chemical signals: comparative metabolomics via NMR and MS” before his great lecture on “Worm chemical biology”.

We invited two special guests: Marc Lemaire addressed his conference on sustainable chemistry, a major challenge for our world, and Marie-Christine Grasse not only talked about perfume but also brought the world of fragrance into the amphitheatre.

All invited lectures by young and not so young chemoecologists were fantastic, and there were many ground-breaking talks on the very diverse topics chosen by the scientific committee – many thanks to them all.
I hope the organizers of the next congresses will feel the same as I did during and after the congress, great joy and emotion because everybody looked so happy to be there, enjoying the fantastic scientific atmosphere and the friendship of the members of the society – old and young! Our society is one of the most open and enjoyable scientific groups, as so many new members told me. It is also what I believe!

The following students from developing countries were awarded 1000 Euros each

Abdullah, Fauzia Dr., University of Malaya, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
Banchio, Erika, PhD, Universidad Vicosa, Rio Cuarto, Argentina
Castelo, Marcela, PhD, Buenos Aires, Argentina
Chokratin, Pakawieng, Ms, CholalongkornUniv., Bangkok, Thailand
de Lima Mendonça, Adriana, Dr., Maceio-alagoas Univ. Federalde Alagoas, Brazil
Rodrigues Vieira, Cecilia, Ms, Brazilia, Brazil
Peris, Amwayi Ms, ICIPE, Nairobi, Kenya
Ranganathan, Yuvaraj, Mr. Bagalore, India
Steenhuisen, Sandy-Lynn, KwaZulu-Natal, South-Africa

Awarded by our society for best oral presentations were Nick Bos, University of Copenhagen, Denmark, and Liz Bosak Pen State, USA; they received 200 EUR each.

Awarded by our society for best poster presentations were Wilfried Kaiser from CNRS-University of Tours, France, and Tobias Otte from Freie Universitaet Berlin, Germany. They received 200 EUR each.

Rachele Adams ( Univ. Copenhagen, Denmark) )and Maki Arakawa (University of Agriculutre and Technology, Tokyo, Japan) received the book  “Insect Hydrocarbons” by Anne Genevieve Bagneres.

The next ISCE annual meeting (July 24 – 28, 2011) is hosted by Erika Plettner:

International Society of Chemical Ecology, 27th Annual Meeting Simon Fraser University, Burnaby, British Columbia, Canada;

A pamphlet can be down loaded here

The topics of the symposia are very attractive:
1. Efficient synthesis and new methods for the identification of semiochemicals and natural products (B. Torto and J. Bergmann)
2. Chemical ecology and natural products of marine organisms (K. VanAlstyne, W. Fenical)
3. Multimodal communication (integration of olfaction, taste, vision, acoustics and mechanoreception) in arthropods (G. Gries, J. Millar)
4. Chemical ecology of microorganisms, including symbionts and pathogens of plants and animals; soil microorganisms (S. Schulz, N. Verhulst)
5. Social insects (Y. LeConte, R. Van der Meer)
6. Neurophysiology and brain development in the perception and/or effects of semiochemicals
(B. Hansson, M. Ozaki)
7. Chemical ecology in forest ecosystems (C. Keeling, D. Huber, B. Aukema)
8. Genomics and chemical ecology (C. Keeling, D. Huber)
9. Plant natural products and chemical ecology (T. Hartmann, M. Heil)
10. Chemical Ecology: public lecture and activities / demonstrations for members of the public
(S. Lavieri, E. Plettner)

Important! Please check whether you need a visa to come to Canada. This website has more information: http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/visit/index.asp

The ISCE meeting 2012 will be located in the beautiful city Vilnius in Lithuania, and Prof. Vincas Buda will be our host.

ISCE Medal Award Winners 2011
After the call for nominations in December 2009 and the elections in 2010 for the awardees in 2011, we herewith announce the names of the following awardees who will be honored at the next ISCE meeting in Vancouver, 2011. You will find further more detailed information about these awardees in our next newsletter.

Silver Medal 2011:
- Paul Feeny, Cornell University, USA

Silverstein Simeone Award:
We have two awardees in 2011:
- Ken Raffa, University of Wisconsin-Madison, USA
- Coby Schal, North Carolina State University, USA.

Call for Nominations

Call for Nominations for the Year 2012 ISCE Silver Medal and Silverstein-Simeone Awards

The ISCE Silver Medal Award is intended to recognize career achievement by an outstanding scientist working in the field of chemical ecology. The Silverstein-Simeone Award, established in 1995, to honor Milt Silverstein and John Simeone, is made on the basis of recent or current work, by the individual, of an outstanding nature at the “cutting edge” of chemical ecology. The recipient must deliver a plenary lecture at the annual ISCE meeting and publish a paper on the same topic in the Journal of Chemical Ecology. The expenses of the recipient of the Silverstein-Simeone Award to attend the annual meeting are paid by the society through the generous sponsorship of Springer Publishers. Nominators should be ISCE members in good standing. Nominations will be reviewed by the President and Vice President for relevance to the appropriate award, before forwarding them to the full ISCE Executive Committee. Should a nomination for one award be considered more relevant for the other award, the President will contact the nominator(s) regarding reconsideration. Current ISCE officers or councilors are not eligible for the awards because of possible conflict of interest. Note that previous, unsuccessful nominations must be re-nominated to be considered for the awards. It would be helpful to resubmit the nomination packets for these individuals.
The nomination process is the same for both awards and is as follows:
• A nomination letter explaining why the nominee should be recognized for the award, stressing either their current cutting-edge research (for the Silverstein-Simeone award) or their career achievements (for the Silver Medal award).
• Curriculum vitae, including a list of publications pertinent to the research on which the award is based (for the Silverstein-Simeone award), or a full list of publications (for the Silver Medal award). Supporting letters from other colleagues may be included.

Please submit all parts of the packet in electronic format (including supporting letters) along with one paper copy to:
Prof. Dr. Monika Hilker, ISCE President,
Freie Universitaet Berlin, Institute of Biology
Haderslebener Str. 9, D-12163 Berlin, Germany

Tel. ++49 30 838 55913
http://www2.biologie.fu-berlin.de/azoet/
Email Monika Hilker [Hilker@zedat.fu-berlin.de]
Deadline for receipt of nominations: 31 January 2011

Call for Nominations for ISCE Vice-President, and Councilors for 2011

Nominations for the positions of Vice-President and three new councilors are called. The position of Vice-President is prestigious in that he/she will assume the position of Society President in the year following the tenure as Vice-President.
ISCE councilors are elected for a term of three years. Councilors must commit to attending at least two ISCE executive meetings during this period. Their other principal responsibilities are participation in the selection of the Silver Medal and Silverstein-Simeone Award, and to provide general guidance and assistance to the Executive Committee. It is expected that all people nominated for the above positions have a strong record of participation in Society activities and meetings. It is highly desirable that the elections have competition for the positions, i.e., that there is more than one high quality candidate for Vice-President and at least 4 candidates for the councilor positions.

Please send names, contact addresses, phone and fax numbers, and e-mail addresses of candidates along with a short description of why you think the candidate(s) would be suitable for office, to:

Prof. Dr. Monika Hilker, ISCE President,
Freie Universitaet Berlin, Institute of Biology
Haderslebener Str. 9, D-12163 Berlin, Germany

Tel. ++49 30 838 55913
http://www2.biologie.fu-berlin.de/azoet/
Email Monika Hilker [Hilker@zedat.fu-berlin.de]
Deadline for receipt of nominations: 31 January 2011

Member news

Hans Visser has initiated a new communication platform, below his message: please visit and join:

“Dear colleague,

A few days ago I started the Insect Chemical Ecology group on www.linkedin.com
I invite you to become member through a LinkedIn profile, sign in on www.linkedin.comand search groups for Insect Chemical Ecology.

General  information on the Insect Chemical Ecology group:

Scientists are invited to share their interest in insect chemical ecology, including insect-insect and insect-plant relationships, tri- and multitrophic interactions, insect chemoreception and ethology, and related disciplines such as chemistry, ecology and physiology.

An open platform is offered for those active in insect chemical ecology in order to establish easy contacts and discussions. Please complete your profile on your present and past scientific interest and include a website for further information. The Insect Chemical Ecology group (ICE) wishes to complement the activities of the ISCE, ESITO, ECRO, ICWI and others. The ICE key words are informal and informative: an easy access network on insect chemical ecology.

Nowadays this is the easy way to share information!
Please consider to invite your colleagues and PhD students to become member of the Insect Chemical Ecology group on LinkedIn.

Kind regards,

Hans Visser
Selterskampweg 3,
6721AP Bennekom, The Netherlands
Phone +31 318 417145; Email    jhvisser@olfacts.nl ; Website www.olfacts.nl

In Memoriam Jan Tengö  July 16, 1939 – June 18, 2010

We are saddened to inform you that our scientific colleague and friend, Professor Jan Tengö,

has passed away after a short time of illness. After academic studies at Uppsala University he completed his PhD-thesis in 1979 with investigations on ”Chemical Signals and Odour-released Behaviour in Andrena Bees (Hymenoptera: Andrenidae)”. A great part of this work was performed at the Uppsala University Ecological Research Station on the island of Öland under the leadership of its famous founder, Professor Bertil Kullenberg. Subsequently, Jan continued his studies along these lines and made major contributions on odour-released behaviour in solitary bees, wasps, and bumblebees as well as on pollinator attraction in orchids. In later times he himself became head of the Research Station. Jan generously received and inspired so many scientists and students from all over the world, who spent periods at the Station for their studies, especially concerning chemical ecology of insects. These impressive activities implied successful interdisciplinary collaborations between biologists and chemists to which he gave untiring support. But apart from encouraging scientists to step into the field of chemical ecology, Jan was also strongly engaged in external activities in the form of excursions, demonstrations and information for the public, especially in the project ”The Gateway to the Alvar”, Öland’s unique landscape that UNESCO recognized as World Heritage. He also participated in teaching at the University of Kalmar.
Jan was a thoughtful, kindhearted, and generous person, an attitude that also characterized his research. Relentless towards himself in his personal commitment to science, he was highly observant and absolutely correct and meticulous in recordings of studies in the field and in the laboratory. And he was a sociable man with a great amount of contagious joie de vivre!
Sharing our sadness over Jan’s death with his wonderful wife Lisa and his children Oskar, Maria, and Peer, we thank him for his personal dedication and all his activities for the benefit of Chemical Ecology. While we miss his personality and his special sense of humor, his scientific achievements will keep him among us.
The Ecological Research Station has now become a Foundation under the new name ”Station Linné Society”. The director is Prof. Dr. Fredrik Ronquist who takes care of the scientific scope and has to keep it running (more information at www.stationlinne.se). The Station needs financial support, and anyone cherishing fond memories on Jan and the ”grand old days” is encouraged to make a donation.
The coordinates of the corresponding bank are:
Ölands Bank, SE 38621-Färjestaden, Sweden
Org. No.          802 441 6003
Bankgiro:        254-8246
IBAN: SE 81 8000 0803 0907 3052 9575
BIC:                SWEDSESS

Wittko Francke, Gunnar Bergström, Anna-Karin Borg-Karlson, Manfred Ayasse

Upcoming meetings

Dear colleagues,
We wish to bring to your attention that the 12th meeting on

Chemical Signals in Vertebrates (CSiV XII), is scheduled to take place in Berlin, Germany, 27th – 31st August 2011. http://tinyurl.com/CSiV2011

Following the excellent tradition established by previous CSiV meetings, the aim of the forthcoming CSiV XII, which will be organised by the Leibniz Institute for Zoo and Wildlife Research (IZW), is to provide a stimulating, focused forum for scientists to present their recent findings, discuss ideas and hear about new advances. We are happy to receive your suggested topics for sessions during the meeting.

As the venue for the CSiV XII meeting in Berlin in August 2011 will be determined by the number of likely participants, we would be grateful if you could let us know if you think you are likely to attend.

For all matters regarding the meeting please contact Dehnhard@izw-berlin.de.
Hoping to hear from you,
The local organizing committee: Marion East & Martin Dehnhard

Dr. Martin Dehnhard
Research Group Reproduction Biology
Leibniz Institute for Zoo & Wildlife Research
Alfred-Kowalke-Str. 17
10315 Berlin, Germany
Tel.: +49-30-5168-615
www.izw-berlin.de
Positions Available

Spain: PhD Studentship, Insect olfactory neuroethology 
Department of Crop and Forest Sciences, University of Lleida, Lleida, Spain
The aim of the project is to characterize the neuroethological components of the olfactory response of the Oriental fruit moth, Grapholita molesta, to host plant volatiles and sex pheromones. The combination of plant volatiles with pheromone can improve pheromone efficiency in pest control. Behavioral responses to pheromone and plant stimuli in the wind tunnel and in the field will be studied together with physiological responses at the peripheral and central nervous system levels. Flight-track analysis, electrophysiology and neuroanatomy will be employed.
This is a collaborative project between the Entomology Group, Department of Crop and Forest Sciences, University of Lleida (Dr. César Gemeno), the Department of Psychology at the University Autónoma of Madrid (Dr. Carmen Fernandez-Montraveta), and the Insect Physiology Group (PISC) at the INRA of Versailles (Dr. Sylvia Anton), providing an interdisciplinary and international research environment involving groups in chemical ecology, agricultural entomology, animal behavior and insect neurobiology.
Candidates should have a degree or MSc in an appropriate subject such as biology or entomology, and interests in chemical ecology, insect behavior and neurobiology.
The studentship is funded by the Spanish Department of Science and Innovation (MICINN). It provides a four-year stipend (around 1200 €/month) plus social security, starting approximately in August 2011. On-line application at the web page of the MICINN (www.micinn.es) should open in February 2011. Potential candidates should contact Dr. César Gemeno (cesar.gemeno@pvcf.udl.cat) for further information.

China: Master/PhD student, postdoc and permanent researcher positions available at the Shandong Academy of Agricultural Sciences in Jinan (People’s Republic of China)

Three full-time permanent staff position three postdoc and a dozen of Master/PhD positions are available at the laboratory of Functional Genomics and Proteomics of Chemical Ecology, Shandong Academy of Agricultural Sciences (Jinan, China) in the field of microbiology, plant transgenesis and insect control. Particular emphasis is given to insect/plant, plant/plant, plant/fungi molecular cross-talks and their variations under environmental changes.

FGPCE is newly established laboratory in the new research center SAAS in Jinan (Shandong Province, East-Peninsula, North China Sea). Our study deals traditionally with evolution- hormonal and genetic control of differences in pheromone communication systems of moths-molecular basis of insect olfaction for pest control (solve odor/hormone binding protein structure to develop specific OBP/HBP suppressing agents) and start in the new area that is plant-plant/plant-fungi communication with perspectives in plant transgenesis (following identification of new plant/fungal genes). This orientation to plant-insect, within-plant and plant-to-fungi signaling involves cooperation with other partners in China and the broad world internationally. Unifying knowledge and expertise, we aim to new ways to manipulate insect/plant/fungus interactions in order to solve scientific problems of international relevance. Our main goal is to solve the insect and microbe problems for more sustainable Agriculture and human health care. Our main wish is to help develop in-China as well as international academic exchanges through multicultural research.

Candidates should hold a PhD diploma in Entomology, Molecular Biology, Protein Biochemistry, Plant Biology, Chemical Ecology, Microbiology, Neurosciences or Evolution. For Master/PhD students, molecular biology training and solid experience in protein expression are required. Candidates with excellent credentials in pheromone chemistry, phylogeny or gene evolution may be considered. Eligible candidates have à prioriChinese nationality. Internationals are encouraged to apply for PhD/postdoctoral positions.

Interested candidates should address an electronic application including cover letter, detailed CV, list of publications, conferences, distinctions, and three to five recommendation letters to:

Ren cai Prof. Dr. Jean-Francois “Jeff” Picimbon, Avh
“High Level Oversea Scientist” and “Taishan Scholar Oversea Scientist”
Functional Genomics and Proteomics of Chemical Ecology
Shandong Academy of Agricultural Sciences
11, Sang Yuan Road, Jinan, China
jfpicimbon@saas.ac.cn/@gmail.com
Contact information: 杰夫0086-531-83175350

Sweden: KTH: Department of Chemistry, Ecological Chemistry group, 1 PhD student in Chemical Ecology

Chemical signals in conifers in relation to the pine weevil orientation and feeding behavior 
Swedish forests are generally managed by clear cutting followed by planting of conifer seedlings. A constant problem is that the seedlings are frequently killed by adult pine weevils feeding on the stem bark. This damage causes large economic losses for Swedish forestry. In earlier investigations confers resin constitute of a high chemical diversity, but when attacked, specific compounds with effect on the behavior of the pine weevil are produced. In a new project we will investigate the chemical interaction between the conifer hosts and the pine weevil (Hylobius abietis) and how chemical compounds released by the plants might influence the behavior and reduce the feeding behavior. Seedlings of different chemotypes, with different growing conditions and with different treatments and seedlings before and after pine weevil damage will be chemically investigated. The PhD student will develop methods for collection, separation and isolation of the plant compounds that have a potential effect on orientation and feeding patterns of the pine weevil and she/he will be responsible for our new multidimensional GC-MS for separation of volatile, e.g. chiral plant constituents. The PhD student will deliver chemically characterized fractions and isolated compounds for further behavioral evaluation and work closely together with another PhD student, who has focus on the pine weevil behavior.
Qualifications: Applicants should have Masters Degree (or equivalent) in chemistry. Knowledge in chemical ecology, natural product chemistry, pharmacognosy, or biochemistry are qualifying. Further information should be adresssed to Dr. Anna-Karin Borg-Karlson, akbk@kth.se

Associate Senior University Lecturer in Biology 
Lund University is Scandinavia’s largest institution for education and research in a large number of disciplines, such as engineering, natural sciences, law, social science, economics, medicine, theology and the arts. The University has over 40 000 students and approximately 6 000 employees located in Lund, Malmö and Helsingborg. We have a comprehensive global network and a growing co-operation within the Öresund University framework within Southern Sweden and Eastern Denmark.
The Department of Biology was founded on January 1st 2010 by a fusion of the Departments of Ecology, Cell- and Organism Biology (COB), Undergraduate Studies in Biology, and the Biological Museums. At the same time, the building of the new Biology Centrum has been completed at Campus North, and for the first time all biology at Lund University has been merged to a common place providing unique opportunities for ground-breaking research and innovative education within biology. The Department of Biology has ca 300 employees, out of which ca 80 are PhD candidates. Research are organized around research groups that are active in many areas of biology including animal ecology, plant ecology- and systematics, theoretical ecology, chemical ecology and ecotoxicology, microbial ecology, limnology and marine biology, genetics, microbiology, plant physiology, animal physiology and zoology. We offer several undergraduate and master´s program in “Biology” and “Molecular Biology” toward both Swedish and international students. Further information about research groups and undergraduate studies are found at http://www.lu.se/biologi

Basic facts regarding the position 
Description The appointment is initially limited to four years, but can be made permanent following an evaluation procedure. The work tasks are primarily research and teaching on basic and graduate levels, with at least 70 % research. The proportion between teaching and research can change over time and other duties can be included. The successful candidate is expected to play a key role in building up active research within biology. This also involves applying for external funding and developing cooperation with other university units and other governmental organisations, involved in this type of research. The teaching comprises courses on basic and advanced levels within biology, as well as supervision of Bachelor, Master and PhD students. Qualifications To be eligible for an appointment as associate senior lecturer, a person must, according to Chapter 4, Sekt 8a of the Higher Education Ordinance (SFS 1993:100), have successfully completed a PhD degree or have corresponding scientific competence in a relevant subject area. A person who holds a foreign degree that is deemed equivalent to a doctorate shall be qualified for appointment as associate senior lecturer. Priority should be given to candidates that have a PhD or equivalent degree in biology or within a comparable subject area. The candidates should have completed their degree no more than five years before the last date for applications. Candidates who have completed their degree earlier than this should receive equal priority if special grounds exist, for example leave of absence because of sickness or parental leave. The main criteria for the position are scientific and pedagogic skills, with an emphasis on scientific skills. The scientific qualifications will mainly be evaluated based on the quality and productivity of documented, scientific publications at highest international level. Large emphasis will be put on how the candidate´s background and competence will foster and complement existing research and educational activities at the new Department of Biology. Of relevance is to consider how the research and educational activities of the candidate can contribute to bring together different parts of biology and thereby generate novel interactions within the department. Relevant post-doctoral experience is a merit, as well as the ability to apply and obtain external funding. Large emphasis will be put on the ability of the applicants to collaborate with others, and to plan, develop and perform education. Documented experience in communicating biological research to the society is also a merit. The candidate will be required to teach in both Swedish and English. It is expected that any non-Swedish speaking appointee within a three-year period will master the Swedish language well enough for allowing teaching of students, communication with different administrative units, as well as the general public in Swedish. Regulations for evaluation of qualifications for teaching positions are given in chapter 4 sekt 15 Higher Education Ordinance (SFS 1998:1003), in Lund University Teacher Appointment Regulations, (http://www3.lu.se/pers/Regler/aolu02_en.pdf) and in the Strategic plan of Lund University (http://www.lu.se/upload/LUPDF/Om_LU/Strategicplan_2007_2011.pdf).
The University strive to achieve an even gender balance. Therefore, applications from women, as well as from men, are encouraged.

Well documented scientific competence or other skills important for the subject of the position or the tasks included. Commentary: The Faculty of Science will place great emphasis on the applicant having been appointed to docent (habilitation).Well documented pedagogical skills. Commentary: The Faculty of Science will place great emphasis on the applicant having shown interest for pedagogical development, for example by attending classes in university teaching, and an ability to teach in Swedish and English. Good standing as a scientist, nationally and internationally. Commentary: The Faculty will, with consideration to the character of the subject, place great emphasis on the ability to successfully apply for research grants from national and/or international funders. Ability to advise graduate students. Commentary: When judging the ability to advise students, the Faculty will also place emphasis on the ability to advise master’s theses. Ability to develop, lead and carry out education and research. Good academic leadership abilities and other personal abilities of importance for the position. Ability to interact with society and inform on research and development. An application for promotion to a permanent position as senior lecturer is to be submitted to the relevant teacher’s appointment board at the latest 8 months before the appointment as assistant senior lecturer ends. The application for promotion is to be judged by the teacher’s appointment board after acquisition of the opinion of at least two experts on the subject. Required content of the application The Faculty Board has specified instructions for the application and its accompanying documents. These can be found at the Internet address:
http://www.naturvetenskap.lu.se/o.o.i.s/11729(http://www.naturvetenskap.lu.se/anstallning)
Information can also be obtained upon request by e-mail or ordinary mail.

Reference no: 1865 Closing date for applications: December 13, 2010 Date of appointment: As soon as possible Placement: Department of Biology Trades unions at Lund University: OFR, SACO and SEKO Information about the position: Head of the Department Christer Löfstedt: +46-46-222 9338, christer.lofstedt@ekol.lu.se; Assistant Head of the Department and Director of Undergraduate Studies Carin Jarl-Sunesson: +46-46-222 0124, carin.jarl-sunesson@cob.lu.se.
Information about conditions of employment and the application process: Faculty Personnel Manager Gunilla Thylander, +46 -46 222 4032, gunilla.thylander@kanslin.lu.se
By commission /Gunilla Thylander

North America: 
PhD Studentship, University of Minnesota, USA 
Evolution and function of species-specific hormonal pheromones in fish, University of Minnesota, USA
The aim of the project is determine how mixtures of hormonal metabolites have come to function as species-specific sex pheromones in fishes.  The project could take a biochemical, behavioral, and/or neuroethological slant.  The goldfish, a leading model of pheromone function, is the model but an imaginative and comparative approach is encouraged. This would be the first study to address this question outside of the insects.  Candidates should have a degree or MS in an appropriate subject such as biology, fisheries, ecology, and interests in chemical ecology, behavior and neurobiology.
The studentship provides a yearly stipend (around $1,750 a month), tuition and health care benefits.  Starting date is flexible.
Potential candidates should contact Dr. Peter Sorensen (soren003@umn.edu) for further information.

Graduate Research Assistantship

Evolutionary Ecology of Plant-Herbivore Interactions 
University of Wisconsin, Madison

Aspen and associated browsing ungulates are foundation species in forests throughout much of North America. A Graduate Research Assistantship (M.S. – Ph.D. or Ph.D.) is available for work with the research groups of Rick Lindroth and Eric Kruger at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Funded by a five-year NSF grant, this research addresses genetic and environmental factors that influence aspen defense (chemical resistance, tolerance, escape) against mammalian herbivores (e.g., deer, elk). Primary objectives of the work are to: 1) characterize aspen chemical defense traits, 2) assess costs/benefits of resistance, tolerance and escape, and 3) evaluate the selective impact of browsing on the genetic structure of defense traits in experimental populations. Applicants must be interested in investigating both the chemical and population genetics aspects of plant-herbivore interactions. Applicants should pursue admission to the graduate program in Zoology (Ecology), Forest and Wildlife Ecology, or Botany.
For more information about the Lindroth and Kruger research groups, visit:
http://entomology.wisc.edu/~lindroth/
http://forest.wisc.edu/facstaff/kruger.html

University and Town:
The University of Wisconsin-Madison is a premier institution for research in ecology and evolution, and has ranked among the top five research universities in the United States for each of the past 20 years. UW-Madison ranks first in research expenditures among public universities. Madison is the capital city of Wisconsin, and consistently ranks among the best cities in the U.S.A. for work, education, family and leisure activities.
Stipend/benefits: 50% Research Assistantships currently provide a stipend of $ $20,400 (12 mo.), tuition waiver, and excellent medical/dental health plans.
Position available beginning in summer or fall of 2011.

Qualifications:
Highly motivated individuals with superior academic credentials and strong communication skills are encouraged to apply. Well-developed interpersonal skills are essential. Candidates must be able to work independently as well as part of a collaborative research team.

Application:
Interested candidates are asked to e-mail Graduate Student Services Coordinator Sara Rodock (rodock@wisc.edu) a single PDF file containing the following:
- Cover letter outlining research interests, academic and professional backgrounds
- Resume
- Copies of transcripts (unofficial copies acceptable)
- GRE scores (if not available, indicate when exam will be taken)
- Names and contact information for three references

Applications will be reviewed upon receipt, whereupon promising candidates will be requested to submit formal applications to a UW graduate program. Note that several programs have a Dec. 31 cutoff date.
For further information, contact:
Dr. Rick Lindroth
lindroth@wisc.edu

237 Russell Labs
1630 Linden Drive
University of Wisconsin
Madison, WI  53706 U.S.A.

Postdoctoral Position

Climate Change and Forest Insects

University of Wisconsin – Madison

A postdoctoral Research Associate position will be available spring/summer 2011 to work with Drs. Rick Lindroth (Univ. WI), Ken Raffa (Univ. WI) and Peter Reich (Univ. MN) on a pioneering project investigating the consequences of climate warming for southern boreal forests. This project, funded by a 3-year USDA AFRI grant, will explore warming-induced shifts in tree phenology and chemistry, and consequences thereof for the performance of tree-feeding insects and tree response to defoliation.  This research will be integrated with the larger, DOE-funded “B4WARMED” project (http://forestecology.cfans.umn.edu/B4WARMED.html).

Primary responsibilities of the Research Associate are to coordinate and conduct field and laboratory components of the research program, including insect bioassays, censuses of insect biodiversity and foliar damage, and plant chemical analyses.

Qualifications include demonstrated expertise in insect bioassays and plant chemical analyses. Strong interpersonal/teamwork, laboratory, statistical and writing skills are essential. Must be able to live for extended periods during the field season near the research sites in NE Minnesota.

Salary and benefits: $36,000+, commensurate with experience.  Excellent family medical/dental health plans available at minimal cost.

Duration of position: up to 3 years

Application: Applications will be accepted through Jan. 15, 2011, or until a suitable applicant is found. Send a single pdf document, including c.v., names/addresses of three references, representative reprints, and a letter specifically detailing your fit to the position to:

Dr. Rick Lindroth
lindroth@wisc.edu

Dept. of Entomology
1630 Linden Dr.
University of Wisconsin-Madison
Madison, WI 53706
(608)263-6277
UW – Madison is an equal opportunity employer

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