The Institute for Molecular Bioscience (IMB) has secured an Australian first to host the prestigious Intelligent Systems in Molecular Biology (ISMB) conference in 2003.
The Brisbane event will be the first time the ISMB conference has been held outside North America or Europe and will inject around $3 million into the Queensland economy over the conference`s four day duration, with more than 1800 world leaders in computational biology and bioinformatics expected to attend.
The Head of Computational Biology and Bioinformatics at the IMB, Professor Mark Ragan said it was a great honour to be selected to host the ISMB meeting. It recognises the leading role and significant contributions to world knowledge in the dynamic fields of computational biology and bioinformatics made by the IMB and The University of Queensland (UQ).
"This is the most prestigious meeting of its kind in the world with the cream-of-the-cream congregating in Brisbane to discuss ideas at the leading edge of this new and rapidly evolving field," Professor Ragan said.
"The best research and commercial work in the Australasian region will be given unparalleled exposure to the leading groups in the field, from both industry and academia, at this conference.
"Computational biology and bioinformatics, cutting edge fields of study at the intersection of applied mathematics, computer science and the life sciences, allow the study of complex biological systems and the management and processing of vast quantities of biological data from genome analysis to cellular metabolism."
IMB Co-director Professor John Mattick said that Australian research was particularly active in this area and awarding the conference to the IMB further demonstrates the growth of the Institute as a key driver in the development of Queensland as a centre of excellence in interdisciplinary bioscience and biotechnology.
"With the strong track record of bioscience research in Australia and rapid expansion in this field by our close neighbours in Japan, Singapore, China, Thailand and India the selection panel believes that Brisbane has the ability to successfully manage this significant international conference.
"Brisbane`s location and facilities, coupled with the excellent research reputation of the IMB and other Australian research institutions, convinced the selection panel of the merit of holding the conference here.
"The successful IMB proposal was underpinned by UQ`s commitment to the Institute`s research ideals and the Queensland Government`s Smart State campaign which recognises the importance of knowledge-based industry and the vital role bioscience plays in the future economic and social well-being of Queensland and Australia.
"The completion of a $105 million research complex in late 2002 will cement the IMB as the largest bioscience project in the history of Australia and one of the leading state-of-the-art facilities in the Southern hemisphere, further enhancing Queensland`s reputation as an international centre of bioscience discovery."
The IMB, located at UQ`s St Lucia campus, has research divisions in genomics and computational biology, developmental and cellular biology, and structural biology and biological chemistry. It continues to be an important contributor to world knowledge with benefits in the areas of medicine, biology, diagnostics and therapeutics.
Media: for further information call Russell Griggs (ph 07 3365 1805) or Helen Weatherley (Ph 0421 056 980)
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