In order to give authors an idea of how abstracts should look and what the criterea of the submitted abstracts should be, we included the followign to fictional abstracts. Final formatting would be done by the organisers so the only important criterea for the abstracts at this stage is the various fields to include (i.e. authors, title and afiliations) and the general length of the abstract text. The abstract submission form only allows for the input of 2500 characters, so take this in mind when writing your abstract.
Example abstract1:
Molecular analysis of the frying properties of potatoes and engineering of potatoes resistant to water attraction during frying
John McCain1 and Alistair McDonald2
1Department of Food Processing, Scottish Crop Research Institute, Private Bag X17, Nessieville, 47KA007, UK
2 Department for Potato Breeding, University of St. Andrews, Private Bag 4811, St. Andrews, 78WE998, UK
Author email address: john.mccain@potato.co.uk
Consumers of french fries (pommes frites, chips) in Europe are confronted with a wide range of qualities, ranging from crisp and dry in Belgium to soggy and flaccid in the UK. In order to devise means to standardize the quality of french fries throughout Europe, we have set out to elucidate the molecular mechanisms affecting the frying properties of potatoes. To this end french fries were collected in the UK, the Netherlands, and Belgium. RNA was extracted, and differentially expressed genes were isolated through expression profiling experiments. One clone identified was found to encode a member of the membrane intrinsic proteins (MIP), which are also widely regarded as water channels. This gene is very highly expressed in British fries, intermediate expression levels are found in Dutch fries, low levels in German fries, whereas expression in Belgian fries is below the detection limit. These results strongly suggest, that this gene is a molecular determinant of the quality of french fries. In order to engineer potato tubers, which are resistant to the influence of geographic location, we transformed potato plants with a construct expressing an antisense RNA to this respective MIP using the above mentioned promotor. Plants were selected, which did not show any MIP expression in the UK and tested for their frying quality on the occasion of the FA-Cup Final at Wembley Stadium. A striking observation was made. The snack bar selling the french fries derived from the transgenic potatoes was not able to satisfy the overwhelming demand. The Cup Final was started after a two hour delay, as most of the seats were empty due to spectators cuing for the engineered fries. The water content of the fat used for frying was analysed after frying transgenic and control potatoes. In case of the controls, no remaining water was found, whereas the water content of the fat used for frying the transgenes remained constant, before and after frying, which is in agreement with the function of the protein being a water channel. In conclusion, we were able to engineer potatoes that yield a standardized product throughout Europe. This is a milestone in harmonising the common market in Europe.
Example abstract2:
Sink Regulation of Photosynthesis in Sugarcane
Derek Watt1,2, Mike Cramer3 and Alistair McCormick1,2
1Crop Biology Resource Centre, South African Sugarcane Research Institute, Private Bag X02, Mt Edgecombe, 4300, South Africa
2 University of KwaZulu-Natal, School of Biological and Conservation Sciences, Private Bag X54001, Durban, 4001, South Africa
3 University of Cape Town, Botany Department, Private Bag, Rondebosch, 7700, South Africa
Author email address: derek.watt@sugar.org.za
Using a supply-demand paradigm, the source-sink relationship in sugarcane was investigated at the whole-plant, organ and cellular level. The demand for photosynthate from the stalk was shown to be closely linked to photosynthetic rates, sucrose export and eventual physiological decline of source leaves. Results from initial field experiments revealed that leaf assimilation rates were negatively correlated with leaf hexose concentrations, but not those of sucrose. Further manipulation of leaf sugar status, through sugar-feeding and cold-girdling, demonstrated the regulatory role of leaf sugar concentrations on photosynthetic activity, thus revealing sucrose, and particularly hexose, as key signal molecules in the modulation of the amount of photosynthate available for export to the sink. Gene expression profiling, by means of array technologies, indicated that changes in leaf sugar status and photosynthetic rates result in concurrent modifications in the expression of several genes involved in fundamental metabolic pathways, including photosynthesis, carbohydrate metabolism, stress response and sugar-signalling. Notable amongst these, was the identification of a potential trehalose 6-phosphate sugar-signaling mechanism, which may play an important role in communicating sink carbon status to source leaves and eventual leaf physiological decline.
To submit abstracts, go to the abstract submission page.