We cordially invite you to Vienna for the international workshop on “Molecular Biology of Archaea: from mechanisms to ecology”. It will be the 6th meeting of the European MBoA conference series (MBoA6), this time hosted by EMBO.
Since their discovery as a separate domain by Carl Woese, Archaea have been a goldmine for unexpected discoveries. Their information processing systems are intensely studied as their similarity to their eukaryotic counterparts provides insight into the evolution of these complex machineries in both domains and informs medical research. Unusual viruses and genetic elements of the Archaea have expanded and changed some of the general dogmas of mobile elements, and their widespread CRISPR systems provide novel genetic tools. Besides being extremophilic organisms, an unexpected diversity of Archaea are being discovered in moderate environments through metagenomics. Among these are Lokiarchaeota and related lineages, that have shattered the “three-domain tree of life” and led to novel hypotheses of early eukaryotic evolution. The ecological significance of Archaea is strengthened by the recognition of methanogenic and ammonia oxidizing Archaea as key players in global biogeochemical cycles. Moreover, novel lineages have recently been identified in the human microbiome.
This interdisciplinary meeting highlights these important advancements with a focus on molecular biology, genomics, evolution and ecology, and provides a platform for collaborations and open discussions on novel and controversial topics in this rapidly evolving field.
We are looking forward to welcoming you to Vienna!
Christa Schleper and Christine Moissl-Eichinger
About EMBO Courses and Workshops
EMBO Courses and Workshops are selected for their excellent scientific quality and timelines, provision of good networking activities for all participants and speaker gender diversity (at least 40% of speakers must be from the underrepresented gender).
Organisers are encouraged to implement measures to make the meeting environmentally more sustainable.
Food and drinks during conference breaks (lunch, coffee, poster sessions)
NOT INCLUDED:
Gala dinner on 05 September 2018
Accommodation
Payment
Participants can pay via bank transfer and invoice. Following registration participants will be sent payment details by email.
Cancellation Policy
For cancellations received by 10/7/2018(11:59 pm CET), 100% of the registration fee will be refunded.
Cancellations received by 15/7/2018 (11:59 pm CET) will be refunded at 50% of the registration fee.
No refunds will be available for cancellations made after 15/7/2018 (00:00 am CET) or for no shows.
Requests for refunds must be submitted in writing to the local organizers at archaeabiology@gmail.com or nathalia.jandl@univie.ac.at).
Letter of Invitation
Official letters of invitation designed to help overcome administrative difficulties in certain countries will be sent upon request. It must be understood that such letters do not represent a commitment on the part of the Organizing Committee to provide any financial assistance. If you require such a letter, please contact the local organizers at archaeabiology@gmail.com.
Selection criteria
Participants will be selected based on the scientific quality of the submitted abstract, the scientific distribution of topics on the conference, geographical distribution of participants and gender balance.
Abstract guidelines
Abstracts must be a maximum of 2000 characters including spaces (approx. 300 words, excluding title and author information). The abstract should contain a title, author and affiliation information, and should be a concise summary of the work you intend to present at the workshop. Abstracts should not include any citations, references, figures or tables. A preferred session should also be indicated.
All abstracts, talks and posters must be presented in English. The submitted abstracts will be reviewed by the session chairs.
Poster specifications
Posters should not exceed the size of a standard A0 (84.1cm x 118.9cm) in portrait layout.
Travel grants
A limited number of travel grants are available for participants. Applicants do not need to apply separately for travel grants for this event but should indicate on the registration form if they wish to be considered for a travel grant. Selection of awardees is handled directly by the organizer who will notify all eligible participants. More information is available at EMBO Travel Grants' page.
Additional Information
Please note that participation to the conference is limited to 200 people. The conference dinner will take place in the Natural History Museum of Vienna, and places are limited. Tickets will be allocated on a first-come, first-served basis to the interested participants, who will then be requested to include the appropriate fee in the payment.
EcoEvent PLUS
This meeting is a certified environmentally friendly Eco-Event according to the rules of the City of Vienna (http://www.oekoevent.at/). We will strive towards organizing a carbon and nitrogen neutral conference. This means that greenhouse gas and reactive nitrogen emissions caused by attending the conference will be reduced as much as possible. In particular, we will exclusively serve vegetarian (and mostly organic) food during lunch breaks.
Please support us by reducing and separating waste, using as little plastic as possible, and by choosing sustainable travelling options where available.
Accommodation should be booked by the participants directly by using the booking code “MBoA6” in any of these hotels. If assistance is needed, contact us.
Payment for accommodation is to be made onsite at the hotel receptions. Credit card details will be transferred to the hotels to guarantee your reservations.
Cancellation policies are up to each hotel - usually cancellation free of charge is possible 14 days prior to arrival!
Transport
From Vienna International Airport:
Vienna International Airport is about 20 km from the city centre of Vienna, which can easily be reached by Airport Bus Shuttle, CAT (City Airport Train), train (S-Bahn) or taxi.
Airport Bus Shuttle
There are regular buses from the airport to
Wien Morzinplatz/Schwedenplatz (with connection to undergrounds U1 and U4)
Wien Dörfelstrasse/Meidling (with connection to underground U6)
Wien Westbahnhof (with connection to undergrounds U3 and U6)
The bus station is directly in front of the airport arrival hall. Buses leave every 20 to 30 minutes. It takes around 30 minutes to get to Vienna. Tickets (6 Euro) can be bought on the bus or from the ticket machine.
Directions from bus station Schwedenplatz to MBoA6 venue: At Schwedenplatz change to underground U4, direction Heiligenstadt. At stop Friedensbrücke change to tram 33, direction Josefstädter Straße. Get off at stop Lazarettgasse or Lange Gasse.
City Airport Train (CAT)
The CAT takes you to the City Air Terminal (Wien-Mitte/Landstrasse, undergrounds U3 and U4) in 16 minutes. CATs leave the airport every half hour from 6:05 am to 11:35 pm and the City Air Terminal from 5:38 am to 11:08 pm. Several airlines offer check-in services at the City Air Terminal.
Directions from CAT Terminal to MBoA6 venue: At Wien Mitte/Landstrasse change to underground U4, direction Heiligenstadt. At stop Friedensbrücke change to tram 33, direction Josefstädter Straße. Get off at stop Lazarettgasse or Lange Gasse.
Train
To get to the airport train, follow the sign “S-Bahn” in the airport arrival hall. Take line S7, travel time: around 25 minutes. You can buy the ticket (for two zones!) at the ticket machine in the train station (3.60 Euro incl. public transport in Vienna). The train takes you to Wien Mitte/Landstrasse (undergrounds U3, U4). See directions above.
Taxi
The taxi stand at the airport is in front of the arrival hall. It takes about half an hour to get to the city centre (approx. 35 - 40 Euro).
To go from the city to the airport, either ask your hotel to book an airport taxi or call one of the following taxi companies (all of them offer special fares to the airport): 31300, 40100, 60160, 81400 or 1716.
Take underground U6, direction Floridsdorf. At stop Alserstrasse change to tram 43, direction Schottentor. Get off at stop Lange Gasse (~ 14 min).
Or take tram 5, direction Praterstern, get off at stop Lange Gasse (~ 15 min).
Wien Bahnhof Meidling
Take underground U6, direction Floridsdorf. At stop Alserstrasse change to tram 43, direction Schottentor. Get off at stop Lange Gasse (~ 20 min).
Wien Hauptbahnhof
Take underground U1, direction Leopoldau. At stop Karlsplatz change to U2, direction Aspernstraße or Seestadt.
Get off at stop Rathaus and walk 13 min ( ~ 26 min)
Get off at stop Schottentor and change to tram 43, direction Neuwaldegg. Get off at stop Lange Gasse (~ 18 min.
About the Area
For getting around in the city, we encourage participants to use the following options:
- Public Transport: the converence venue is reachable by the tram lines 5, 33, 43 (Lazarettgasse or Lange Gasse), or the metro lines U2 (station Schottentor & 10min walk) and U6 (station Alser Strasse & 10min walk). See the conference website for a map and additional details.
- Bicycle: City Bikes are available for hire at 120 stations around the city, and can be used with a credit card. More information can be found here: https://www.citybikewien.at/en/.
Bicycle parking is available at the conference venue.
- Walking: Vienna is a great city to explore by foot, and all suggested hotels are within a 15min walking distance from the conference venue and max 20min from the city centre.
- For smartphone users: a useful app is Qando Wien, available both for Android and iPhone
Feel free to contact the organization team for assistance.
