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News from the International Association for Plant Tissue Culture & Biotechnology

The 11th International Association for Plant Tissue Culture & Biotechnology World Congress will be here before you know it. The meeting will be held in Beijing, China from August 13-18, 2006 at the Beijing International Convention Center. If you plan to attend, there are several deadlines:

January 1, 2006 - Deadline to apply on-line for fellowships from the international IAPTC&B program in China.
February 15, 2006 - Deadline to submit abstracts for posters or oral presentations.
March 1, 2006 - Deadline to apply for a fellowship from the US IAPTC&B. (members will be receiving application information in the mail)
April 15, 2006 - Early registration deadline.
June 12, 2006 - Hotel reservations are due

Please submit your abstract prior to February 15, 2006 to guarantee publication in the Abstract Issue and have it considered for possible oral presentation. Detailed information about the program, abstract submission, travel, online payment, capabilities, and registration can be found at the website http://www.genetics.ac.cn/IAPTCB.htm.

The United States region of the IAPTC&B will be offering $1,000 travel fellowships to attend the 2006 meeting in China. Members of the IAPTC&B-US who are in good standing will qualify for one of the fellowships. Applications for the fellowships will be mailed to members and the deadline to apply is March 1, 2006.

The process of searching for the new U.S. correspondent for the IAPTC&B has begun. The US national correspondent will serve from 2006 until 2010. So far, we have four members who have been nominated: Dr. Michael Horn of Phyton Biotech, Dr. Carol Stiff of Kitchen Culture Kits, Inc., Dr. Rajah Rajasekaran of the ARS USDA, and Dr. Lee handley of the USDA Biotechnology Regulatory Services. There is still time to volunteer or be nominated for this position before the ballots are mailed out to US members. If you are interested, or know of someone who may be a good candidate, please send the names to mpb27@cornell.edu.

Mark Bridgen, US Correspondent
E-mail: mpb27@cornell.edu