Mobile DNA: Mechanisms and Health Impact - Mobile DNA elements shape their host genomes. Since the discovery of transposons, most investigations have focused on their contribution to germ line diseases, which proved to be relevant to human health. The major departure of the 2025 FASEB conference from this line of thinking is its focus on the TE contribution to somatic genetic variation and its impact on normal aging and age-associated diseases, specifically those involving transformation, degeneration, and inflammation. We’re also emphasizing the functional roles of TE-encoded proteins and macromolecular assemblies (aspects that have been more challenging to study but for recent analytical break throughs). Integration of these research themes into the FASEB “Mobile DNA: Mechanisms and Health Impact” meeting sets it apart from previous FASEB conferences as well as other TE- and aging-related meetings. Indeed, two members of the organizing committee are NIA-funded investigators. A unique feature of the 2025 conference is a deliberate push for understanding the connection between TEs, phenotype, and aging – with emphasis on human health (e.g., cancer, immunity, neurodegeneration). Our proposed program covers all known points of connection between TEs, aging, and aging-related diseases, making it a useful overview for all such connections. We are drawing together a mix of TE and aging investigators that will promote thoughtful discussions and inter-disciplinary collaborations. Goals. The objective of the 2025 FASEB conference is to build on this trend by bringing together investigators with common interests in mobile DNA and its impact on somatic and germline genomic variation, the aging process, and age-associated pathologies. The main goal of the conference is to synergize the TE and aging fields. Thus, the meeting will focus on highlighting transposon impact on age-associated diseases as well as models and technologies that are available for rigorous TE analysis with the intent to improve our ability to screen, diagnose, and/or treat these diseases. Innovations. The conference will facilitate sharing of unpublished findings and discussion of experimental challenges and outstanding questions in these two rapidly evolving fields among students, postdoctoral trainees, junior and senior principal investigators. This is particularly valuable because TEs do not conform to Mendelian genetic principles alone and exhibit unique functional characteristics distinct from “normal host gene products,” therefore requiring unique approaches for their analysis. Our session chairs will give talks that review the scientific field, as relevant to their session topic, and will contextualize the other talks within the session to follow, to orient newcomers to the topics. Our Career Development and Meet-the-Experts sessions will assist new community members in developing robust strategies for scientific successful and introduce scientists across fields and generations to critical challenges at the interface of TEs and aging.
