REGISTRATION REQUEST and ABSTRACT SUBMISSION DEADLINE: May 4, 2023

To attend the conferences Jacques Monod, an abstract submission is mandatory,

Registrations request without abstract submission will not be processed, except in specific

cases (i. g. for Publishers : please contact chairperson).

Chairperson: Thomas Lenormand

Centre d’Ecologie Fonctionnelle et Evolutive (CEFE), Campus du CNRS, 1919 route de Mende, 34293 Montpellier Cedex 5, France

Phone: +33 (0)4 67 61 32 91

Email: thomas.lenormand@cefe.cnrs.fr

Vice-chairperson: Karine Van Doninck¹ / Denis Roze²

¹Molecular Biology and Evolution – C.P. 160/16, Université Libre de Bruxelles, Avenue F.D. Roosevelt, 50 B-1050 Brussels, Belgium

Phone: +32 2/650 22 14

Email: karine.van.doninck@ulb.be

²Station Biologique de Roscoff, Place Georges Teissier, CS90074, 29288 Roscoff Cedex, France

Phone: +33 (0)2 98 29 23 20

Email: roze@sb-roscoff.fr

Sex: What is it good for? The reasons for why the vast majority of eukaryotes take a complicated detour to reproduction, when straightforward routes are available, remains a central and largely unanswered question in evolutionary biology. The complexity of reproduction ranges from clonal reproduction to meiotic parthenogenesis, self-fertilization or mating between relatives, to sexual reproduction with outcrossing. Each of these forms of reproduction directly influences the potential for adaptation and diversification of lineages and thereby the structure of biodiversity. Despite that, our understanding of the evolution of reproductive and genetic systems is still fragmentary. Even some of the most fundamental questions remain open, such as: what is the evolutionary advantage of sexual reproduction? Why is sex maintained in most species? How do sex-asex transitions occur? What are the selective pressures acting on the evolution of recombination? Why is recombination suppressed on sex chromosomes? What are the genomic and evolutionary consequences of recombination arrest? How do sexual conflicts influence the evolution of genetic systems?

Sophisticated theoretical approaches developed over the past 40 years have generated insights into the potential costs and benefits of different reproductive systems and how they can vary under different ecological scenarios. Furthermore, there is an accumulating number of novel and/or unexpected findings from organisms with different reproductive and genetic systems for which there is currently no, or only an incomplete, theoretical framework for a full conceptual interpretation. Recent advances have been made in four main directions: (1) the study of asexuals, (2) recombination, (3) sexual conflicts, and (4) sex chromosomes. The aim of the conference is to cover recent advances on these topics.

The conference will cover the following topics:

• The genomics of asexual species
• Sex-asex transitions
• Meiosis modifications in parthenogenetic species
• Recombination variation, mechanisms and evolution
• Sex-specific selection across genomes
• The evolution of sex determination
• The evolution and genomics of sex chromosomes

Registration fee (including board and lodging)

480 € for PhD students
730 € for other participants

Application for registration   details here :
The total number of participants is limited to 115 and all participants are expected to attend for the whole duration of the conference. Selection is made on the basis of the affinity of potential participants with the topics of the conference. Scientists and PhD Students interested in the meeting should deposit on line :

- their curriculum vitae
- the proof of their student status
- the list of their main publications for the 3 last years
- the abstract of their presentation:

The abstract must respect the following template: TemplateResumeFile
- First line: title
- Second line: list of authors. Presenting author underlined
- Third line: author's addresses
- Fourth line: e-mail of the presenting author
Abstracts should be no longer than an A4 page and preferably be submitted in Times New Roman, font size 10 pts. No figures. ".docx" file format.

After deadline, the organizers will select the participants. Except in some particular cases approved by the Chairperson, it is recommended that all selected participants present their work during the conference, either in poster form or by a brief in- session talk. The organizers choose the form in which the presentations are made. No payment will be sent with application. Information on how and when to pay will be mailed in due time to those selected.