17th International Symposium on Biomineralization

Since 1970, year of the first symposium on biomineralization organized in Germany, the biomineralization community has been making great advances in different aspects of biomineralization, including the hierarchical structures of biominerals and their development, the important genes and functional proteins of biomineralization, the mechanisms of biomineralization in living systems and biomimetic mineralization, the discovery of non-classical crystallization pathways, and the fabrication of advanced functional materials inspired by biomineralization.

The knowledge gained in biomineralization has been applied in hard tissue repair, pharmaceutical, agricultural, energy and environmental sciences, paleontology, and materials-assisted artificial life systems. Biomineralization becomes an important resource for developing new structured materials and solving health-care problems. We believe that we are standing on the historic stage to link the fundamental studies of biomineralization to the challenging global problems.
This biannual conference has been organized in many countries in the world, but only once in a French speaking place, Monaco in 1993. It is time to organize it in France.

Due to the pandemic the BIOMIN XVI edition was organized virtually by our Chinese colleagues in August 2021.

Venue: Faculty of Medicine - Jean Monnet University - Saint-Etienne - France

The scientific committee has developed a general thematic framework that will be declined into 9 sessions listed below:

1. Fundamentals of biomineralization   
2. Biomineral structures and crystallization mechanisms 
3. Vertebrate mineralized tissues in health and disease 
4. Imaging methods for biomineralization
5. Immunity in biomineralized barriers
6. Biomineralization and biomimetics
7. Biomineralization in aquaculture
8. Biomineralization and environmental changes
9. Evolution of molecular tool kits

Conference chairs:
Marthe ROUSSEAU - Researcher at CNRS (French National Centre for Scientific Research) - Research on nacre and osteoporosis in the Bone Biology lab within SAINBIOSE INSERM Unit 1059 at the Faculty of Medicine of Saint Etienne.
Joël GAUTRON - Research director at INRAE - Scientist at the Avian Biology & Poultry Research unit (UMR BOA) and co-head of the "Egg defences, valorisation, evolution" team. Research on eggshell formation and the identification of eggshell organic matrix proteins, involved in the calcification process.

Members of the scientific committee include: Sophie Réhault-Godbert, INRAE Val de Loire, Avian Biology & Poultry Research unit (UMR BOA)