March 15th 2008
16:30-17:00 Signing an agreement for academic cooperation between HZAU and MSU
March 16th 2008
8:30-9:00 Opening    
Opening Remark: Dr. Lianghcai Peng
Welcome Address: Dr. Xianlong Zhang (HZAU Vice President)  
9:00-9:10 Photographs  
9:10-10:55 Session I:  Plenary Lectures (30 mins presentation & 5 mins questions)
Chairperson:  Dr. Qifa Zhang
9:10-9:45 Dr. Debby Delmer:  A challenging substrate for production of biofuels
(See Abstract at p8).
9:45-10:20 Dr. Jiayang Li:  TBA
10:20-10:55 Dr. Kenneth Keegstra:  Progress and problems in understanding plant cell wall biosynthesis (p9).
10:55-11:10 Coffee Break
11:10-12:25 Session II:  Plenary Talks (20 mins presentation & 5 mins questions)
Chairperson:  Dr. Markus Pauly
11:10-11:35:  Dr. Liangcai Peng:  Dissection of cellulose biosynthesis process for potential genetic manipulation of bioenergy plants (p10).
11:35-12:00 Dr. Laigeng Li:  Beyond the barriers: ethanol from lignocellulosic feedstock (p11).
12:00-12:25 Dr. Yihua Zhou:  Functional characterization of a missense mutation in CESA4 of rice (Oryza sativa L.) (p12).
12:25-13:25 Lunch
13:25-15:10 Session III:  Plenary Lectures (30 mins presentation & 5 mins questions)
Chairperson:   Dr. Liangcai Peng
13:25-14:00 Dr. David Ow:  Building a better plant with site-specific recombinases (p13).
14:00-14:35 Dr. Henry Daniell:  Chloroplast genetic engineering for biotechnology and bioenergy applications (p14).
14:35-15:10 Dr. Jinguo Hu:  Sunflower as a potential biomass crop (p15).
15:10-15:25 Coffee Break
15:25-17:05 Session IV:  Plenary Talks (20 mins presentation & 5 mins questions)
Chairperson:  Dr. Yongming Zhou
15:25-15:50 Dr. Xianlong Zhang:  Genetic transformation of cotton and novel germplasm development for breeding (p16).
15:50-16:15 Dr. Peng Zhang:  Cassava biotechnology for bio-energy development (p17).
16:15-16:40:  Dr. Jihong Liu Clarke:  Agrobacterium tumefaciens-mediated transformation of poinsettia with hairpin RNA constructs confers resistance to Poinsettia mosaic virus (p18).
16:40-17:05 Dr. Yong-Fu Fu:  The yield and quality of biomass regulated by flowering genes in Arabidopsis (p20).
17:05-17:30  Dr. Changyin Wu: Identification plant cell wall biosynthesis genes from a T-DNA insertional mutant library in rice (p22).
17:30-17:55  Dr. Ziduo Liu: Screening of microbe with cellulolytic activity and in vitro directed evolution of cellulolytic enzyme (p23).
18:30-19:30 Diner
20:00-21:00 Cocktail Party
March 17th 2008
8:30-10:15 Session I:  Plenary Lectures(30 mins presentation & 5 mins questions)
 Chairperson:  Dr. Jiayang Li
8:30-9:05 Dr. Tony Bacic:  Identifying and characterising the (1,3;1,4)-beta-glucan synthase gene family in barley (p24).
9:05-9:40    Dr. Qifa Zhang:  TBA
9:40-10:15 Dr. Markus Pauly:  Insights into the function of plant cell wall polysaccharides through wall mutants (p25).
10:15-10:30 Coffee Break
10:30-12:10 Session II:  Plenary Talks (20 mins presentation & 5 mins questions)
Chairperson:  Dr. Henry Daniell
10:30-10:55   Dr. Heyou Han:  Chemical modification of rape straw cellulose with maleic anhydride in room-temperature ionic liquid and its application in adsorption of heavy metal cations (p26).
10:55-11:20 Dr. Youming Xu:  Progressings on the production of fuel ethanol by ligno-cellulose materials (p28).
11:20-11:45 Dr. Hao Chen:  Transesterification of rapeseed oil to biodiesel catalyzed by 1-alkyl-3-methylimidazolium hydrogen sulfates (p29).
11:45-12:10 Dr. Qin Li:  The biodiesel of low condensation point produced from acidified oil by stepped temperature programmed esterification after cracking and reforming (p31).
12:10-12:35  Dr. Dongfa Sun: TBA
12:35-13:35 Lunch
13:35- Tour to Three Gorges