BAWM
The Bay Area Worm Meeting (BAWM) is an annual one-day symposium for the San Francisco Bay Area C. elegans research community. The meeting brings together local scientists to share ideas and techniques and to present new discoveries made using our model organism, the “worm” C. elegans. The program will feature two keynote speakers, Dr. Andrew Dillin from the University of California, Berkeley and Dr. Maria Gallegos from California State University, East Bay, as well as a poster session and 12 short trainee talks, all presented by researchers from Bay Area labs.
A defining feature of BAWM is that there is no registration fee, making the meeting accessible to trainees and researchers who might otherwise be limited by cost, including undergraduate students and research associates. As a result, BAWM is often the first symposium experience for many attendees and provides a welcoming, supportive environment to present and discuss their research.
Your participation is what makes BAWM such a wonderful annual event, and we hope to see you here at the Buck Institute to make BAWM 2026 a success!
BAWM 2026
Saturday, April 11, 2026
Buck Institute
After you register, if you would like to present a talk or poster, click here.
CENTER DETAILS
The Bay Area Worm Meeting is pleased to acknowledge the generous support of the following major funders.
For sponsor registration and donation, click here.
Contact Maria Sallee if you have questions about sponsoring BAWM 2026: msallee@buckinstitute.org
GOLD SPONSORS:
SILVER SPONSORS:
Agenda TBA
Andrew Dillin, PhD is a Professor of Molecular and Cell Biology at the University of California, Berkeley and an Investigator of the Howard Hughes Medical Institute. Dr. Dillin’s research focuses on understanding why aging organisms lose control of protein homeostasis and how this loss leads to organismal aging and declining health. Using C. elegans and mammalian systems, his lab studies how cells respond to environmental and proteotoxic stress and how these processes contribute to aging and age associated disease. By developing approaches to manipulate signaling pathways and proteins, Dr. Dillin aims to uncover fundamental mechanisms of aging and inform therapeutic strategies for neurodegenerative diseases, such as Alzheimer’s, Huntington’s, and Parkinson’s diseases.
Maria Gallegos, PhD is an Associate Professor of Biological Sciences at California State University, East Bay. Dr. Gallegos’s research focuses on understanding how neuronal morphology is established during development and maintained throughout the life of an organism. Using C. elegans as a model system, her lab studies the genetic and molecular mechanisms that control late stages of neurodevelopment, including the regulation of neurite growth and maintenance. By identifying conserved molecules that shape the nervous system, Dr. Gallegos aims to uncover principles of neurodevelopment that may inform our understanding of neural injury, regeneration, and neurological disease in higher organisms.
Laurel Koch – lkoch@buckinstitute.org
Maria Sallee – msallee@buckinstitute.org