\n Background and objectives <\/p>\n <\/b><\/span>Mushrooms have long been valued as tasty, nutritious food by different societies throughout the world. In the developing world, including Africa, mushrooms are used as food and medicine in many societies. In Africa, however, the medicinal and nutritional importance of mushrooms has not been adequately studied and documented. In the developed world, mushrooms now occupy a central position in natural products research (medicine, food, environmental issues). For instance, there is now increasing evidence that medicinal mushrooms have a wide array of medicinally important compounds that have anticancer and antiviral activity; offering great hope for the production of new drugs for ailments like HIV\/AIDS, <\/span>Avian influenza and the many cancers that afflict humanity today. Mushroom growing is also a source of considerable economic gain to farmers in the developed world, notably Japan and the USA. Africa lags behind in this unfolding \u0091mushroom revolution\u0092.<\/span>\n<\/p>\n \n This conference will therefore be a meeting point between mushroom growers and scientists in Africa and the rest of the developed world; resulting in a benefit from exchange of experiences between scientists within and outside Africa. It will raise awareness of the scientific and commercial value of mushrooms and thereby sensitizing policy makers on the value of edible and medicinal mushrooms; resulting in commitment of more resources into research and production of mushrooms in this continent.<\/span>\n<\/p>\n \n Proposed key conference themes<\/b><\/span> <\/span>\n<\/p>\n \n Target participants<\/b><\/span>\n<\/p>\n \n This conference will attract several individuals and groups, including but not limited to the following: graduate students of environmental science, forestry, crop science, molecular biology, mycology; the farming community (especially active and prospective commercial mushroom growers); mushroom spawn producers (international and local); <\/span>researchers in food science, pharmacology, physiology and nutrition, forestry, botany, environment and wildlife, agriculture, molecular biology and taxonomy and many leading authorities in mushroom science and socio-economists.<\/span>\n<\/p>\n \n Organising committee<\/b><\/span>\n<\/p>\n \n This conference is organised and run by Makerere University (Uganda) and the Natural Products Research Network for Eastern and Central Africa (NAPRECA -Uganda). The conference brings together the resources of four faculties of Makerere University: Veterinary Medicine, Science (Chemistry and Botany departments), Agriculture (Food science department), and Forestry. <\/span><\/span>\n<\/p>\n \n Local organising committee:<\/i><\/span>\n<\/p>\n \n International contacts:<\/i><\/span>\n<\/p>\n \n \n Timeline\/plans for the scientific conference<\/b><\/span>\n<\/p>\n\n
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<\/b>The Jinja Nile Resort.<\/i><\/span>\n<\/p>\n\n