We welcome you to the world’s largest polyploidy conference taking place at the world’s first-ranked agricultural research institute, Wageningen University and Research in the Netherlands!
This meeting will include a special theme of the future of polypoidy in applied breeding, fitting the sustainable agriculture research mission of the host university
About the meeting
Polyploidy, or Whole-Genome Duplication (WGD), refers to the duplication of the entire genome of an organism or cell, resulting in more than two complete sets of chromosomes. This phenomenon is observed across the tree of life ranging from prokaryotes, eukaryotes, and in both somatic and germ cells. Polyploidy has profound impact across biological scales, shaping genes and genomes, influencing cellular and developmental processes, and driving ecosystem diversity and complexity. Most eukaryotic genomes retain a clear genomic signature of one or more ancient WGD events, underscoring its significance. Whole-genome duplication is one of the processes central to genome evolution, promoting genetic novelty, speciation and adaptation, and also contributes substantially to the genome complexity in vertebrates and plants. In the modern world, polyploidy remains highly relevant for agriculture and plant domestication, impacting traits such as stress tolerance and yields, while also being increasingly recognized as important in a medical context, including cancer biology.
Genomic study of polyploidy, once considered a complicated and technically challenging area, has now evolved as a central biological signal rather than a confounding artifact. Polyploid events were known to be hard to detect, ignored, collapsed in genome assemblies, or misinterpreted in a majority of the cases. However, the explosion of high-quality genomes, together with the advancement in long-read sequencing technologies and near-complete chromosome-scale assemblies, has transformed our ability to study these events. This has led to an increased discovery of WGD events across diverse prokaryote and eukaryote lineages, extending far beyond traditionally well-studied plant systems. In parallel, rapid advancement in tools and technologies allows researchers to study how WGD reshapes gene expression, regulatory networks, and phenotypic consequences. Together, these innovations have shifted polyploidy from a simple descriptive discovery into an understanding of how genome duplication drives biological functions and evolution.
Despite its ubiquity and importance, polyploidy research remains scattered across disciplines, including plant and animal evolutionary biology, computational genomics, breeding, cell biology, and medical research. This highlights a strong need for cross- disciplinary synthesis, shared analytical frameworks, common language and a conceptual unification. This meeting aims to serve as a central hub for these efforts, fostering dialogues across fields, catalyzing new collaborations and developing a global community dedicated towards understanding WGD and its consequences.
The conference is open to both established experts and early-career researchers, and seeks to bring together evolutionary biologists, genome scientists, bioinformaticians, breeders and researchers working in the fields of applied genetics, ecology, developmental and systems biology. The conference is international, inclusive, explicitly interdisciplinary, and welcomes both computational and experimental scientists sharing common interests.
Time line
Abstract submissions open | 15th March, 2026 |
Registrations open | 15th March, 2026 |
Deadline for submitting abstracts | 1st July, 2026 |
Notification of abstract acceptance | 1st August, 2026 |
Deadline for early bird registration | 1st June, 2026 |
| Deadline for the Workshop registration | 30th April, 2026 |
The conference is international, inclusive, explicitly interdisciplinary, and welcomes both computational and experimental scientists sharing common interests.
Contact for any general conference questions, please email kelley.leung@wur.nl
Meet our organizing team
 Kelley Leung |  Matilde Galli |  Manu Kumar Gundappa |
 Pamela Soltis |  Filip Kolar |  Blaine Marchant |
Invited Speakers
 Bao Liu | Blaine Marchant |
Kenneth Oberlander |
 Justin Conover |  Dan Macqueen |  Aoife McLysaght |
Juliana Mainenti Leal Lopes | Matilde Galli |  Clotilde Cadart |
 Zuzana Storchova |  Michaela Patterson |  Timour Baslan |
Scientific program under preparation
The organizing committee is currently preparing the scientific program. Further details will be announced in due course.
Abstract Submission Guidelines Participants who wish to present their work at the conference are invited to submit an abstract for consideration as either an oral or poster presentation. Abstracts submitted for oral presentations that are not selected for a talk will automatically be considered for a poster presentation, provided they meet the scientific standards of the session organizers. Authors may select one of the following thematic sessions when submitting their abstract (please note that submissions may be reassigned to a more appropriate session for organizational purposes):
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Abstract Preparation
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Oral Presentations
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Poster Presentations (September 7 and 8)
Presenters are expected to:
Please note that you have to register for the conference first, before submitting your abstract with the below link. Abstracts that cannot be linked to a registration will be removed. The scientific committee will make the final decision on presentation format based on abstract quality, thematic relevance, and program balance. All abstracts will be reviewed by the scientific committee. Authors will be notified of acceptance and presentation format after the review process. Accepted abstracts will be included in the conference program and abstract book. |
click here to submit your abstract.
| Early bird (until 1 June)* | Normal fee* | |
| BSc, MSc & PhD | €250,- | €300,- |
| Postdocs | €325,- | €375,- |
| Principal Investigators | €375,- | €425,- |
| Non-academic industrial | €500,- | €550,- |
| Accompanying person* (partner/child/helper) | €100,- | €100,- |
| Extra options (add on) | ||
| Conference dinner 9 Sep | € 47,50 | € 47,50 |
| Excursions 9 Sep Kröller-Müller Museum | € 20,- | € 20,- |
| Excursions 9 Sep Wageningsche walk | € 20,- | € 20,- |
*The entrance fee includes coffee/tea and lunch, dinner is NOT included
The organizers are committed to making the meeting accessible to early career researchers. If the registration fee presents a financial hardship, you are encouraged to apply for financial support.
To apply, please submit:
- A 200-word summary of your research, and
- A brief statement explaining how attending IPC will benefit your career and, where applicable, how it may contribute to greater representation and inclusion in science.
Additional details regarding the application process and deadlines will be provided soon.
Please submit your application by email to kelley.leung@wur.nl no later than April 30 2026. Please note that the availability of conference funding depends on the success of our fundraising efforts. Applicants will be notified of funding decisions in May.
*For info on accompanying person(s), please click here.
Registration & Payment options
We offer the following payment options;
- IDEAL / Wero
- Bank transfer
- Creditcard/PayPal
- For WUR employees only, Pay by cost center code or project number (please have your cost center code at hand when registering)
PLEASE CLICK HERE to go to the registration form
Bioinformatics workshop 10 - 13 September 2026
As part of the programme, we are pleased to offer a three-day, hands-on bioinformatics workshop focused on the analysis of diploid and polyploid population genetic data.
This workshop aims to bridge the gap between theoretical frameworks developed for polyploids and their practical implementation. Through simulation-based exercises (including work in R), participants will explore the theoretical foundations of population genetics in both diploid and polyploid systems, as well as scenarios involving mixed ploidy.
The workshop is primarily aimed at PhD students, but applications from experienced Master’s students and early-career postdoctoral researchers will also be considered.
The additional fee for this three-day workshop is €380. Places are limited to 20 participants and the registration deadline is April 30th.
FOR MORE INFO AND REGISTRATION CLICK HERE
| Conference location Hotel Wander (previously know as WICC) Lawickse Allee 9, 6701 AN Wageningen Wageningen, The Netherlands (Click here for more information about getting to the venue) |
Check-in & Registration The registration desk will reopen at 8:00 AM on Monday, September 7, and will remain open throughout the conference to assist participants until 8:00 PM on Wednesday, September 9. |
Hotel accommodation in Wageningen
These block codes are valid for:
Reservations can be made from 6 September to 10 September 2026 (check-out on the morning of 10 September), subject to availability and on a first-come, first-served basis.
The block codes are valid until 5 July 2026. After this date, the block will expire and reservations can only be made based on availability. The standard daily rate will then apply instead of the block code rate. Please note! Some of you have a pre-booking through your group leader at De Nieuwe Wereld (https://hoteldenieuwewereld.nl/), which is down the street from the Wander hotel. This is a different hotel than the meeting venue. If this applies to you, please make arrangements to finalize your booking with De Nieuwe Wereld and do not double book by accident. De Nieuwe Wereld has a list of names to check for whom this pre-booking has been made. The nearby town of Ede also provides additional hotel options, such as Hotel de Reehorst. From Ede-Wageningen railway station, frequent bus services offer direct connections to Wageningen city centre and the conference venue. Participants may also choose to stay in Arnhem or Utrecht. Please note that public transport travel time from these cities to Wageningen is approximately 30–45 minutes one way. |
Payment System in the Netherlands
Some foreign banks may block transit transactions, so check with your bank if unsure. If you do not have a European-issued debit card, we recommend bringing some cash in euros. It is advisable to exchange currency before departure, as exchange rates at Amsterdam Schiphol Airport are typically unfavorable. Please also note that there are limited ATMs (geldautomaten) available in Wageningen.
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Excursions Wednesday 9 September (1 pm - 7 pm) Option 2: Wageningense Berg woods walk and city center. This will start in the local woods for a semi-guided walk with local plant and fungus experts. On return to the city center we visit the best ice cream (IJssalon Cicuto) and fry (Kruimig) shops in town, and the site of the secret signing of WWII peace accords in 1945 (De Wereld Hotel). Cost: € 20,- euro per person, the excursions can be selected during registration. |
Conference dinner 9 September 19:00. Cost: € 47,50,- per person, the dinner can be selected during registration. |
We are pleased to explore the provision of on-site childcare during the scientific program of the main conference (September 7–9), including scheduled breaks and lunch periods. We are currently in contact with a professional nanny agency to offer this service at the conference venue.
To support participating families, we plan to subsidize the cost. The estimated fee for attendees will be €100–150 per child for the full duration of the main conference. Please note that this fee does not include personal supplies such as formula, food, diapers, or other individual necessities.
Important Information
- A minimum of five children must be registered for childcare in order for the service to be offered.
- We expect to provide care for children aged 4 years and older.
- Care for children aged 0–3 years requires additional certifications. Availability for this age group will depend on whether appropriately certified caregivers are available through the agency on the conference dates.
Further details, including registration instructions and deadlines, will be shared once availability is confirmed.
If you would like to use childcare, please email kelley.leung@wur.nl by June first with
- Number and ages of children requiring childcare
- Any special care needs (e.g. allergies)