The Gordon Research Conference on "Biological Molecules in the Gas Phase and in Solution" provides an international forum for discussing fundamental questions related to the structure and dynamics of proteins, peptides, nucleic acids, carbohydrates, and other molecular building blocks of life. The 2013 meeting will focus on several emerging problems in this field. One focus is the characterization of the structures of isolated biological molecules by mass spectrometry and related approaches (including chemical labeling, ion mobility, dissociation methods, and various spectroscopic tools). Another focus involves the application of theory to understand solvated and anhydrous biomolecules. An understanding of how these solvent-free structures compare to the structures of these molecules in solution provides fundamental insight into the role of intramolecular interactions in establishing structure. Recent work has shown that under some conditions isolated biological molecules emerge from solution while retaining information about the populations of states that are present in solution. This finding suggests that it is possible to gain some characterization of solution populations by examining these systems in the gas phase. In these studies it is key to understand what features are retained from solution and which are due to reorganization of structure after the molecules are in the gas phase. Some of the issues that will be addressed include the following: How do biological molecules behave once they have been deprived of their aqueous environment? How can gas phase methods be employed for obtaining structural information on biological molecules in solution? How do biological molecules interact with water? How do biological molecules behave in solvents other than water? The uniqueness of this meeting stems from its strongly interdisciplinary character. The meeting brings together a range of experimentalists and theorists working at the interface of chemistry, biology, physics, and medicine. This GRC also provides a perfect opportunity for young scientists to interact with established and emerging leaders in all of these areas. Cross disciplinary in nature, with emphasis on isolated biomolecules and biomolecular interactions, theory and experiment, this meeting will provide an international forum for the presentation and discussion of frontier research on molecules of biological interest in the gas phase, and in solution. The past few years have witnessed remarkable advances in this field, revealing important properties of the building blocks of life that have heretofore been obscured by surrounding condensed phase environments. Our conference will put these results in perspective by comparing the properties of isolated molecules with their properties in the condensed phase, especially in solution. Following a brief tutorial on modern experimental methods in high resolution spectroscopy and mass spectrometry, the meeting will begin with a keynote lecture on "The Challenges that Lie Ahead" and continue with sessions devoted to noncovalent interactions, hydration, peptides and proteins, enzymes, nucleic acids, energy transduction, carbohydrates, and biopolymers in cells. Each session will feature a discussion leader and three invited talks; one on spectroscopy, one on computational methods, and one on mass spectrometry, each focused on the central topic of the session. In this way, we will compare and contrast the experimental and theoretical methods, and what can be learned from the application of these very different techniques to similar systems. Additionally, a scientist working in the field will be assigned the role of "reflector" for the session, who will help all conferees put the talks in a biological perspective, and identify key future areas of interest in that field. "Hot Topics" and "Poster" Sessions also are planned. The meeting will therefore provide an opportunity for young scientists to grow and be stimulated by the discussion of future research activities in this interdisciplinary field.