Conference on Specificity and Crosstalk in Plant Signal Transduction being held on January 22 - 27 2002: in Tahoe City, California.

Keystone Symposia On Molecular And Cellular Biology, Silverthorne CO

Investigators

Abstract

Signal transduction networks are essential in eukaryotes, allowing cells to perceive and respond to continuous changes in extracellular conditions. Multiple signaling pathways co-exist in individual cells controlling essential responses, including hormone signaling, mitogenesis and apoptosis. Understanding the molecular mechanisms by which signaling pathways cross talk with one another or by which specificity is conferred within a complex signaling network is an area of present intensive research in eukaryotic biology. It has long been recognized that most aspects of plant growth and development are regulated by networks of signaling mechanisms rather than linear signal transduction pathways. Furthermore, most plant cells express receptors for the six major classes of plant hormones and additional light and pathogen responsive receptors and need to process each pathway, while also making use of cross talk among these pathways. Recent interdisciplinary studies using new genetic, biochemical and genomic approaches have led to rapid and accelerating progress in understanding mechanisms that mediate cross talk and specificity in plant signal transduction. Hormones, light, pathogens and stress stimuli trigger signal transduction cascades that are essential for growth, development and survival of plants. The Keystone Symposium on Specificity and Cross Talk in Plant Signal Transduction will be focused on presentations on newly recognized reception and transduction mechanisms in these responses. The organizers have set up important avenues that will ensure diversity among presenters at the conference and are requesting funds, that will enable travel support for graduate students, post doctoral associates and selected speakers, towards achieving the goal of diversity and multidisciplinarity. The goal of the meeting will be to highlight major advances in this rapidly moving field and to synthesize an integrated understanding of which mechanisms mediate cross talk among pathways and which mechanisms allow specific modulation of plant growth and developmental responses. Understanding of these mechanisms is essential for manipulation of plant growth and development and for developing new biotechnological applications, that will ultimately benefit human health.