Conference: 2004 Sensory Transduction in Microorganisms Gordon Conference to be held in Ventura, California

Gordon Research Conferences, East Greenwich RI

Investigators

Abstract

Research into the mechanisms involved in the sensing and responses of microorganisms to changes in their environment is currently very active in a large number of laboratories in the U.S., Europe, Japan, Korea and Israel. A wide range of eukaryotic and prokaryotic species are being studied with regard to their sensing of chemical changes, light and redox signals and intercellular signaling, leading either to changes in motile behavior, gene expression or development. It has become apparent over the past few years that microbial signal transduction can provide useful models for probing sensing and motility at a fundamental level, allowing the development of a model for sensing a response from the conformational change of a sensory protein through to the behavior of a population of cells. The central goal of this conference is to bring together investigators using a wide range of approaches and different systems to compare data, share ideas and approaches and seek to understand the fundamental principles underlying sensory responses. This conference has always encouraged a broad participation in expertise and in seniority (from graduate students to senior professors), resulting in a vitality and a breadth of discussion that has fostered the development of collaborations and new approaches.