The Gordon Research Conference on Growth Factor Signaling will take place on July 25-30, 2004 at The Queen's College, Oxford University, in the United Kingdom. Although relatively small the conference is one of the premier gatherings for signal transduction research. So far 35 speakers have accepted invitations to attend and, of these, over half work in the USA. The speakers represent different ethnic backgrounds and include 10 women who are leaders in the field of signal transduction. The sessions are designed to provide maximum time for dissemination of information with each speaker allocated at least 30 minutes/talk and 15 minutes for questions. Following lunch each day there are three hours of free time where participants can get together and discuss projects and collaborations in more detail. Poster sessions with ample time for discussion will be held at 4PM each day followed by dinner and an evening session featuring two speakers. The goals of the conference are to provide an environment that encourages extensive formal and informal discussion and a sense of community among the attendees. Although one of the attractions of the conference is the prevalence of well established investigators, the Conference also endeavors to support and encourage young scientists as they establish initial scientific and personal contacts. The main topics to be discussed will include Kinases and Phosphatases, Scaffolds, Neuronal Signaling, Innate Immunity and Apoptosis, High throughput analysis and Modelling, TGFb and Development, Kinase networks, Trafficking/endocytosis and Chromatin organization.
