9818556 Gott and Hanson The Gordon Conference on RNA Editing will take place January 24-29, 1999, at the Doubletree Hotel in Ventura, California. RNA editing is the co- or post-transcriptional modification of RNA; it results in the insertion, deletion or substitution of nucleotides. RNA editing can therefore correct, extend, or diversify the information encoded within the corresponding genomic sequence and can dramatically alter the function of the modified RNA's. Equally significant is the cellular regulation of many of the RNA editing processes which provides for developmental, tissue-specific and metabolic fine-tuning of protein function and biochemical pathways. Our understanding of molecular mechanisms underlying RNA editing and their biological occurrence has reached a critical stage where cross-fertilization of hypotheses and experimental approaches is essential for focus in the next decade of research.
Despite the diversity of organisms wherein editing occurs and the apparent dissimilarities in sequences which are modified, investigators of RNA editing share questions and experimental goals. Important to the understanding of every editing system is a basic description of the RNA substrates that are modified by these processes. Similarly, questions of general interest concerning the mechanism, specificity, fidelity and processivity of RNA editing can be addressed with a combination of biochemical and molecular biological techniques coupled with the development of in vitro editing systems. In this regard the cis-active regulatory elements and the relevant trans-acting factors are being evaluated at both the molecular and genetic level. Understanding the structure and function of these factors at the level of common or divergent features among the different editing systems is an important goal of this Gordon Research Conference. Still other editing systems have yet to advance to in vitro systems . This conference will foster advancement in these systems also. The biological significance of RNA editing will be emphasized throughout the conference.
