GRC on Stress Proteins in Growth, Development and Disease All organisms are exposed to stressful conditions including environmental stresses such as elevated temperatures and irradiation, physiological stress such as oxidative stress due to metabolic reactions, or pathophysiological stresses such as pharmacological agents, infection and inflammation. These stressful conditions lead to protein misfolding, aggregation, cellular dysfunction and cell death. Recent studies strongly suggest that the ability to sense and respond to stress signals, through the activation of signal transduction pathways, transcription factors and gene productions that function in protein homeostasis is critical for normal growth, development and in the protection against diseases that include cancer, cardiovascular disease and protein folding diseases such as Alzheimer's Huntington's and prion-based disease. Furthermore, studies in model systems have established a strong correlation between longevity and the ability to mount robust stress responses. The meeting will highlight the many cutting- edge advances in the field, including the mounting appreciation of the importance of autophagy pathways to remodel cells under stress conditions and the increasing emphasis on using modeling approaches to understand stress regulation at a systems level. This Gordon Research Conference on """"""""Stress Proteins in Growth, Development and Disease"""""""" will be held August 19-24, 2007 at Magdelan College in Oxford, UK. The organizers are Peter Walter, Chair (University of California, San Francisco), and Bernd Bukau, Vice-Chair (Universit?t Heidelberg, Zentrum f?r Molekulare Biologie). We will emphasize vigorous discussions of recent developments in stress sensing, signaling and gene expression, diseases of protein conformation, roles of stress genes in metabolism, growth and development, stress gene modulation of infection, the cell biology of stress and the roles of stress in aging. Eight sessions are planned, most with speaking opportunities reserved for new investigators, trainees and recent breakthroughs. All 33 speakers invited to date, of which 42% are women, have confirmed their intention to attend. There will be abundant opportunities for detailed, informal discussions among speakers, postdoctoral fellows and graduate students at poster sessions and additional times during the meeting to enhance interactions and information transmission. This application requests partial support for this Gordon Research Conference. GRC on Stress Proteins in Growth, Development and Disease This meeting will enhance our understanding of stress signaling, stress protein function and mechanism of action, and the role of stress in human health, disease and in aging. Cells employ various mechanisms that help protect them from stresses to which all organisms are constantly exposed, including environmental stresses such as elevated temperatures and irradiation, physiological stress such as oxidative stress due to metabolic reactions, or pathophysiological stresses such as pharmacological agents, infection and inflammation. The molecular consequences of such stressful conditions are protein misfolding, cellular dysfunction, and cell death, manifesting itself as aging and a multitude of human diseases. ? ? ? ? ?
