9618564 Stubbe A Gordon Research Conference on "Quinones, Radicals and Redox-Active Amino Acids", will be held May 4th to 9th at Il Ciocco, Italy, under the auspices of this support. This will be the fourth international conference on the subject and will emphasize recent advances in the study of radical and quinone derivatives generated during post-translational modification of amino acid residues by several classes of enzymes such as oxidases, dehydrogenases, reductases, oxygenases, pyroxidases and those involved in molecular rearrangements like pyruvate formate lyase and lysine 2,3-aminomutase. These radicals and quinones act as highly reactive cofactors for effecting difficult catalysis such as C-H bond cleavages. The controlled use of radicals in such enzymes contrasts with the uncontrolled production of radicals which damage biological material. The support is to be used to partially cover travel expenses of scientists attending the meeting, with due priority given to young scientists and under-represented groups. *** Uncontrolled radicals produced in a cell elicit damage, but controlled use of radicals by certain enzymes can produce useful molecules. Quinones and radicals produced by several classes of enzymes can act as cofactors in effective cleavage of chemical bonds that are otherwise difficult to break. Studies on these enzymes have attracted attention of increasing number of scientists, and a fourth international conference on this subject will be held May 4th to 9th at Il Ciocco, Pisa, Italy. The conference will organized by Professor Joanne Stubbe, M. I.T.; fifteen speakers from USA will join a forum of others from England, Italy, Japan, Netherland, Sweden, and elsewhere. Young scientists and under-represented groups will be subsidized by this support to participate in this conference, along with scientists from USA and abroad.
