Gordon Research Conference on Macromolecular Organization and Cell Function to be held on August 6-11, 2000 at Queen

戈登大分子组织和细胞功能研究会议从1987年开始召开；这将是该系列的第八次会议。最近一次是1998年9月在英国牛津大学皇后学院进行的。该提案要求为下一届会议提供部分资金，该会议将于2000年8月6日至11日在牛津再次举行。本次会议的重点是细胞成分的细胞内组织，这种组织的原理和机制，以及这种组织在细胞功能及其调节中的重要作用。最初的会议集中于酶组织在代谢调节中的作用，但多年来，主题已经大大扩展，因此现在它几乎包括细胞功能的所有方面。大分子组织不仅对维持各种静态细胞结构至关重要，而且对与染色质重塑、转录、RNA编辑和运输、核输入/输出、翻译、蛋白质降解、细胞骨架功能、细胞器运输、信号转导、代谢途径和凋亡等关键过程耦合的动态事件也至关重要。会议主题包括大分子相互作用的机制，以及这些机制对代谢或激素状态变化的反应。相互作用的功能含义，如代谢中间体或信号分子的通道，或细胞成分的易位，以及大分子复合物的特性，无论是稳定的还是短暂的，都是中心兴趣。在以前的会议上，已经非常清楚，当细胞或组织被破坏以进行研究时，许多相互作用可能会改变甚至丢失，并且主要的兴趣是开发和应用分析活细胞中相互作用的方法。这是一个跨学科的会议。它不仅吸引了有兴趣和专业知识的实验科学家，从生物化学，细胞生物学，分子生物学到生物物理学，物理学和仪器仪表，而且还吸引了理论家和建模者。跨学科的氛围产生了极好的讨论和科学互动，这些都是刺激和参与者高度重视的。18位优秀的演讲者和8位杰出的讨论领袖已经接受邀请参加下一届会议的正式会议。在这个快速发展的领域，有许多空位是为最新的发展而开放的。

The Gordon Research conference on Macromolecular Organization and CellFunction has met since 1987; this will be the eighth conference in this series. The most recent one met at Queens College, Oxford University, U.K. in September, 1998. This proposal requests partial funding for the next conference, to be held again in Oxford, August 6-11, 2000. This conference focuses on the intracellular organization of cellularcomponents, the principles and mechanisms underlying that organization, and the essential role of such organization in cell function and its regulation. The first conferences concentrated on the role of enzyme organization in metabolic regulation, but the subject matter has been greatly broadened over the years, so that it now includes virtually all aspects of cell function. Macromolecular organization is critical notonly for the maintenance of various static cell structures, but also for the dynamic events that are coupled to key processes such as chromatin remodeling, transcription, RNA editing and transport, nuclear import/export, translation, protein degradation, cytoskeletal function, organelle transport, signal transduction, metabolic pathways, and apoptosis. Conference topics include the mechanisms of macromolecular interactions, and the responses of such mechanisms to changes in metabolic or hormonal status. The functional implications of interactions, such as channeling of metabolic intermediates or of signaling molecules, or the translocation of cellular components are of central interest, as are the characteristics of macromolecular complexes, both stable and transient. In previous conferences it has become very clear that many interactions may be altered or even lost when cells or tissues are disrupted for study, and a major interest is the development and application of methods to analyze interactions in theliving cell. This is an interdisciplinary conference. It attracts not only experimental scientists with interests and expertise ranging from biochemistry, cell biology, and molecular biology to biophysics, physics, and instrumentation, but also theoreticians and modelers. The interdisciplinary atmosphere produces excellent discussions and scientific interactions that are stimulating and highly valued by the participants. Eighteen excellent speakers and eight prominent discussion leaders have alreadyaccepted invitations to participate in the formal sessions of the next conference. A number of slots have been kept open for the most recent developments in this rapidly moving field.