Mitochondrial dynamics in cell life and death

Abstract

The International FEBS-IUBMB Workshop: 'Mitochondrial Dynamics in Cell Life and Death', 27–30 August 2005, was dedicated to the memory of Stanley J Korsmeyer (1950–2005). It was held at the Venetian Institute of Molecular Medicine in Padova, a charming city near Venice that hosts a respected university with a long-standing tradition for scientific studies. Galileo Galilei, one of its best-known professors, made some of his most significant discoveries during the 18 years (1592–1610) he spent in this city. This meeting was the very first specifically dedicated to mitochondrial dynamics, and reflecting the exciting state of this field, the program was densely packed with innovative talks. Roughly 100 scientists attended 33 talks by invited speakers and 10 talks selected from submitted abstracts. Some 50 posters were displayed throughout the duration of the meeting. Discussions were lively during the conferences, the poster sessions and the breaks on the beautiful terrace of the Institute. The members of the local organizing committee and the friendly personnel of the excellent catering service were rewarded with long applauses from all participants. We apologize for the other numerous excellent contributions that could not be included into this report owing to space limitations.