MEETING REPORT
In the workshop “Growth factors, Cytokines and their Receptors“,
Michael Martin (Gießen) provided a comprehensive overview on
interleukin-33. He highlighted a completely different role of pro-
inflammatory IL-33 depending on its localization intracellularly or
outside of the cell together with similarities between the IL-33
receptor and the IL-1 receptor in the modulation of activation-
dependent signaling. Xavier Deupi (Villingen, Switzerland) demons-
trated fascinating 3D images based on computational analyses of
the molecular networks that are formed for instance with the
adenosine receptor. He also illustrated the movement of substra-
te molecules such as adenosine and their binding to appropriate
molecular pockets within the receptor. The induced structural al-
teration upon substrate binding and the subsequent downstream
signaling were addressed in the following workshop on “G Proteins
and GPCRs”. In his keynote talk in the workshop ”Signaling in Infec-
tion and Inflammation”, Matthias Trost (Dundee, Scotland) talked
about ubiquitin systems and the role of differential ubiquitylation
cell fate decisions during inflammatory responses. Moreover, Prof.
Trost discussed new molecular mechanisms of phagocytosis that
his team recently deciphered in activated macrophages.
Following the keynote lectures, a number of short talks selected
from the submitted abstracts were presented by group leaders,
post-doctoral fellows and also a number of PhD students which
was highly appreciated as a unique feature of the STS meeting.
Each year, at the STS meeting, an outstanding scientist in the field
of signal transduction research is awarded with the STS/CCS Ho-
norary Medal, which was introduced in 2010 by the STS in co-
operation with the open access journal “Cell Communication and
Signaling” (CCS). The 2015 STS/CCS medal was presented to Mina
Bissell (Berkeley, USA) and the laudation was given by Reinhold
Schäfer (Berlin). Prof. Bissell was honored as the first woman with
the STS/CCS medal for her seminal and pioneering research on the
critical role of the tumor microenvironment for breast cancer deve-
lopment. The following “Honorary Medal Lecture” by Dr. Bissell was
a very entertaining mixture of her personal history originating in
Iran, combined with her views and scientific achievements particu-
larly on the formation of breast cancer metastases and the homing
of metastatic cells to establish a distant niche of dormant tumor
cells. For future studies with tumor cell models in vitro, she empha-
sized 3D culture systems which might resemble a more in vivo like
situation, e.g. considering cell polarity as compared to the limita-
tions of 2D cultures. Moreover, in her enthusiastic STS/CCS medal
lecture, Prof. Bissell urged all scientists to evaluate their data in a
more complete biological context considering also adjacent effects
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