Meeting Programme
Dr Christine Faulkner (Oxford Brookes University)
The regulation of cell-to-cell communication during pathogen invasion
- Cell-to-cell communication is a fundamental biological process, necessary for co-ordination of development and environmental responses in multicellular organisms. The receptor-like protein AtLYM2 is located at plasmodesmata and mediates chitin-triggered changes to cell-to-cell communication during fungal pathogen invasion . AtLYM2 functions independently of the chitin receptor CERK1 and thus identifies that there are multiple chitin perception mechanisms in plants.
Dr Santanu Datta
Delineating the genetic and chemical vulnerability of anti-infective drug targets
- The equity of a drug target is majorly evaluated by its genetic vulnerability with tools ranging from antisense and microRNA driven knockdowns to induced expression of the target protein. In order to upgrade the process of antibacterial target identification and discern its most effective type of inhibition, an in silico tool box that evaluates its genetic and chemical vulnerability leading either to stasis or cidal outcome was constructed and validated.