Wnt Signaling Gordon Research Conference and Seminar - We request partial support for the Gordon Research Conference (GRC) and Gordon Research Seminar (GRS) titled Wnt signaling: mechanisms, biology & therapy to be held June 20-27th, 2025 at Bates College (Lewiston, ME). The GRC portion of the meeting will be chaired by Ken Cadigan (University of Michigan, USA) Madelon Maurice (UMC Utrecht, Netherlands) with Marian Waterman (University of California, Irvine, USA) and Rami Hannoush (Versant Ventures) as Vice-Chairs. The GRC include presentations from many prominent scientists, at varied career stages, active in the field of Wnt biology. The GRS will be held at the same location June 20- 21st, 2025 and will feature talks from graduate students and postdoctoral fellows. The GRS will be led by Drs. Lucie Wolf (post-doctoral fellow at the University of Toronto) and Pierfrancesco Pagella (Associate Professor, Linköping University; Dr. Pagella was elected co-chair of the GRS while still a post-doctoral fellow). The major goal of the conference is to provide a forum for the presentation and discussion of recent advances and new ideas in all aspects of Wnt biology and molecular biology. The Wnt signaling field is highly active (almost 1800 publications listed in PubMed in 2024 alone) and is required for countless developmental, tissue homeostasis and physiological functions throughout metazoans. In addition, de-regulation of Wnt signaling is widely recognized as a critical regulator numerous human disorders, from early developmental abnormalities to age- related diseases, such as cancer. Session topics have been selected to highlight active areas of Wnt signaling. Several sessions will focus on the rich Wnt biology that continues to expand, including development, stem cell biology and cancer. These questions will be explored in a wide variety of invertebrate organisms (cnidarians, Drosophila and C. elegans) as well as vertebrate models (frogs, fish and mice). Cell and organoid cultures will also be prominently represented and a session on therapeutic interventions will touch upon some of the efforts to drug this major pathway. Mechanisms of Wnt signal transduction, including ligand-receptor interactions, regulation of β-catenin stability and transcriptional regulation of Wnt targets will be examined at the genetic, biochemical and structural levels. A section on β-catenin-independent signaling recognizes the importance of the so-called non-canonical pathways by which Wnt regulate cell behavior. Based on past Wnt signaling GRCs, this meeting will attract a diverse array of junior and senior researchers from North America, Europe and Asia. This gathering will provide information exchange that is essential for keeping abreast of new developments, as well as provide an excellent entry point for younger researchers to appreciate the scope of this active field and make important contacts for their career advancement. We expect the reporting of new discoveries and the establishment of new collaborations that will continue to push this field forward in a cooperative manner.
