Integration and Regulation of Plant Proteolytic Pathways

Shaping the cellular proteome, proteolysis is a key process in growth, development, stress and disease. It is engaged in protein maturation, regulation and degradation. Given the number of genes involved, proteolysis appears to be particularly important to plants. The number of proteins devoted to the ubiquitin-proteasome system, including about 1000 E3 ligases, exceeds that in any other kingdom of life. Also contributing to the processing and turnover of the cellular proteome are well over 500 individual proteases of different catalytic classes, as well as endosomal and autophagic sorting pathways. Proteolysis is a highly regulated process, allowing plants to acclimate to adverse conditions by reshaping the proteome in response to environmental cues. Plant proteolysis also has important practical implications, including a major role in agriculture through its impact on plant defense and yield, as well as applications in biotechnology.

The Plant Proteolysis field has grown rapidly in recent years, and tremendous progress has been made in many of its subareas. To further advance the field, an integrated view and interdisciplinary approaches to Plant Proteolysis are required. The 2025 GRC will thus join researchers studying basic, technical and applied aspects of Plant Proteolysis and covering a wide range of disciplines, including genetics, cell and molecular biology, chemistry and biochemistry, and systems biology. The 2025 GRC program includes invited experts in theses areas and many talks selected from the abstracts. If you would like to be considered for an oral presentation, please apply and submit your abstract before October 15th, 2024. Thereby, the GRC will define the research agenda in the Plant Proteolysis field for the upcoming years, aiming to provide solutions for some of the most pressing societal challenges.