Biological Role Of Plant Lipids

The 8th International Symposium on the Biological Role of Plant Llpldstook place atthe Feder ation of Technical and Scientific Societies, Budapest, Hungary, July 25-28,1988. The host association was the Hungarian Scientific Society for Food Industry (METE). This was the first time that the Symposium was held In an Eastern European socialist country. Previous host cities were Norwich, Karlsruhe, GOteborg, PariS, Gronlngen, Neuchatel, Davis. The addition of Budapest to this distinguished list was the merit of the organizers, the Lipid Chemical Working Group of the Complex Committee of Food Science of the Hungarian Academy of Scien ces and the Ministry of Agriculture and Food. The Symposium was organized by Professor Peter Blacs, Aladar Blaskovlts, Tlbor Farkas, KatalinGrulz, Tibor Kremmer and Laszlo Vfgh, with the as sistance of Mrs. Marta Tardy-Lengyel. The activity and the help of the staff of the Central Food Research Institute In Budapest Is high Iyappreclated. In organizing the Symposium, we started with the Idea that a bridge between Eastern and West ern scientists should be built In the field of plant lipid research as well. In fact, 180 partiCipants were registered, 50 of them from Czechoslovakia, the German Democratic Republic, Poland, the USSR and Hungary.

Lipid metabolism; Structural and functional organization of lipids; Biosinthesis and function of prenyllipids; Carrier proteins, genetics of plant lipids; Biocides, interaction with plant lipids; Biotechnology of lipids, nutritional aspects; Development, environment, stress.

New research tools have revealed many surprising aspects of the dynamic nature of lipids and their participation in processes such as recognition, intra- and inter-cellular signalling, deterrence and defense against pathogens, membrane trafficking and protein function. This is in addition to new information on the more established roles of plant lipids as structural components of membranes and as long-term storage products. Plant lipids are also increasingly being seen as sources of a new generation of environmentally friendly, biodegradable, and renewable industrial products, including biopolymers and high-grade lubricants. Plant Lipids: Biology, Utilisation and Manipulation provides a broad overview of plant lipid research and its many applications. Linking various disciplines, the editor brings together researchers from major international laboratories to review the history and current state of progress in this quickly evolving field. The text starts by providing a fascinating historical perspective on the study of plant lipids, from its inception as a branch of alchemy in the seventeenth century to the current post-genomic era. It then offers a detailed discussion on the formation, modification and utilization of fatty acids. This is followed by an exploration of the major classes of macromolecular structures formed by plant lipids, including bilayer membranes and storage bodies. From there, the contributors consider other types of macromolecular lipid assemblies in plants, examining proteins and the key plant lipid structure - the cuticle. The final chapters look at diverse classes of plant lipids that are linked to various aspects of signaling. This text provides an excellent resource for researchers and professionals in plant biochemistry, molecular biology, biotechnology and genetics, in both the academic and industrial sectors. It also meets the needs of students looking for a comprehensive introduction to this field, as well as direction for fut

The Seventh International Symposium on the Structure and Function of Plant Lipids took place at the University of California, Davis, California July 27th to August 1st, 1986. This was the first time the Symposium was held in the United States. The list of previous host cities reads, Norwich, Karlsruhe, Goteborg, Paris, Groningen, Neuchatel. The addition of Davis to this distinguished list was made by the organizers with the doubts of people who give invitations to parties - will anybody come? In fact 155 participants registered and there were 21 spouses in attendance. The scientific program was composed of nine sessions: biochemistry of isoprenoids and sterols, function of isoprenoids and sterols, structure and function of lipids, biosynthesis of complex lipids, fatty acid oxygenases and desaturases, medium and long chain fatty acids, interaction of university, government and industrial research, algal lipids, and genetics and biotechnology. In addition to these sessions of plenary lectures, there were four poster sessions in which about 140 posters were presented. All of this was packed into four days, and there was some comment about the scarcity of time to ask questions of the speakers, discuss the posters and even to eat lunch. The compression of the program was a result of the continued desire of the organizing committees to avoid concurrent sessions. The congregation of participants into a single session increases interaction and generates a feeling of unity at these symposia.

The Biochemistry of Plants: A Comprehensive Treatise, Volume 4: Lipids: Structure and Function provides information pertinent to the fundamental aspects of plant lipid biochemistry. This book covers a variety of topics, including oxidative enzymes, glyoxylate cycle, lipoxygenases, ethylene biosynthesis, phospholipids, and carotenoids. Organized into 19 chapters, this volume begins with an overview of the different techniques for use in the analysis of plant lipids. This text then outlines the concepts of membrane lipid structure and discusses the relationship between membrane lipid structure and function. Other chapters consider the role that lipid structure plays in regulating physiological function. This book discusses as well the biochemical mechanism by which the double bond is introduced in the biosynthesis of ethylene. The final chapter deals with the results of studies on the biosynthesis of cyclopropanoid, cyclopropenoid, and cyclopentenyl fatty acids in higher plants. This book is a valuable resource for plant biochemists, neurobiochemists, molecular biologists, senior graduate students, and research workers.

The 12th International Symposium on Plant Lipids was held at the University of Toronto, Canada, from July 7th to 12th, 1996. The conference was attended by over 200 scientists from university, government and corporate laboratories from 24 different countries. The topics covered in the symposium ranged from basic physiology, biochemistry and molecular biology of plant lipids to transformation and genetic engineering of crop plants. Oil seed plants were a particular focus of the symposium. There were 62 oral and 96 posters presentations. A special lecture in memory of the founder of this series of symposium, Terry Galliard, was presented by John Shanklin. This Proceedings Book has been dedicated to Grattan Roughan for his important contributions to our knowledge of plant lipid metabolism. This volume contains manuscripts submitted from most of the presentations at the symposium. It provides a useful summary of the major fields of plant lipid studies and our present state of knowledge. The papers are arranged in eight sections covering the major areas in the field of plant physiology, biochemistry and molecular biology of plant lipids. We would like to thank Valerie Imperial, Rajesh Khetarpal and Mary Williams for their invaluable help in organizing and running the meetings and excursions. John P. Williams, Mobashsher U. Khan and Nora W. Lem Toronto, Canada, October 1996 xvii DEDICATION This volume is dedicated to Grattan Roughan.

This text presents a comprehensive description of the fundamental principles of plant lipid metabolism and then uses this base to examine current research in the field. The importance of molecular biology and the incorporation of new analytical methods are discussed, and the contributions of current research to agricultural and industrial uses are covered in depth. Chapters are illustrated with tables and figures to support key concepts, and projections for future researc in the field are also explored.

The 15th International Symposium on Plant Lipids was held in Okazaki, Japan, in May 12th to 17th, 2002, at the Okazaki Conference Center. The Symposium was organized by the Japanese Organizing Committee with the cooperation of the Japanese Association of Plant Lipid Researchers. The International Symposium was successful with 225 participants from 29 countries. We acknowledge a large number of participants from Asian countries, in particular, from China, Korea, Malaysia, Taiwan, Thailand and the Philippines, presumably because this was the fIrst time that the International Symposium on Plant Lipids was held in Asia. We also acknowledge a number of scientists from Canada, France, Germany, UK and USA, where plant lipid research is traditionally very active. The Symposium provided an opportunity for presentation and discussion of 68 lectures and 93 posters in 11 scientific sessions, which together covered all aspects of plant lipid researches, such as the structure, analysis, biosynthesis, regulation, physiological function, environmental aspects, and the biotechnology of plant lipids. In memory of the founder of this series of symposia, the Terry Galliard Lecture was delivered by Professor Ernst Heinz from Universitat: Hamburg, Germany. In addition, special lectures were given by two outstanding scientists from animal lipid fields, Professor James Ntambi from University of Wisconsin, USA, and Dr. Masahiro Nishijima from the National Institute for Infectious Diseases, Japan. To our great honor and pleasure, the session of Lipid Biosynthesis was chaired by Dr.