The FEBS Workshop 'Prote in termini 2026: From mechanisms to biological impact' wi ll be the 5th biennial conference of the International Society for Protein Termini (ISPT) and appear within the FEBS Advanced Courses programm e. We will explore the fundamental roles of protein termini across king doms of life, with emphasis on how terminal modifications regulate protein fate, signaling, and disease.
The four-day programme is structured around eight th ematic sessions that follow the functional journey of protein termini &mdas h; from synthesis and co-translational processing, through terminal modific ations, stability and signaling, to applications in medicine and biotechnol ogy.
More about our conference programme:
The Palermo workshop will expl ore the fundamental roles of protein termini across kingdoms of life, with emphasis on how terminal modifications regulate protein fate, signaling, an d disease. Highlights include two keynote lectures (Beckmann and Hartl), a dedicated session on terminal degrons (ISPT Lecture), and a closing session on therapeutic innovation. This progression fosters interdisciplinary dial ogue across structural biology, cell biology, proteomics, synthetic biology , and translational research.
Our workshop will explore the critical roles of prot ein termini in biological processes, including proteostasis. As the first p art of a nascent protein to emerge from the ribosome, the N-terminus underg oes co-translational modifications that dictate protein fate, while ribosom e-associated factors and modifying enzymes act on both termini to influence folding, localization, and stability. The C-terminus, though historically less studied, is now recognized as equally important in regulating protein interactions and degradation. Additionally, protease-mediated processing ge nerates new N- and C-termini, adding another layer of regulation. Understan ding how these processes coordinate during translation and beyond remains a major question in biology with broad biological and therapeutic implicatio ns.
The workshop will span a logical progression from protein synthesis to termina l modifications, their role in degradation, functions beyond degradation, a nd therapeutic applications. It will open with “Molecular Choreograph y: Ribosomal Coordination of Terminal Fate”, featuring a keynote lect ure by Prof. Roland Beckmann (LMU Munich) on N-terminal modifications durin g nascent chain synthesis, followed by talks on structural and mechanistic advances of ribosome-associated enzymatic factors. Next, the sessions &ldqu o;Terminal Modifications I & II: Mechanisms & Functions” will explore the full spectrum of terminal modifications, from well-established ones like N-terminal acetylation to recently discovered modifications such as Nt-methylation. The next two sessions, ”N-Terminal Signals in Pro tein Stability and N-Degrons and Their N-recognins”, will explore the role of N-terminal modifications in regulating protein stability. These se ssions will provide key insights into N-degron pathways and ubiquitin ligas e function. The session “Beyond Degradation: Functional Roles of Prot ein Termini” will highlight their broader regulatory functions. This will be followed by the second keynote lecture, delivered by Prof. F. Ulric h Hartl (MPI Biochemistry, Martinsried), on co-translational folding and it s interplay with protein termini. The workshop will conclude with two sessi ons “Translating Terminal Modifications: From Basic Science to Therap eutics”, showcasing how advances in terminal modifications can be lev eraged for technological innovation and translational research where we wil l also industry participation.
CONTACT:www.conferencecentral.org/webpage/view/45 DTSTAMP:20260608T234326Z DTSTART;TZID=Europe/Vienna:20260603T100000 DTEND;TZID=Europe/Vienna:20260606T170000 SEQUENCE:1 TRANSP:OPAQUE END:VEVENT END:VCALENDAR