Dear Friends and Colleagues,

It is our great pleasure to invite you to the "Cell Stress: Survival and Apoptosis" (CSSA) meeting, which will be held in Bertinoro (Forlì-Cesena), next 30-31 May 2014. The venue of the Meeting is the University Residential Centre, an old and charming fortress located on the hilltop above the ancient town of Bertinoro (easily reachable by train and car; the nearest airport is Bologna).

The meeting will bring together scientists to present and discuss their studies on regulated cell death and its role in stress response, aging and development, in physiological and pathological conditions, and in different model organisms/cells.

This meeting will also provide a unique opportunity to honor the memory of Ferruccio Ritossa, who passed away earlier this year and started our field with his discovery of the heat shock response. In his memory, a prize will be awarded to the best presentation on stress response.

As keynote speaker, we will host Julian Aragones, a young group leader at the Hospital Universitario Santa Cristina, Research Institute Princesa, Autonomous University of Madrid, Spain. After spending a very productive period of time in the laboratory of Peter Carmeliet at Leuven, Belgium investigating the molecular mechanisms underlying hypoxia tolerance, he returned to Spain where his research focused on the link between the oxygen-sensing HIF pathway and mTORC1 regulation.

As usual, the setting of the conference will provide a friendly environment, aiming to stimulate discussion and promote active participation of young scientists. While the rich scientific content will constitute nourishing food for thought, this year we are also lucky to count on the excellent catering service that some of you have already experienced in the two previous ABCD Congresses in Ravenna.

We hope that the meeting will provide a great opportunity to share new ideas, start collaborations, and increase the knowledge of cellular processes regulating life and death.

We look forward to welcoming you to Bertinoro in May!