Keynote speakers at the cell signaling meeting in Luxembourg have provided chapters on hypoxia signal transduction, phosphoserine/threonine-binding domains, targeting of polycomb repressive complexes, conserved signaling mechanisms in innate immunity, and signal transduction by stress-activated MAP kinases. Other topics included among these reports on recent research are receptor signaling, protein kinase cascades as therapeutic targets, cell death in cancer, inflammation-specific signaling, cell signaling pathways leading to regulated chromatin modifications, and transcriptional control. The chapters have been published in four volumes (Part A to D), offering a comprehensive overview about this exciting topic. This first volume focuses on basic research, and the chapters are divided into the following sections: apoptotic cell signaling mechanisms, extracellular matrix interactions, and MAP kinases. NOTE: Annals volumes are available for sale as individual books or as a journal. For information on institutional journal subscriptions, please visit www.blackwellpublishing.com/nyas. ACADEMY MEMBERS: Please contact the New York Academy of Sciences directly to place your order (www.nyas.org). Members of the New York Academy of Science receive full-text access to the Annals online and discounts on print volumes. Please visit http://www.nyas.org/MemberCenter/Join.aspx for more information about becoming a member