Technical Abstract: This issue of Phytochemistry is dedicated to the proceedings of the 2006 Phytochemical Society of North America's Conference held on the campus of The University of Mississippi in Oxford, MS. The meeting was hosted by the National Center for Natural Products Research, the Department of Pharmacognosy at The University of Mississippi and the United States Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service, Natural Products Utilization Research Unit. The objective of this meeting was to highlight the multitude of disciplines and expertise represented by the members of the society and their scientific interests. These disciplines and expertise are represented by individuals who may refer to themselves as chemists, biochemists, physiologists, molecular biologists, etc. The scientific program aimed to encompass the broad research interests of the society rather than to focus on a specific specialty area. To this end, symposia were organized representing the following topics: natural products synthesis and biosynthesis (two sessions); natural product isolation, structure elucidation, and methods for analysis; discovery and development of natural products for pest management; metabolic engineering of natural products; and herbal products and nutraceuticals. In addition, the program was designed to include presentations by graduate students, post-doctoral researchers, early career scientists and established scientists. It was our hope that this type of program would help unify the society by providing an appreciation of the scientific contributions of those individuals outside of their chosen discipline and to cater to the research interests of the entire PSNA membership.