Coenzyme A (CoA) and its various derivative forms (mostly importantly, acetyl-CoA) are centrally important to energy metabolism, fatty acid metabolism, and as second messenger. As such, CoA has a wide-ranging impact on health and disease, with a proven role in a diversity of conditions and processes including aging, cancer, diabetes, neurological function and mitochondrial function. The biosynthesis and utilization of CoA has also been highlighted as a target for antimicrobial development. The proposed Focused Meeting will follow on only two previous meetings held on CoA, and provides the only forum where academic and industrial researchers from these diverse fields can meet to exchange ideas and challenge the frameworks of our current understanding of the role of CoA and its derivatives in all aspects of health, disease and bioscience.