Support is requested for the International Workshop for Scleroderma Research. This workshop, held biennially since 1990, focuses on basic research related to the pathogenesis of scleroderma. Scientific sessions cover autoimmunity, genetics, gene expression, vascular injury, animal models, fibrosis, and matrix metabolism. Clinically related areas such as novel therapeutics and development of measures of disease are also covered. The workshop has brought together investigators in scleroderma from throughout the world along with prominent researchers in related disciplines. Attendance has grown to approximately 200 attendees for the last four workshops. The workshop was chaired since its inception by Drs. Joseph Korn of Boston University and Carol Black of the University College, London. Dr. Lafyatis, Boston University, has assumed the role of Principal Investigator since Dr. Korn's death in 2005. The 2006 workshop is scheduled for Boston, MA in August 2006. Workshops alternate between the U.K. and the U.S. The 2008 workshop will be in the U.K. (Cambridge or Oxford) and the 2010 workshop in Boston, MA. ? ? ? ?
