The Gordon Research Conference on Proteolytic Enzymes and Their Inhibitors brings together scientists from diverse disciplines and biological perspectives to report and discuss the most recent developments in this field. The 2006 meeting, to be held July 2-7 in New London, NH, will be the thirteenth in a series that remains the premier gathering in protease research. It is distinguished by the informal mingling of synthetic chemists, crystallographers, kineticists, experts in mass spectrometry, investigators of new biological imaging techniques, biologists and protein chemists. Participants come from both industry and academia. Proteases play key roles in virtually every aspect of cell biology and every function of multicellular organisms, and their disregulation leads to or exacerbates an array of human pathologies including cancer, dementia and stroke. Nonetheless, common questions regarding structure, function, and regulation bind the meeting together. The 2006 conference will have eight sessions: (1) developments in imaging, mass spec applications and other novel techniques (e.g., how can we identify physiological substrates, detect active enzymes, follow activity in vivo); (2) proteases in inflammation and immunology (e.g., T-cell activation and suppression, antigen presentation, cell trafficking); (3) proteases in the brain (e.g., calpain cleavage of Ca exchanger, amyloid-(3 processing, cleavage of a-synuclein); (4) new insights into specificity, mechanism and regulation (e.g., re-designing a protease to release vascular growth factor receptors); (5) proteases in infectious diseases; (6) new developments in protease inhibition (e.g., inhibitory antibodies, allosteric inhibitors); (7) de-ubiquitinating enzymes (how do they work, what do they do); and (8) new roles of proteases in homeostasis and repair (e.g., neo-vascularization, DNA repair). In addition to these platform sessions, the conference includes daily poster sessions, to facilitate more extensive exchanges of information and informal discussions. Outstanding posters will be selected for brief oral presentations. The purpose of this request for partial support of the meeting is to ensure that we will be able to invite the most outstanding investigators in each area, and to support attendance by graduate students and post-docs. This conference will advance public health by stimulating research into disease mechanisms and facilitating the development of therapeutic agents in several areas including cancer and neurological diseases. ? ? ?
