We request partial funding for the 2nd National Meeting of the American Society for Matrix Biology (ASMB), to be held at the Manchester Grand Hyatt Hotel, San Diego, CA, on November 10-13, 2004. The 2nd ASMB meeting builds on the success of the 1st one, held in Houston in November 2002, which exceeded all expectations. Over 400 participants from diverse fields, in academia as well as in companies, spent 4 days of intense discussion and exchange of ideas on the broad topic of matrix biology. We hope to repeat and expand on that success, and expect in excess of 600 participants. To this end we have assembled organizing and program committees comprised of distinguished scientists from diverse areas that impinge directly or indirectly on matrix biology. The meeting will start on the first day with 9 Special Interest Group Sessions that are designed to attract presentations by young investigators, and will complement the regular program. These sessions will be followed by a Keynote Address by a distinguished scientist, Dr. Robert A. Weinberg, a molecular biologist from MIT who has recently made important contributions to the role of the matrix in the growth of tumor cells. ? ? The remaining 3 days will be occupied by 3 Plenary Sessions and 9 concurrent Breakout Sessions, focused on the following integrated topics: Regenerative medicine/ stem cell biology; Genetic disorders of connective tissue; Bio (Tissue) engineering; Morphogen gradients and organogenesis; Determinants of matrix structure and effects on cells; Mechanisms of signaling and the matrix; Cell adhesion and migration; Matrix remodeling; Tumor Microenvironment; Vascular biology and angiogenesis; Neurobiology; and New Matrix Proteins and New Functions. Every effort will be made to ensure that speakers from different fields (e.g., bioengineering and genetics) present in the same session, so as to cross-fertilize diverse approaches to the same issue. Members of the Program Committee will chair these sessions to put them in a proper integrative perspective. Unlike the Gordon Conferences, this meeting has broader appeal and promotes the encounter of scientists who normally function in distinct fields (e.g., growth factors and crystallography). Unlike large society meetings, the ASMB meeting has a well-defined theme, matrix biology, and unlike symposia it strives to encompass all permutations of this theme, including emerging issues, not-ready-for-prime-time topics, and exciting new areas of research. ? ? In summary, the ASMB meeting is a unique opportunity for interested scientists to obtain, in a four short days, a good feeling for the status of a broad field, matrix biology, which would be essentially impossible to gather any other way. This is true not only for established investigators but also for young scientists and students, including minorities, on whose participation we place great emphasis. ? ?
