We are requesting funds in partial support of the 2013 Lung Development, Injury and Repair Gordon Research Conference and the inaugural Gordon Research Seminar, to be held from August 18-23rd and 17-18th, respectively, at Proctor Academy in Andover, Hew Hampshire. The Gordon Research Conference (GRC) on Lung Development, Injury and Repair is designed to provide a diverse group of scientists that span the basic to clinical research spectrum with the latest developments on the cellular and molecular mechanisms of normal lung homeostasis and how these processes are dysregulated in disease. There is growing appreciation that processes and pathways critical for normal lung development are important for postnatal tissue homeostasis and are dysregulated in lung disease. Lung diseases such as chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), pulmonary fibrosis, and acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) represent a huge global health problem, affecting more than 600 million people worldwide. Of the estimated 225,000 deaths attributed to lung disease in the US in 2007, over half (124,000) were due to COPD. The 2013 GRC on Lung Development, Injury and Repair will emphasize similarities and distinctions in regulatory pathways that impact lung development and postnatal tissue homeostasis, and how these pathways are dysregulated in the setting of tissue remodeling and lung disease. Principal objectives will be to 1. Provide an international forum to promote interaction between established and young scientists working in the broad fields of lung development, injury and repair, 2.To provide a forum for networking and career advancement for students, postdoctoral trainees, and junior faculty and facilitate their interaction with established investigators, and 3 To encourage creative and multidisciplinary research aimed at developing innovative and effective therapies for people with lung disease. Each session of the GRC will be led by one or two experts who will promote challenging discussion of current concepts, controversies and future needs. Besides presentations by invited speakers, shorter presentations will be given by young, new investigators based on submitted abstracts. The meeting will also include four poster sessions;posters will be divided into four approximately equal groups based upon content (tentative session topics are presently Development, Injury, Repair, and Therapeutic Targets/Interventions) to further enhance informal interactions and sharing of ideas among participants. The associated GRS meeting is specifically aimed at promoting the recruitment and participation of early stage investigators and will emphasize mentoring, interactions and networking between trainees and young investigators.
Lung diseases including chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), pulmonary fibrosis and acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) represent a huge global health problem affecting in excess of 600 million people worldwide. The goal of this conference is to encourage creative, multidisciplinary research in this area that will translae into new and more effective therapies for patients with lung disease.
