This application requests funding to partially support the 2001 FASEB Summer Conference on Muscle Satellite and Stem Cells. The conference will take place July 14-19, 2001 at the Omni Tucson National Resort & Spa in Tucson, Arizona. This interdisciplinary conference will focus on recent advances in our understanding of muscle satellite cells and stem cells. Muscle satellite cells are the myogenic cells that are required for normal muscle growth, repair of injured or diseased muscle, and maintenance of strength during aging. Muscle-derived stem cells are a recently identified small population of multipotent cells that can produce satellite cells, as well as contribute to the formation of blood and bone tissue. The purpose of this conference is to provide a single forum in which the diverse group of scientists who are conducting research on the functions of skeletal muscle satellite and stem cells can discuss their newest work and set future directions. The conference is designed specifically to bring together scientists who usually don't attend the same meetings and to provide a receptive audience for new investigators and ideas. Conference sessions will focus on muscle stem cell origins and fates, normal muscle growth, muscle regeneration after injury and during disease, mechanisms of muscle plasticity and adaptation, muscle-specific mechanisms of apoptosis and necrosis, and mechanisms and interventions in muscle aging. Progress in these fields has become very rapid as research has focused on the molecular mechanisms underlying satellite and stem cell regulation and function. Due to the rapid pace of important advancements in this field, the conference should provide a timely and important forum to discuss new work and to develop new experimental approaches.
