The Society for Inherited Metabolic Disorders (SIMD) requests support for its annual meeting to be held in Asilomar on March 3-6, 2002. Support is also requested for the 2003 annual meeting, to be held in conjunction with the International Congress on Inborn Errors of Metabolism in Brisbane, Australia, and for the 2004 and 2005 annual meetings to be held in the United States. All of the funds requested will be devoted to permit trainees and junior scientists to attend the meeting. Inborn errors of intermediary metabolism (IEM) are an important cause of mental retardation, cerebral palsy, neuromuscular disease, cardiac disorders, hepatic and renal dysfunction, arthritis, diabetes, growth failure, and blindness. As the wide clinical and molecular spectrum of these disorders is being elucidated, the number of affected individuals is much larger than originally thought, affecting 1-3/1000 of babies born. Recognition of these disorders has expanded considerably due to the introduction of expanded newborn screening in many states. Research into the causes and mechanisms of these inborn errors of metabolism has improved diagnosis and has led to effective treatment for many of these conditions, but there is much left to do. This research has also led to substantive increases in our knowledge of the basic science of intermediary metabolism, signal transduction, central nervous system function, intracellular targeting, and basic genetic mechanisms. This increase in knowledge is essential to maintain progress in innovative therapies for these severe disorders. For the US to remain pre-eminent in this important area of research and clinical application, it is essential to attract young investigators into the field. One effective mechanism to achieve this is to provide them with the opportunity to participate in the SIMD meeting, where they can be inspired to research the field and develop scientific ties to other established investigators. The SIMD meeting is held annually and participation, especially by young investigators, has been increasing due to support from the NIH. Participation by women and minorities also benefits from this support. The availability of travel funds for trainees and junior scientists continues to diminish as academic health center budgets shrink. We have designed the scientific program to include cutting edge clinical and basic research in IEM. It includes among others sessions on new clinical trials for treatment of inborn errors of metabolism, advances in structural biology and their impact of the study of IEMs, and nutritional issues in management of IEMs. Based on previous years, we expect submission of 30-50 abstracts for presentation at the annual meetings in the US. Submissions will likely be 2-3 times this level for the international meeting. Applications for travel funds will be competitively reviewed five months prior to the annual meeting. The review committee, which includes the applicants for this grant, will review the abstracts and select those granted travel awards. The selection will be based on scientific merit and relevance to inborn errors of metabolism. Priority travel awards will be given fellows in training, women junior scientists, and women and minority scientists. NIH support of this application will greatly facilitate US investigators remaining in the forefront of this exciting and expanding field.
