This grant will support an international conference on primordial immune mechanisms. Host defense mechanisms have been evolving since the first organisms encountered one another hundreds of millions of years ago. All multi-cellular organisms face the necessity of distinguishing between their own cells and tissues and foreign cells and materials in order to deal with such problems as parasites and pathogens. Primitive species are capable of recognition and defense as are the vertebrates, and, thus, lessons learned from them can provide a basis for understanding strategies that vertebrate animals have adopted. Studies of defense systems of primitive animals are yielding new insights into the diverse host defense functions characteristic of all living things. In addition, invertebrates offer new sources of products and potential therapeutic agents. %%% Much research has been carried out on immune function in higher mammals as a model for the human immune response. In contrast, very little is know about immune-like function in the array of other species living on Earth. Understanding how a wide range of animals defend themselves can provide us with rational strategies to help preserve the diversity of life. Recent advances using techniques of molecular biology and protein chemistry are being applied in identification of products used in self defense and characterization of immune-like responses in a wide array of organisms. This international conference will bring speakers from diverse fields and from around the world to share information and insights into the origins and function of host defense systems. An international conference focusing on this subject at this time will contribute to progress in this important area.
