This proposal seeks partial support for the American Motility Society Meeting to be held at Lake Tahoe, California on September 13-17, 1992. The primary objective of this meeting is to bring clinical and basic scientists together for an intensive 3 day meeting to discuss common interests and progress related to gastrointestinal motility. Past meetings of the American Motility Society have provided a forum for very important symposia, workshops and state-of-the-art lectures that have generally elevated research in the field. The American Motility Symposium also promotes training in GI motility research. Funds are raised for several scholarships to support travel and registration for students in training (clinical and basic science). Prize winning abstracts will be presented orally which give these students the opportunity to discuss their work with the leaders in the field. The American Motility Society is a group composed primarily of gastroenterologists, surgeons, pharmacologists and physiologists with common interests in gastrointestinal motility. For the past decade the AMS has conducted a series of scientific meetings to present and discuss current topics of research and clinical interest. These meetings have been highly productive and have fostered a strong collegial relationship between basic science and clinical representatives from university and industrial laboratories. The society has a membership of more than 300 physician and basic scientists. This proposal requests support for a major symposium to be held during the meeting that will discuss recent progress in the function and 2nd messenger regulation of ion channels. Lectures will be given by several scientists not traditionally involved in GI motility research, but internationally recognized as experts on ion channels. The goal of the Symposium is to enhance awareness of ions channels among investigators involved in GI motility research. These is a critical topic because these proteins contribute to the activity of GI muscles via neural regulation and via regulation of the electrical activity of smooth muscle cells. Ion channels have also become interesting therapeutically as specific channel blocking drugs have become available.
