This application requests partial funding for the support of invited speakers for the 1994 Gordon Research Conference on Basement Membranes. This is the seventh in a series of conferences which have become a major international forum for the dissemination of new information and ideas about the structure and biological function of basement membranes (BMs) and connective tissue. Traditionally this conference series has attracted scientists from a wide range of fields in basic research, including protein structure, gene expression, cell and developmental biology and neurobiology. In addition, the conference has been attended by clinicians and scientists involved in applied research into the pathobiology of BMs in tissues and organs such as the kidney, skin, lung and blood vessels. In recent years there has also been substantial interest from clinicians and scientists in the pharmaceutical industry studying the role of BMs in wound healing, nerve regeneration and tissue repair. The 1994 conference will retain the traditional mix of sessions on BM structure, biosynthesis, assembly and turnover. In addition, emphasis will be given to new technologies for studying BM gene function at the genetic level in both mammals and invertebrates, and more whole organism approaches to the role of BM and connective tissue in morphogenesis and pattern formation will be discussed.
