This is an application for partial funding of a conference on Endothelium and Cardiovascular Function, to be held under the auspices of the Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology (FASEB) from August 7 to 12, 1988 in Cooper Mountain, Colorado. Participation will be limited to 150 scientists (including the speakers and discussion leaders), who will be selected on the basis of their expertise and interests as most likely to contribute to a stimulating and productive environment. The meeting, for the first time, will focus specifically on the role of the endothelium in modulating the responsiveness of the underlying vascular smooth muscle in health and disease. The conference will consist of ten scientific sessions, each with four to six speakers and a discussion leader; all will be investigators with wide experience in the endothelium and its function. In addition a poster session will be held daily, which will allow more junior participants to present their data and discuss them with the authorities in the field. The central theme will be the ability of the endothelium to alter the amount of vasodilator and vasoconstrictor factors made available to arterial and venous smooth muscle. These discussions will lay the foundation for the understanding of the true role of the endothelial cells in modulating vasomotor responses under normal and pathological conditions. They will be key to determining the contribution of endothelium-dependent phenomena in the etiology of a variety of cardiovascular dysfunctions, and hence provide insight into their rational treatment.
