9527873 Klinman Partial support is requested for the Gordon Research Conference on Isotopes in Biology and Chemistry to be held in Ventura, California, February 11-16, 1996. This long-standing conference has traditionally brought together investigators from a multitude of disciplines (e.g., physical and organic chemistry, atmospheric chemistry, and biological chemistry). As a result of its interdisciplinary nature, the Conference has served as a breeding ground for the generation of new concepts and methodologies in the biological sciences. Examples include the remarkable advances in enzymes kinetics that occurred in the 1980's: the recognition of the possible role of nuclear tunneling in enzyme reactions; the stimulation of a systematic study of the role of magnetic field effects in enzymatic reactions; the use of heavy atom isotope effects to probe plant physiology and evolution; etc. In recent years, the Conference has been moving increasingly into the area of biological chemistry. This trend is reflected in the current program which will range from a discussion of new aspects of H-transfer catalysis (low barrier hydrogen bonds, tunneling, and the role of proton pools in catalysis) to the use of isotopic probes to establish and characterize radical species in biological processes. A special session will be dedicated to a consideration of recent applications of heavy atom effects to characterize biological systems. Intermixed within this program will be sessions on both physical chemistry and reaction mechanisms. One particularly strong component of this conference is that it provides a format for the interaction of theoreticians with experimentalists. %%% Isotopes are widely used in biology and chemistry in order to follow processes and to understand function. This conference seeks to bring together scientists who use isotopes in an interdisciplinary manner in order to improve information exchange and allow exposure to new results. It is particularly important to the developm ent of biochemical tracer methodology that biologists be exposed to chemical applications of isotopes. ***
