Swine in Biomedical Research conference

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DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): The conference will highlight the growing utility of swine models in biomedical research. In the toolbox category, genomic and tissue microarrays are just beginning to be appreciated for use in animal models. As porcine-specific genomic information becomes increasingly available, characterization and adoption of pigs as human models in many disease categories will accelerate. In the applications category, there is still much to explore beyond the pig's already proven value in immunology, nutrition, transplantation, cardiovascular disease, orthopedics, and dermatology/wound healing. In addition, initiatives are warranted in new zoonotic diseases, biodefense, behavior/neurological imaging, and gnotobiology. The pig genome is also being sequenced and will provide sequence information that can be used to construct relevant models. Capturing sequence information to create appropriate models to study pathogenesis, new means of diagnosing and treating life style-related diseases are now a reality with the pig. The increasing shortage of donor organs for transplantation has lead to a search for suitable xenograft organs. Pigs are now considered the primary candidate donor animal. The ability to genetically modify and clone pigs provides a unique opportunity to further exploit this model not only for understanding the mechanisms of graft rejection but to create clinical therapies. The conference goals are to identify areas of study or methodologies that will enhance the utility of pigs as biomedical models. In particular, the conference will focus on identifying appropriate human diseases where traditional rodent models have not proven relevant, where the historical use of swine in this regard may be enhanced, or where no useful models exist today and for which swine may be considered. The conference will identify resource needs and areas in which new approaches or methodologies are required. The conference also will serve to stimulate interactions between researchers working within swine and human genomics and identify needs and opportunities to fully exploit this animal model.