2004 Tetrapyrroles Gordon Conference

描述（由申请人提供）：本申请申请支持第20届戈登四吡啶化学和生物学研究会议，该会议将于2004年7月25日至30日在索尔维里贾纳大学举行，纽波特，RI。这个两年一度的跨学科会议刺激了基础生物学家、化学家和临床医生之间对四吡咯感兴趣的合作超过三十年。与蛋白质结合，四吡咯具有多种作用，如生物氧化还原催化剂、光能收集、氧激活/传递和信号分子。游离四吡咯也是必需的营养素（如维生素B12），作为基因表达的调节剂（如血红素），并已被用作治疗剂（如光动力癌症治疗，放射性核素的靶递送）。由于它们的光动力活性、毒性和亲脂性，四吡啶（如卟啉、胆红素）的积累与皮肤、肝脏和大脑的许多病理有关。由于这些原因，本次会议为四吡咯基础和应用研究人员之间的交流以及生物医学行业正在开发的新工具和疗法的改进提供了一个重要场所。本申请申请的资金将用于支持15名研究人员，包括之前未在本次会议上发言的人员，以及研究生和博士后。一个新的会议致力于突出早期职业科学家的工作。第二个新会议侧重于四吡咯生物学的新兴概念，包括最近发现的哺乳动物珠蛋白和细胞色素P450的定向进化。届时将有21位特邀演讲者、1位全体会议讲师和9位讨论领袖，他们因其卓越的科学成就、最近的创新工作和项目的广度而被选中。其余100名与会者将被选出，以确保来自学术界、医学研究机构和工业界各学科的妇女、族裔和青年科学家的广泛代表性。戈登会议的优势在于其学科的多样性，关注新的未发表的工作，讨论的时间，非正式的气氛和禁止传播会议记录。

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): This application requests support for the 20th Gordon Research Conference on the Chemistry and Biology of Tetrapyrroles, to be held at Salve Regina University, Newport, RI, from July 25-30, 2004. This biennial interdisciplinary conference has stimulated collaborations between basic biologists, chemists and clinicians interested in tetrapyrroles for more than three decades. In association with proteins, tetrapyrroles serve diverse roles as biological redox catalysts, for harvesting of light energy, for oxygen activation/delivery and as signaling molecules. Free tetrapyrroles are also essential nutrients (e.g., vitamin B12), serve as regulators of gene expression (e.g., hemes) and have been utilized as therapeutic agents (e.g., photodynamic cancer therapy, target delivery of radionuclides). Owing to their photodynamic activity, toxicity and lipophilicity, the accumulation of tetrapyrroles (e.g., porphyrins, bilirubin) is associated with numerous pathologies of the skin, liver and brain. For these reasons, this conference represents an important venue for exchange between basic and applied researchers on tetrapyrroles and for refinement of new tools and therapies, which are under development by the biomedical industry. Funds requested in this application are targeted to support 15 investigators, including those who have not spoken previously at this conference, as well as graduate students and postdoctoral fellows. A new session is devoted to highlighting work from early career scientists. A second new session focuses on emerging concepts in tetrapyrrole biology, including recently discovered mammalian globins and directed evolution of cytochromes P450. There will be 21 invited speakers, a plenary lecturer and 9 discussion leaders, who have been selected for their scientific excellence, recent innovative work and breadth of the program. The remaining 100 conferees will be chosen to ensue a broad representation of women, ethnicity and young scientists from various disciplines in academia, medical research institutions and industry. Strengths of this Gordon conference are its disciplinary diversity, focus on new unpublished work, time for discussion, informal atmosphere and ban on dissemination of conference proceedings.