2008 VIRAL VECTORS FOR GENE THERAPY, THE SCIENCE OF GORDON RESEARCH CONFERENCE - DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): This proposal requests partial support for a Gordon Research Conference on the Science of Viral Vectors for Gene Therapy to be held in Ventura, California, March 2-7, 2008. The broad and long term goal of the conference is to increase our understanding of the fundamental mechanisms of the host response to viral vectors with particular focus on the immune response to the viral vector and the transgene. The specific aims of this meeting will be to convene 45 speakers that represent critical areas of muscle research with a total of 125 participants for a five day conference in a relatively isolated setting. The program will have a keynote address and eight sessions that broadly address current issues in Vector Distribution and Targeting, Viral Entry, Host Response to Viral Infection, Induction of the Innate and Adaptive Immune Responses and sessions on how to regulate the immune response. In addition, two evening poster sessions will permit all participants to contribute to these topics. The significance of this application is that the Gordon Research Conference on The Science of Viral Vector for Gene Therapy is a critical component for promoting the development of clinically useful viral vectors for gene therapy. The health relatedness of this application is that the discussions will lead to development of better viral vectors that can be used for treating a wide variety of human diseases including genetic diseases, cancer and autoimmune diseases. (End of Abstract)
