There is an increasing need for research that helps protect the public from biological attacks. This need has caused a major shift in priorities, in both the government and private research sectors, from a focus on day-to-day health issues to a greater emphasis on research areas dealing with homeland security. The National Institutes of Health alone has devoted over $1.6 billion of its annual budget to biodefense research. This new biological research agenda, however, does not require scientists to start from scratch. Many new technologies currently being tested in the field of infectious diseases can be applied to the challenges of homeland defense.

The purpose of this meeting is to identify existing state-of-the-art research in the biomedical sciences that can be adapted to address biodefense needs, including vaccine development, new and faster diagnostics, and new treatments for potential biowarfare agents. The meeting will also seek to identify gaps where more research is needed.

The first day of the conference will be devoted to workshop presentations by representatives of various government agencies designed to help researchers better understand the government's approach to and priorities in biodefense. The workshops will be followed by the opening session featuring a presentation "Project Bioshield: The Need, the Legislation, Gaps in Legislation, and Practical Application" by Dr. Philip Russell of the Albert B. Sabin Vaccine Institute, and a roundtable discussion with representatives of government, academia and the private sector on the challenge of translating basic research into usable products.

Additional presentation topics include: