The purpose of this symposium is to focus on recent developments in smooth muscle research, to identify emerging areas in the field, and to provide a forum for investigators to share exciting results and to exchange new ideas. The symposium will be held at the Marine Biological Laboratory (MBL) at Woods Hole, Massachusetts on April 12-14, 1999. The proximity of MBL to Boston, where the host institute, Boston Biomedical Research Institute (BBRI) resides, will facilitate the planning of this meeting. The dates were selected to ensure maximum participation by avoiding conflicts with other meetings such as the Biophysical Society annual meeting and the Gordon Research Conferences. The symposium will include both oral presentations and poster sessions. Five half-day oral sessions will be arranged, each having five to six 30 minute talks (20-25 minute presentations and a 5-10 minute discussion). The chairperson of each session is to give a 10 minute overview as an introduction. A total of 25-30 papers will be orally presented. An evening lecture on smooth muscle differentiation will be given by Dr. Eric Olson. Posters will be set up and viewed throughout the entire conference period. In the poster sessions an additional 30-40 papers will be presented.