The purpose of the present application is to secure funding to support student travel to, and for publication of the proceedings of, a symposium that will honor one of the most prominent and accomplished periodontal researchers, Robert J. Genco. It is clear that few individuals have made more numerous contributions to our present knowledge of periodontology than Dr. Genco, who has recently stepped down as chair of the Department of Oral Biology at the University at Buffalo. The objectives of this meeting are three-fold: 1) to honor the accomplishments and influence of Dr. Robert Genco in the field of periodontology and to acknowledge the success of the Buffalo Oral Biology Training Program that he administered for over 25 years; 2) to bring together experts in the field of periodontology to review the state-of-the-art of the field, with emphasis on the etiology, pathogenesis and impact of periodontal infection and inflammation on systemic disease: 3) to assemble overviews of the participant's presentations for publication in Advances in Dental Research. These proceedings will serve as the definitive document to summarize the state-of-the-art of periodontal pathogenesis, risk assessment and periodontal medicine through 2004. This meeting will be held at the Hyatt Regency Hotel in Buffalo, N.Y. from September 10-12, 2004. It will be organized as 6 sessions, each with 3 to 4 speakers who will give presentations of 25 to 30 minutes each. The major topics covered by this symposium are periodontal pathogenesis, risk factors for periodontal disease, systemic effects of periodontal disease as it effects diabetes, cardiovascular disease, women's health, respiratory disease and rheumatoid arthritis. Several sessions will also include a physician "responder" who will provide reaction to the talks given during the session. In addition, posters that will be viewed during coffee breaks, meals and receptions. We will offer a limited number of travel grants to several graduate student or post-doctoral fellow poster presenters who have need for such support.