NIH-CSR <script type="text/javascript"> var wmNotice = "UNT Web Archive - External links, forms, and search boxes may not function within this collection. Url: http://cms.csr.nih.gov/PeerReviewMeetings/CSRIRGDescription/MOSSIRG/ACTS.htm time: 13:42:25 Sep 20, 2008"; var wmHideNotice = "hide"; var contextRoot = "https://webarchive.library.unt.edu/eot2008/"; </script> <script type="text/javascript" src="https://webarchive.library.unt.edu/eot2008/js/disclaim.js"></script> <span id="Postingname3_PostingDisplayName">Arthritis, Connective Tissue and Skin Study Section [ACTS]</span> (MOSSIRG)

[ACTS Roster]

The Arthritis, Connective Tissue and Skin Sciences [ACTS] Study Section reviews basic and clinical research applications dealing with the biology and diseases of joints, connective tissue, and skin.

Specific areas covered by ACTS:

Arthritis and Connective Tissue: This area includes inheritable, inflammatory and degenerative diseases of joints and connective tissues, such as systemic lupus erythematosus, rheumatoid arthritis, Sjogren’s syndrome, osteoarthritis, scleroderma, psoriatic arthritis, spondyloarthropathies, vasculitides, polymyalgia rheumatica, fibromyalgia, palindromic arthritis, Lyme arthritis, septic arthritis, juvenile arthritis, polymyositis, dermatomyositis, crystal-induced diseases, and undifferentiated connective tissue diseases.
Biology of the joint and connective tissue: structure and function of cartilage, bone, ligaments, tendons, synovium, extracellular matrix, capsule, joint fluid, blood vessels, innervation, articular cartilage, muscle, skin, immune system and other organs affected by rheumatic diseases.
Pathogenesis of arthritis and related rheumatic diseases including: genetic influences, environmental factors, infectious agents, drugs, and other etiologic factors; mechanisms involving inflammatory cells and mediators, immune cells and mediators, tissue injury and degradation, regulation of tissue regeneration and repair, angiogenesis, and other cells including chondrocytes, fibroblasts, endothelial cells, smooth muscle cells, osteoclasts, osteoblasts, stem cells and synovial cells. These disease–related mechanisms include not only the joints but also all organs involved in systemic rheumatic diseases.
Clinical research in arthritis and related rheumatic diseases: studies on natural history of disease; developmental therapeutics and interventions; genetic linkage studies; imaging, diagnostics, and biomarkers; pain, disability, physical rehabilitation, fatigue, and functional measures of clinical outcomes.
Skin and Cutaneous Biology. This area includes disorders of skin, such as inflammatory, pre-neoplastic, and hyperproliferative disorders, as well as systemic diseases with significant cutaneous involvement.
Biology and physiology of the epidermis: role of keratinocytes, melanocytes, and Langerhans cells in barrier function, pigmentation, immune regulation, dermal-epidermal adhesion, and related functions, and the regulation of their growth, adhesion and differentiation.
Biology and physiology of the dermis: synthesis, assembly, and degradation of the extracellular matrix of connective tissue and the dermo-epidermal basement membrane zone, angiogenesis, innervation, and inflammation.
Biology and physiology of skin appendages: production of hair and nails, as well as development of hair follicles, sebaceous and eccrine glands.
Development and homeostasis of skin and its appendages: epidermal and connective tissue stem cells; remodeling and repair of skin with maturation, during wound healing and in response to external stimuli; pre-neoplastic alterations of keratinocytes and melanocytes (including altered gene expression, cell-cell and cell-matrix interactions and immune processes that occur in the skin).
Study of diseases of skin and its appendages, as well as systemic connective tissue diseases with skin involvement: study of the role of inflammation and the immune system in the disease process; perturbation in epidermal barrier function; diagnosis and therapy of skin diseases; development of novel treatment modalities, including gene therapy with skin as the effector organ.
Genetic basis of the expression of the disease phenotype and susceptibility to skin and connective tissue disorders, and use of animal models, including transgenics.
Studies of skin interactions with the environment: photoaging, UV sensitivity reactions; role of skin in transepidermal delivery of drugs; role of skin as a barrier against infectious, mechanical, and other toxic insults.

ACTS has the following shared interests within the MOSS IRG:

Skeletal Biology Development and Disease [SBDD] and Skeletal Biology Structure and Regeneration [SBSR]: Changes in articular cartilage (cells, matrix, and architecture) occur in the inflammatory arthridites (e.g. rheumatoid arthritis) as well as osteoarthritis. ACTS could review studies of arthritis focusing on systemic inflammatory processes. Applications that focus on abnormalities of matrix limited to bone and cartilage and associated tendon and ligament structures could be assigned to SBDD. Studies of cartilage degeneration and associated changes in bone and joints following joint injury and instability, or developmental disorders (e.g. DDH), as well as the study of articular cartilage in normal growth and development could be assigned to SBSR. Studies of injuries and their treatment for conditions, such as osteochrondritis dissecans and osteoarticular fractures, may be assigned to SBSR.
Skeletal Muscle Biology and Exercise Physiology [SMEP]: Studies of the clinical and immunological aspects of inflammatory muscle diseases may be assigned to ACTS whereas studies on muscle cell function could be assigned to SMEP.

ACTS has the following shared interests outside the MOSS IRG:

With the Health of the Population [HOP] IRG and the Risk, Prevention, and Health Behavior [RPHB] IRG: Behavior modification directed toward the prevention and treatment of arthritis and rheumatic diseases, including psychological aspects, could be assigned to the HOP IRG and the RPHB IRG. Applications in which the primary outcome is evaluation of behavior are also appropriate for the HOP IRG. Population studies related to demographics may generally be assigned to the HOP IRG. Applications on the diseases, disorders, or functional consequences of behaviors could be assigned to ACTS.
With the Immunology [IMM] IRG: The IMM IRG may be assigned applications concerning the etiology and pathogenesis of organ-specific and systemic autoimmune diseases. ACTS may be assigned applications on inflammatory and degenerative diseases of joints and connective tissues. ACTS is complementary to IMM IRG with respect to those applications requiring expertise in pathogenic effector mechanisms and specific factors or structures relevant to target organ damage and repair. Similarly, IMM IRG is complementary to ACTS with respect to those applications requiring expertise in immunopathogenic mechanisms. Areas of unavoidable shared interest such as systemic lupus erythematosus and rheumatoid arthritis would be resolved according to the central focus of the application.
With the Infectious Diseases and Microbiology [IDM] IRG: Studies that focus on the pathogen rather than the target tissue may be assigned to the IDM IRG.
With the Oncological Sciences [ONC] IRG: Studies of skin cancers and their clinical management could be assigned to the ONC IRG. Studies of pre-neoplastic skin lesions and disorders could be assigned to ACTS.
With the Endocrinology, Metabolism, Nutrition, and Reproductive Sciences [EMNR] IRG: Applications that focus upon nutrients, or general nutrition, may be assigned to the EMNR IRG. The effects of nutrients and other food components where connective tissue and skin may a part of the study may be assigned to the EMNR IRG as well. Basic, translational or clinical applications with a primary focus on connective tissue or skin, or arthritis, where nutrients or general nutrition may be a part of the study may be assigned to ACTS.
With the Surgical Sciences, Biomedical Imaging, and Bioengineering [SBIB] IRG: Bioengineering studies of skin, cartilage and connective tissue as well as the development of artificial skin, cartilage and connective tissue may be assigned to ACTS, however, capability to review these topics also resides in the SBIB IRG. Studies of skin, cartilage and connective tissue which use biomedical imaging could be assigned to ACTS, but capability to review these topics also resides in the SBIB IRG. The development of a device, system, or analytical technique to advance biomedical imaging or a study in which a question about biomedical imaging is being addressed could be assigned to the SBIB IRG.