Program and Agenda

For a PDF version of the agenda, click here.

*Please note this is not the full program & agenda. Additional details coming soon.

Thursday, January 2, 2025

2:00 PM – 8:00 PM

Registration and Badge Pick Up

Friday, January 3, 2025

 

7:00 AM – 1:00 PM

Registration

7:00 AM

Breakfast

8:00 AM

Welcome & Introduction

Ngan Huang & Keyue Shen

8:10 AM – 10:05 AM

Platform Session 1: Advances in Regenerative Medicine (Moderator: Stephanie Seidlits)

8:10 AM

Keynote Speaker

Pro-regenerative biomaterials and medical devices

Guillermo Ameer (Northwestern University)

8:40 AM


Rising Star

Functional repair and regenerative engineering of composite bone-muscle injury in mouse lower extremity trauma

Karina Nakayama (Oregon Health & Science University)

8:55 AM


Rising Star

Stem Cell Derived Placental Organoid Model to Investigate Maternal-Fetal Crosstalk

Quinton Smith (UC Irvine)

9:10 AM


Rising Star

Local photo-crosslinking of native tissue matrix regulates alveolar epithelial cell function

Claudia Loebel (UMich)

9:25 AM

Short Talk

A hybrid hPSC differentiation strategy for region-specific spinal and sensory neurons

Nisha Iyer (Tufts)

9:40 AM


Short Talk

Directing the Cellular Organization in 3D Gels Using Filamented Light Biofabrication for Cell Therapy

Johnson V. John (Terasaki)

9:55 AM

Postdoctoral Travel Award

Targeted Mitochondria Delivery to Repair and Regenerate Injured Vascular Endothelium

Brandon Applewhite (Northwestern University)

 

 

10:05 - 10:30 AM

Coffee Break and Booth Viewing

10:30 – 12:40 PM

Platform Session 2: Mechanobiology of Rejuvenation  (Moderator: Guohao Dai)

10:30 AM

Keynote Speaker

Cytoplasmic Dynamics and Mechanics in the Maturation and Aging of Mammalian Oocytes

Rong Li (NUS)

11:00 AM


Rising Star

Dissecting the Molecular Mechanism of Cell Mechanobiology using a Nano-ruler Platform

Haogang Cai (NYU)

11:15 AM


Rising Star

Multiplexed spatial mapping of chromatin features, transcriptome, and proteins in tissues

Yanxiang Deng (UPenn)

11:30 AM


Short Talk

Imaging the dynamic mechanical environment of embryonic development in live mouse model

Shang Wang (Stevens Institute of Technology)

11:45 AM


Short Talk

Computational Modeling of Energy Supply and Demand during Mechanotransduction in Inner Ear Hair Cell Stereocilia

Robert Raphael (Rice)

12:00 PM


Short Talk (Late Breaking)

Monocytes use protrusive forces to generate migration paths in viscoelastic collagen-based extracellular matrices

Kolade Adebowale (UCSD)

12:15 PM


Postdoctoral Travel Award

Mechanics in a Human Engineered Heart Tissue Model of Lamin Cardiomyopathy

Benjamin Lee (UPenn)

12:25 PM

Lightning

Daanish Kulkarni (UCI): Piezo1 Mediated Mechanotransduction Regulates Lipid Accumulation in Microglia

Ali Kazempour (NJIT): Margination Behavior of a Circulating Cell in a Tortuous Microvessel

Yerbol Tagay (PSU): Cracking the Code of Nuclear Rigidity: New Frontiers in Cell Migration and Therapy

Yifan Wu (UCLA): Viscoelastic Extracellular Matrix Enhances Epigenetic Remodeling and Cellular Plasticity

12:40 - 2:00 PM

Meal

Meet the Leaders lunch for Rising Stars and Travel Awardees (by invitation only)

12:40 – 2:00 PM

Lunch on your own

2:00 – 3:30 PM

Workshop: Meet the Grant Agencies

Ross Okamura (CIRM): 2:00 - 2:30

Shivani Sharma (NSF): 2:30 - 3:00

Rahul Thakar (NIH/NHLBI): 3:00 - 3:30

3:00 - 4:30 PM

Break

3:30 - 4:30 PM

CMBE Council Meeting (invitation only) (BMES Staff included)

4:30 - 6:00 PM

Poster Session 1 (with refreshments)

5:30 - 7:00 PM


Welcome Reception (hor d'oeuvres and drinks)

Saturday, January 4, 2025

 

7:00 AM – 2:30 PM

Registration

7:00 AM

Breakfast

8:00 – 9:55 AM

Platform Session 3: Engineering Rejuvenation and Regeneration (Moderator: Song Li)

8:00 AM

Keynote Speaker

Pathways to Rejuvenation of Adult Stem Cells

Thomas Rando (UCLA)

8:30 AM


Rising Star

Ocular fluid outflow on-chip reveals ALK5/VEGFC-mediated Schlemm's canal endothelial dysfunction in glaucoma

Esak Lee (Cornell)

8:45 AM


Rising Star

P-cadherin dependent adhesions mediate cell protrusions required for epithelial morphogenesis

Priscilla Hwang (Virginia Commonwealth)

9:00 AM


Rising Star

M-MDSCs and Neutrophil Dysfunction: Unveiling a Mechanism of Post-Sepsis Immunosuppression

Laurel Hind (UColorado - Boulder)

9:15 AM

Short Talk

Elucidating distinct roles of extracellular matrix in cardiac aging

Jennifer L. Young (NUS)

9:30 AM


Short Talk

Precision Mechanomedicine for Zone-Specific Meniscal Repairs Using a Tunable Meniscus ECM-Based Hydrogel System

Su Chin Heo (UPenn)

9:45 AM


Postdoctoral Travel Award

Spatiotemporal dynamics of mammalian brain development and neuroinflammation by multimodal tri-omics mapping

Di Zhang (Yale University)

9:55 - 10:30 AM

Coffee Break and Booth Viewing

10:30 AM – 12:40 PM

Platform Session 4: Advanced Biomaterials for Immunomodulation and Drug Delivery (Moderator: Jenny Jiang)

10:30 AM


Keynote Speaker

Tuning the "Structure" of Biomaterials: Implications for Cell-Based Therapy and Drug Delivery

Tejal Desai (Brown University)

11:00 AM


Rising Star

Ultra-Long-Term Delivery of Hydrophilic Drugs Using Injectable In Situ Cross-Linked Depots

Nitin Joshi (Brigham Women's Hospital)

11:15 AM


Rising Star

Affinity-Controlled Delivery of Multiple Angiogenic Proteins Enhances Vascular Network Formation

Marian Hettiaratchi (University of Oregon)

11:30 AM


Rising Star

Determining sex-specific drug combinations targeting aortic valve myofibroblast activation using an artificial intelligence-derived platform

Brian Aguado (UCSD)

11:45 AM


Short Talk

Phenotype-Instructive Nanomaterials for Augmentation of Macrophage Cell Therapies

John Clegg (University of Oklahoma)

12:00 PM

Short Talk

Engineering Cyborg Mammalian Cells as Therapeutic Materials

Cheemeng Tan (UCDavis)

12:15 PM

Postdoctoral Travel Award

Surface-Functionalized Microgels as Artificial Antigen-Presenting Cells to Regulate Expansion of T Cells

Junzhe Lou (Harvard)

12:25 PM

Lightning

Ai Mochida (UPenn): Modulators of LFA-1 signaling control leukocyte upstream migration

Karla Lambaren (USC): T Cell Targeting Nanoparticles to Modulate the Immune Response in Hypertension

Ana Diaz Espinosa (Mayo Clinic): Design of a high-throughput screening assay to identify cues promoting distinct alveolar and adventitial lung fibroblast identities

Tuba Marjan (Purdue): Constructing a decellularized extracellular matrix containing interpenetrating network hydrogel to probe cell-material interactions

12:40 - 1:40 PM

Demo: MaxCyte, Inc Product Demo

12:40 - 2:00 PM

Lunch on your own

2:00 PM - 3:00 PM


Workshop:
Transitioning to Product Development (Moderator: Ngan Huang)

Pratima Labroo (FDA/CBER): 2:00 - 2:15

Karen Christman (UCSD): 2:15 - 2:30

Robert Tranquillo (University of Minnesota): 2:30 - 2:45

Aijun Wang (UC Davis): 2:45 3:00 
Q&A: 3:00 - 3:15

3:00 - 4:30 PM

Break

 

3:00 - 4:30 PM

Perspectives Manuscript Products Meeting (all are welcome to attend)

4:30 - 6:00 PM

Poster Session 2 (with refreshments)

6:00 - 9:00 PM

AAASE Gala Dinner

Welcome & Introduction: Ngan Huang & Keyue Shen

Presentation of Junior Travel Awards

Introduction to CMBE 2026: Evangelia Bellas & Elizabeth Wayne

Shu Chien Achievement Award: Christopher Chen (Boston University)
AAASE Induction: X. Edward Gao (Columbia University)

Sunday, January 5, 2025

 

7:00 AM – 1:00 PM

Registration

7:00 AM

Breakfast

8:00 – 9:55 AM

Platform Session 5: Translational Applications of Biomimetic Platforms (Moderator: Aijun Wang)

8:00 AM

Keynote Speaker

Design and Translation of Decellularized Extracellular Matrix Biomaterials

Karen Christman (UCSD)

8:30 AM


Rising Star

Actuating Extracellular Matrices Enable Decoupling Mechanical and Biochemical Impacts of Exercise

Ritu Raman (MIT)

8:45 AM


Rising Star

Enhancing therapeutic exosomes: High-efficiency drug loading and large-scale production using biomimetic materials

Yichun Wang (University of Notre Dame)

9:00 AM


Rising Star

Real-time probing of pneumonia pathogenesis: dissecting systemic and pulmonary immunity using a novel extracorporeal cross-circulation model

Hadi Nia (Boston University)

9:15 AM


Short Talk (Late Breaking)

Human microvessel-based vascularization post myocardial infarction in pigs show unprecedented endothelial retention and scar remuscularization

Sara Nunes Vasconcelos (U Toronto)

9:30 AM


Short Talk

Precision biomaterials sustain durable and massive expansion of human CAR-T cells in vitro

Xiao Huang (Drexel)

9:45 AM


Postdoctoral Travel Award

Engineering a viscoelastic, growth factor sequestering hydrogel for induced pluripotent stem cell cardiomyocyte culture (iPSC-CMs)

Marissa Gionet-Gonzales (UCSB)

9:55 - 10:30 AM

Coffee Break and Booth Viewing

10:30 AM – 12:35 PM

Platform Session 6: Advancing Cancer Mechanomedicine (Moderator: Allen Liu)

10:30 AM


Keynote Speaker

Cell Mechanochemical Sensing and Memory Formation

Konstantinos Konstantopoulos (Johns Hopkins University)

11:00 AM


Rising Star

Engineering Commensal Bacteria to Neutralize a Microbial Genotoxin Involved in Colorectal Cancer

Jiahe Li (UMich)

11:15 AM


Rising Star

Pre-exposure to Elevated Hydrostatic Pressure Promotes Downstream Motility by Suppressing Tumor Cell Mechanosensitivity

Panagiotis Mistriotis (Auburn University)

11:30 AM


Rising Star

Transcriptomic Mechano-Immunology Landscape in Colorectal Cancer in Response to Peristalsis

Abigail Clevenger, on behalf of Shreya Raghavan (Texas A&M)

11:45 AM


Short Talk

Cell contractility and paracrine signals drive mechanical memory of oral squamous cell carcinoma

Adam J. Engler (UCSD)

12:00 PM


Short Talk

The Mechano-Metabolic Crosstalk Driving 3D Breast Cancer Invasion is Regulated by YAP/TAZ Activity

Jacopo Ferruzzi (UTDallas)

12:15 PM

Postdoctoral Travel Award

Modeling glioblastoma tumor progression via CRISPR-engineered brain organoids

Matthew Ishahak (WUSTL )

12:25 PM

Lightning

Bella Raykowski (USC): Regulation of Mitochondrial Membrane Potential by YAP in Cancer Cells

Tianyu Chen (Utah State University): Establishing a Microglia-GBM Organoid Model to Study Immune Response and Tumor Interaction in the Brain

12:35 – 2:00 PM

Lunch on your own

2:00 – 3:15 PM

Workshop: Meet the Journal Editors: Best Practices in Manuscript Preparation and Submission (Meet the Journal Editors)

Adam Engler (APL Bioengineering): 2:00 - 2:10

Song Li (Med-X): 2:10 - 2:20

Guillermo Ameer (Sci Advances): 2:20 - 2:30

Michael King (CMBE): 2:30 - 2:30

Dennis Discher (Molecular Biology of the Cell, PNAS & PNAS Nexus, and Science): 2:40 - 2:50

Q&A: 2:50 - 3:15

3:15 – 4:30 PM

Break

4:30 – 6:00 PM

Poster Session 3 (with refreshments)

6:00 – 7:30 PM

Reception

Welcome: Ngang Huang & Keyue Shen

 

6:30 – 7:00 PM

Introduction to Award

Ed Guo (Columbia University)

Chris Jacobs Award for Excellence in Leadership

Yi-Xian Qin (Stony Brook University)

Monday, January 6, 2025

 

7:00 – 11:00 AM

Registration 

7:00 AM

Breakfast

8:00  – 10:00 AM

Platform Session 7: Emerging Technologies in Cell and Molecular Bioengineering (Peter Wang)

8:00 AM

Keynote Speaker

Dissecting Kidney Injuries and Repairs with Single-Cell Technologies

Kun Zhang (UCSD)

8:30 AM

Rising Star

A method to achieve optical transparency in live animals

Guosong Hong (Stanford)

8:45 AM

Rising Star

Programming of Fibroblasts into Neurons via a Scalable Magnetoelastic Generator Array

Jun Chen (UCLA)

9:00 AM

Rising Star

Volumetric imaging of intact tissue by distributed molecular networks

Joshua Weinstein (UChicago)

9:15 AM

Short Talk

MAGIK: A rapid and efficient method to create lineage-specific reporters in stem cells

Xiaojun Lian (PSU)

9:30 AM

Short Talk

Programmable RNA targeting with DNA-guided CRISPR/Cas Systems

Piyush Jain (University of Florida)

9:45 AM

Short Talk

Developing High-Throughput In Vivo Screening Technology for Engineered Tissue Formulation

Fan Zhang (UWashington)

10:00 - 10:30 AM

 

Coffee Break

10:30 AM - 12:15 PM

 

Platform Session 8: Advances in Immunobioengineering and Cellular Therapy (Moderator: Keyue Shen)

10:30 AM

 

Introduction to Award

Adam Engler

Momentum Award

Decoding Antigen-Specific T Cells: From High-Dimensional Profiling to Biophysics to Therapeutic Development

Ning Jenny Jiang (UPenn)

 

 

11:00 AM

Short Talk

Reprogramming T cells in inhibitory tumor microenvironment with TGFβ redirectors for improved ultrasound controllable CAR-T therapy

Longwei Liu (USC)

 

11:15 AM

 

Short Talk

Synthetic mechanoreceptors derived from clinical anti-tau immunotherapies for regulated gene therapies against neurodegeneration

Jonathan Brunger (Vanderbilt)

 

11:30 AM

Closing Remarks and Poster Awards

Ngan F. Huang and Keyue Shen

 

11:45 AM

 

Meeting Adjourned


Funding Acknowledgement:

Funding for this conference was made possible (in part) by awards from the National Institutes of Health (NIH, 1R13EB035466), National Science Foundation (NSF,  2436651 ), and the California Institute for Regenerative Medicine (CIRM, EDUC1-16714). The views expressed in written conference materials or publications and by speakers and moderators do not necessarily reflect the official policies of the NIH, NSF, or CIRM; nor does mention by trade names, commercial practices, or organizations imply endorsement by the U.S. Government.