American Liver Foundation Hosts the 33rd Annual Irwin M. Arias Symposium

Virtual and in-person event, Bridging Basic Science and Liver Disease, brings together hundreds of leading biomedical scientists and physicians from across the globe

American Liver Foundation is excited to host its 33^rd annual Irwin M. Arias Symposium, Bridging Basic Science and Liver Disease, on Wednesday, November 20^th from 9AM to 5PM ET. Hundreds of leading biomedical scientists and physicians around the world will come together for this prestigious hybrid, in-person and virtual, one-day event. Each presentation highlights remarkable scientific advances in basic biology and engineering while also providing cutting edge research for a better understanding of liver diseases and the best treatment options available today.

This informative symposium features 10 unique plenary talks from renowned researchers such as Presidential Medal of Freedom recipient and physician-geneticist Francis S. Collins, MD, PhD, who led the Human Genome Project and discovered the genes causing several genetic diseases. He also served under three Presidents as the Director of the U.S. National Institutes of Health (NIH), the largest supporter of biomedical research in the world. He is currently leading a bold effort to eradicate Hepatitis C throughout the United States. Anne Carpenter, PhD, is the Senior Director of the Imaging Platform and an Institute Scientist at the Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard. She was included on the Top 100 list of AI leaders for her team’s open-source CellProfiler software that is used by thousands of biologists worldwide and their Cell Painting assay that has been adopted throughout the pharma industry to accelerate drug discoveries. There will also be a collection of three-minute ‘MicroTalks’ delivered by trainee scientists.

“This unique one-day annual symposium is a must-attend event for scientists interested in exploring innovative, groundbreaking research conducted in labs and the therapeutic treatments eventually delivered in clinics across the country,” said Lorraine Stiehl, CEO, American Liver Foundation. “Over the past 33 years, research presented at this event has led to many advances in the diagnosis and treatment of virtually all liver diseases in children and adults. Dr. Irwin M. Arias, recognized throughout the world, has devoted his life’s work to advancing liver disease research, treatments and cures and we’re so grateful for his expertise. Liver patients everywhere have benefited from his preeminent work.”

Symposium co-chairs include Sangeeta Bhatia, MD, PhD, John J. and Dorothy Wilson Professor, Electrical Engineering and Computer Science and Institute of Medical Engineering and Science Department at MIT, and Wolfram Goessling, MD, PhD, Chief of Gastroenterology at Massachusetts General Hospital, Director of the Harvard-MIT Health Sciences & Technology at Harvard Medical School and a Professor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School. The overall programming has been designed to honor Dr. Arias’ founding commitment to ‘bridging’ the gap between the academic, industrial, and clinical research communities – even across disciplines.

“The burden of chronic liver diseases affects over 100 million people in the United States alone and is rapidly becoming a public health crisis,” said Dr. Goessling, Chief of Gastroenterology at Massachusetts General Hospital. “Unfortunately, we currently lack effective tools for prevention, diagnosis and treatment for many liver conditions, so it’s vitally important to connect basic science research with the ongoing needs prevalent in many clinics and the Arias Symposium provides this opportunity.”

“Significant gaps remain in the understanding of many liver diseases and the fundamental systems involved in normal and pathological liver function,” said Dr. Bhatia, John J. and Dorothy Wilson Professor at MIT’s Institute of Medical Engineering and Science Department. “This scientific conference bridges basic science and liver disease while also nurturing successful careers in basic and translational liver research. The Arias Symposium allows us all to come together to share our research, encourage new trainees to learn more about liver disease and offers everyone one-day to learn what’s new and engaging in the world of liver research and science.”

The symposium is open to researchers at every stage of their careers, and they are encouraged to share perspectives from their academic, industrial, and clinical research settings. In-person attendees will benefit from a poster session and networking opportunities with plenary speakers and other attendees. Breakfast, lunch, and a networking reception will also be provided to in-person attendees. Registration is free for all trainees (postdocs, fellows, grads, students, undergrads, etc.). Registration is $50 for in-person attendees other than trainees. Virtual attendance is free but does require registration. Register here for this informative event.

This one-day virtual program will include topics such as:  

• It’s Time to Eliminate Hepatitis C in the U.S.
• Francis Collins, MD, PhD – National Institutes of Health (VIRTUAL)
• Post-Transplant Alloimmune Hepatitis – What do we know and What’s New
• Udeme Ekong, MD, MPH, FAASLD – Georgetown University
• Detecting Liver Phenotypes and Toxicity Using Cell Image Data
• Anne Carpenter, PhD – Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard
• Spatial Clonal Tracing in Solid Tissues
• Fernando Camargo, PhD – Massachusetts Institute of Technology
• Holistic Multi-Scale Molecular Imaging of Human Organs
• Kwanghun Chung, PhD – Boston Children’s Hospital
• Cell Identity Conversion – Liver Regeneration and Cell Therapy
• Lijian Hui, PhD – Shanghai Institutes for Biological Sciences
• Developing Cirrhosis Therapies: The Three Grand Challenges
• Quin Wills, MD, PhD – Ochre Bio
• Pediatric Liver Tumors: Clinical Context and Opportunities for Collaboration
• Allison O’Neill, MD – Dana-Farber Cancer Institute
• Understanding How the Organism Monitors Liver Sufficiency to Properly Time Regeneration
• Kristin Knouse, MD, PhD – Massachusetts Institute of Technology
• Cellular and Molecular Drivers of Liver Cancer Response to Immunotherapy
• Miriam Merad, MD, PhD – Mount Sinai School of Medicine

For the full agenda, list of speakers, and registration, please visit alfevents.org/ariassymposium.  

In addition to the Arias Symposium, American Liver Foundation offers a research awards program in three categories, Liver Scholar Award, Postdoctoral Research Fellowship Award, and Pilot Research Awards that recently funded eight highly innovative projects into these rare diseases – PSC, AIH and BA. Since 1979, ALF’s research awards program has provided more than $28 million in research funding. Over 850 qualified scientists and physicians have pursued research careers in liver biology, disease and treatment because they received these grants early in their careers. Learn more at liverfoundation.org/research.