concurrent track: clinical applications

Highlighting integrated gene and cell therapies, tissue niche modulation, advances in modeling cellular complexity for disease treatment, and translating regenerative insights into clinical applications.

Organized by:

*Additional invited and abstract-selected speakers to be determined. Session descriptions and titles may change slightly.

modeling cellular complexity for tissue therapies

Faranak Fattahi, PhD, University of California, San Francisco, USA 

  • This session explores how diseases impact multiple cell types at the organ level and highlight therapies that utilize 3D tissue models to maximize therapeutic potential.

integrating gene and cell approaches for transformative therapies

Brian Bigger, PhD, The University of Edinburgh, UK
Michael G. Fehlings, MD, PhD, University of Toronto & Toronto Western Hospital, Canada

  • This session highlights cutting-edge strategies that combine gene and cell therapies to treat diseases once considered untreatable. Topics include gene-modified cell therapies and novel delivery of therapeutic agents to repair or replace damaged tissues. 

modulating the tissue niche for therapeutic success

Guy Sauvageau, PhD, Institute for Research in Immunology & Cancer, Université de Montréal, Canada 
Nobukatsu Sawamoto, MD, PhD, Kyoto University, Japan

  • This session examines how engineering the host environment, including overcoming fibrosis, targeting ectopic sites, remodeling native niches, and using encapsulation, can improve cell survival, integration, and cell therapy outcomes. 

tissue repair and regeneration in common diseases 

Michael A. Laflamme, MD, PhD, McEwen Stem Cell Institute, University Health Network, Canada 

  • This session explores recent advances in cell and gene therapies for common diseases, where success could benefit millions. Topics include overcoming regenerative barriers and developing scalable, accessible therapeutic solutions.