2025 Merkin Institute Symposium
Translating basic science with platform technologies to improve human health: Current and future directions
Thursday February 6th, 2025
2025 David Dreier Lecture by Jennifer Garrison, PhD (Buck Institute)
Agenda
| TIme | Speaker |
|---|---|
| 9:00 – 9:30am | Arrival & Check-in |
| 9:30 – 9:40am |
Viviana Gradinaru (Director, MITR): Welcome & Opening Remarks regarding Dreier Lecture Series Máté Borsos, PhD: Speaker introduction |
| 9:40 – 10:40am |
2025 David Dreier Lecture by Jennifer Garrison, PhD (Buck Institute) Co-Director, Center for Healthy Aging in Women “Reframing women's health and aging through the lens of ovarian function” |
| 10:45 – 11:25am | Andrew McMahon (Merkin Research Professor) “A Program to model and restore human kidney functions” |
| 11:30 – 12:15pm | Dianne Newman (Merkin Professor) "Controlling chronic infections by hijacking microbial metabolism" |
| 12:15 - 2:30pm | Lunch & Posters |
| 2:30 – 2:35pm | Prof. Viviana Gradinaru: Afternoon Session Introduction & Remarks |
| 2:35 – 3:35pm |
Afternoon Keynote by Dr. Karl Deisseroth, MD, PhD (Stanford) “Light-gated membrane channels: discovery and creation of diversity, new principles for ion selectivity, and translational insights into human adaptive behavior” |
| 3:40 – 3:55pm | Ninadini Sharma, PhD (Zernicka-Goetz Lab) "Decoding the basic principles of embryonic development" |
| 3:55 – 4:10pm | Máté Borsos, PhD (Gradinaru Lab) "AAV platform for gene discovery and advancement of women’s reproductive health" |
| 4:10 – 4:55pm |
Panel: “What does it take to launch a Caltech Spinout Company?” moderated by Mary Beth Campbell (EIR) Panel Members: Brian Stoltz (Faculty) Alborz Mahdavi (CEO Protomer Technologies) Nancy Hong (HiTide VC) Mert Aktar (CEO Receptive) Andrea Choe (CEO Holoclara) Jay Chiang (CEO Asymptote & former EIR) |
| 4:55 - 5:00pm | Closing Remarks |