American Liver Foundation Hosts the 31st Annual Irwin M. Arias Symposium

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

FAIRFIELD, N.J., Nov. 3, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- The American Liver Foundation is pleased to host its 31^st annual Irwin M. Arias Symposium, Bridging Basic Science and Liver Disease, on November 10^th from 9AM to 5PM ET. This one-day virtual program brings together hundreds of leading biomedical scientists and physicians from across the globe and is designed to bridge the remarkable advances in basic biology and engineering with the understanding of liver diseases and their treatment.

"We are honored to host our 31^st annual Arias Symposium and are so grateful to Dr. Irwin M. Arias, who is recognized throughout the world, for his lifetime of leadership in bridging the gap between scientists in the lab and physicians in the clinic," said Lorraine Stiehl, CEO, American Liver Foundation. "Many advances in treating liver disease, such as a cure for Hepatitis C, would not have been possible without advances in basic science. Liver patients across the globe have benefitted from the efforts of preeminent research scientists like Dr. Arias and others like him."

"Bridging the ever-increasing advances in basic biology and engineering with human disease is a major challenge for all of medicine," said Irwin M. Arias, MD, Sr. Scientist, Emeritus, National Institute of Child Health and Development, National Institutes of Health (NIH). "ALF's Arias Symposium has been a model in addressing this challenge with respect to the liver. The speakers are internationally renowned basic and clinical scientists whose work is at the forefront of understanding liver function and disease. Through 32 years, the presentations have presented research which has ultimately advanced diagnosis and treatment of virtually all liver diseases in children and adults."

With 11 plenary talks from renowned researchers including Lew Cantley, Sonja Schrepfer, Hans Clevers, and Joseph Takahashi, and a collection of three minute 'MicroTalks' delivered by trainee scientists, the Symposium will also add a new Roundtable feature, Meet Me on the Bridge, moderated by Dr. Nikla Emambokus, Editor-in-Chief of Med, Cell Press's flagship medical journal. Panelists will discuss current hot topics facing the field, and include Irwin Arias, National Institutes of Health, Tram Tran, Glympse Bio, Adjoa Anyane-Yeboa, Massachusetts General Hospital, and Symposium Co-chairs Sangeeta Bhatia, John J. and Dorothy Wilson Professor at MIT's Institute of Medical Engineering and Science Department, and Wolfram Goessling, Chief of Gastroenterology at Massachusetts General Hospital.

The overall programming has been designed to honor Dr. Arias' founding commitment to 'bridging' between the academic, industrial, and clinical research communities – even across disciplines. From Dr. Goessling's clinical research perspective, "Even though liver disease is exceedingly common, we currently lack effective tools for prevention, diagnosis, and treatment. We need to connect basic science from all fields with clinical translation, outreach, and implementation to make meaningful changes for our patients."

Dr. Bhatia's goals also encompass a long-term impact for the connections made during this interdisciplinary series. "The Arias Symposium embodies our commitment to creating a diverse community amongst liver researchers around the world and dedication to bringing new trainees into our 'love of liver,' so that they can engage in this fascinating and rewarding field."

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. Registration is free and available at alfevents.org/ariassymposium.

• Clone Wars: Evolution of Adaptation and Malignancy in the Liver
• Inhibition of ASGRI decreases lipid levels by promoting cholesterol excretion
• Regulation of Chronic Liver Disease and Cholangiopathies by Mast Cells
• Hepatic Epithelial Development and Plasticity - Identity and Commitment
• Organoids to model human diseases
• Towards Automatic Segmentation of Organelles in vEM
• Genetic Subtyping of NAFLD
• Circadian clocks and their importance for metabolism, aging and longevity
• Protecting transplanted cells from immune rejection is the key to unlocking the potential of regenerative medicine
• Altered liver metabolism confounds the effectiveness of PI3K inhibitors for treating breast and endometrial cancers

For full Event Details, a list of speakers, and free registration please visit alfevents.org/ariassymposium. 

Your liver is essential to your life. It is the largest solid internal organ in the body. It is about the size of a football and weighs about 3 to 3.5 pounds (1.36–1.59kg). It is located on your right side, just under your rib cage. The liver performs many vital functions, including filtering toxins from your blood, managing blood clotting, making bile to digest fat, storing sugar for energy, turning extra glucose into glycogen, making protein for blood plasma, and helping with digestion.

There are many kinds of liver diseases and conditions, the most common are hepatitis viruses, nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), autoimmune diseases, genetic conditions, cancer, and others. More than 100 million people in the U.S. have some form of liver disease. Approximately 4.5 million U.S. adults (1.8%) have been diagnosed with liver disease. But it is estimated that 80-100 million adults in the U.S. have fatty liver disease, and many do not know they have it. Research estimates that fatty liver disease is present in up to 75% of overweight people and in more than 90% with severe obesity. Globally, it affects one billion people. In 2020, 51,642 adults in the U.S. died from liver disease (15.7 per 100,000 population). Find more information about Liver Disease.

The American Liver Foundation is the nation's largest non-profit organization focused solely on promoting liver health and disease prevention. The American Liver Foundation achieves its mission in the fight against liver disease by funding scientific research, education for medical professionals, advocacy, information and support programs for patients and their families as well as public awareness campaigns about liver wellness and disease prevention. The mission of the American Liver Foundation is to promote education, advocacy, support services and research for the prevention, treatment and cure of liver disease. For more information visit liverfoundation.org or call:1 800 GO LIVER (800-465-4837).

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Contact: Julie Kimbrough
[email protected]
Direct dial: 646-737-9409

SOURCE American Liver Foundation