The Kenneth Rainin Foundation Holds Its First Innovations Symposium

OAKLAND, Calif., Sept. 20, 2012 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The first annual Kenneth Rainin Foundation Innovations Symposium entitled, "New Insights in Human Evolution and Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD)," was held at the Four Seasons, Chicago on Friday, July 20, 2012. By the positive feedback and comments that were echoed throughout the Symposium by attendees and speakers alike, it was clear that KRF's first Innovations Symposium was a resounding success. Some of the most memorable comments were, "there is no other conference like the Innovations Symposium," "unique and refreshing," "one of a kind" and "off-the-beaten-track topics." Speaker Bonnie Bassler described it as "brain candy." Below is a complete list of the distinguished guest speakers along with their thought-provoking presentation topics:

• Bonnie Bassler, Ph.D. – Princeton University - Topic: "Tiny Conspiracies: Cell-to-Cell Communication in Bacteria"
• Anna Di Rienzo – Ph.D. – University of Chicago - Topic: "Adaptations to New Environments and Disease Susceptibility"
• Paul Ewald – Ph.D. – University of Louisville - Topic: "An Evolution Framework for Understanding Cancer"
• Christopher W. Kuzawa – Ph.D. – Northwestern University - Topic: "How Early Experiences Shape Developmental Biology: Implications for Adult Chronic Disease"
• Stephen Rappaport, Ph.D. – UC Berkeley - Topic: "Using Exposome-Wide Association Studies (EWAS) to Discover Environmental Causes of Disease".
• Stephen Stearns, Ph.D. – Yale University - Topic: "Major Themes in Evolutionary Medicine"

The goal of the Kenneth Rainin Foundation Innovations Symposium is to bring together leading authorities in a variety of fields to start developing a scientific dialogue that will expand our horizons, promote the development of new ideas and insights, and foster collaborations to speed innovations in our knowledge and in patient care for IBD and other chronic diseases. By bringing together noted experts in fields with diverse insights, we believe that this unique Symposium will have a powerful and lasting impact on all participants and the research and patient care in which we are all invested.

Jen Rainin, president of the Kenneth Rainin Foundation, said "KRF's Innovations Symposium is intended to provide an open-minded environment where both IBD and non-IBD research experts can learn and formulate collaborative ideas that they can apply in their own research labs, regardless of their respective fields. Just think, with the combined efforts of research groups from multiple disciplines, the discovery possibilities could be endless when looking for the causes and cures for IBD."

Our hope for the KRF Innovations Symposium is to spark connections between great minds from different disciplines that will bring about novel ideas and approaches to IBD research. We know that researchers doing exciting work don't always have the opportunity to look for connections outside their chosen fields. This annual Symposium is our attempt to remedy that situation and create a space for conversation, inspiration and creativity.

The Foundation's 2013 Innovations Symposium entitled "Stress Responses, Inflammation and Disease," will be held at the Four Seasons, Chicago on Friday, July 12, 2013. More details will be available shortly at: http://rainin-symposium.com.  

To learn more about the Kenneth Rainin Foundation's medical research programs, please visit http://krfoundation.org/grants/health/.

SOURCE The Kenneth Rainin Foundation