Event at a glance
The World Congress brings the world’s most prominent regenerative medicine and longevity scientists together, presenting the new research, responsible drug development, novel therapies and commercialisation to target age-related diseases.
Tuesday 26 April
09:00 Opening Remarks
09:10 Keynote Panel: Regenerative, Rejuvenate or Reprogram?
An in-depth discussion about the applying geroscience to regenerative and longevity research. Investigating how the deeper understanding of ageing biology can progress the next 10 years of stem cells and longevity therapeutics.
Thomas Rando, Co-Founder, Fountain Therapeutics
Eric Verdin, Chief Executive Officer, Buck Institute
Georgina Ellison-Hughes, Professor of Regenerative Muscle Physiology, King's College London
Nir Barzilai, Director, Institute for Aging Research, Albert Einstein College of Medicine
10:00 Keynote Panel: The COVID-19 Impact
COVID-19, the disease caused by the coronavirus Sars-CoV-2, is most prevalent in older adults, causes more severe symptoms in this population and over 90% of deaths are in the over 65 year olds.
Gain insights into how COVID-19 has impacted on social issues and research data on ageing science, including describing how an aged immune system contributes to this increased morbidity and mortality in older adults and also discuss research into the long term consequences for immunity and overall health in COVID-19 survivors. Then discuss how any lesson learnt can be applied to improve healthspan going forward.
James Kirkland, Director of the Robert and Arlene Kogod Centre on Aging, Mayo Clinic
Janet Lord, Director of the Institute of Inflammation and Ageing, University of Birmingham
10:00 Morning Break
Longevity Therapeutics
Advancing mechanistic understanding
11:20 Presentation: The role of immune ageing for cellular senescence applications
Understanding the importance of changes in immunity and any associated changes with time critical to the ageing process and subsequent therapeutic targets.
Immune aging can be monitored by the immune responses which change depending on diet.
In this presentation we will discuss the latest parameters and mechanisms that can induce such change.
Including exploring the interlinking role cellular metabolites, for example NAD+ plays in aging, neurodegeneration, and metabolism.
Also, a deep dive into how to regulate senescence and chronic inflammation with nutrition.
Eric Verdin, Chief Executive Officer, Buck Institute
11:50 Presentation: Revisiting enzymatic approaches, elongation of telomeres for therapeutic use to target fibrosis diseases
Pulmonary fibrosis is an age related condition which globally affects over 120,000 people and due to an ageing population, the number new cases is estimated to grow by 50,000 in the next five years.
Understanding ageing mechanisms associated with the fibrotic disease will allow for more targeted and in turn and efficacious treatment. Explore the pathologies and data around telomeres to produce a gene therapy to treat pulmonary fibrosis.
Maria Blasco, Group Leader and Founder, CNIO and Telomere Therapeutics
12:10 Panel: Applying mitochondria mechanistic learnings to successfully target NASH pathways and AMD indications
Hear about the latest updates on molecular mechanisms around mitochondrial dysfunction to develop therapeutic peptides. Gain insights in early clinical developments on targeting metabolic and macular degeneration diseases
Reenie McCarthy, Chief Executive Officer, Stealth Bio Joseph Sarret, Chief Executive Officer and Director, CohBar
Regenerative Medicine Track
Innovative technologies and mechanistic understanding
11:20 Presentation: Understanding the role of cell senescence and homeostasis in targeting cardiac regeneration
Mammalian ageing is defined as a gradual loss of the capacity to maintain tissue homeostasis or to repair tissues after injury/stress. The adult heart is considered a post-mitotic organ, having a low cardiomyocyte turnover rate over the course of human lifespan, which decreases further with ageing.
Like other tissues and organs senescent cells accumulate in the heart with ageing and in chronic disease, contributing to pathophysiology and deterioration. Regulation of cell senescence will impact the efficacy of regenerative therapies, especially if the majority of patients in need of it are of advanced age as occurs with heart disease and failure.
Targeting cell senescence using senolytics can rejuvenate the aged hearts regenerative capacity.
Georgina Ellison-Hughes, Professor of Regenerative Muscle Physiology, King's College London
11:50 Presentation: Exploring the novel molecular mechanisms within the brain targeting Alzheimer’s disease that can be translated to clinic
Examine how the relationship between cellular senescence and the chronic neurodegenerative diseases, including the mechanism around tau toxicities impacting cellular senescence in the brain.
Miranda Orr, Assistant Professor, Gerontology and Geriatric Medicine, Wake Forest School of Medicine
12:10 Presentation: Ovarian ageing, reproductive longevity health and rejuvenation
Ovarian aging is perhaps the most promising but overlooked area in ageing science. It has the potential to provide insights into how the rest of the body ages. Discuss how the fundamental advancements within female reproductive ageing and how research can lead to promising fertility, perimenopause, and menopause treatments. Also, the potential of developing therapies to target ovarian indications allows researchers to target early aged human models.
Jennifer Garrison, Associate Director, Buck-USC Biology of Aging. Bucks Institute and Founder & Director, Global Consortium for Reproductive Longevity & Equality
14:00 Panel: Targeting Ageing the Beyond Therapeutics
How is important is diet, sleep, stress, exercise, and genetics for ageing and treating chronic diseases approach? Is a low caloric diet essential? Explore recent findings around the data the impact stress and sleep have on the biological age.
Greg Bailey, Chief Executive Officer, Juvenescence Ltd Grace McNamara, Chief Executive Officer, Exi
Kate Bache, Co-Founder and CEO, Health & Her
14:40 Presentation: The right and practical data Ageing
Utilising Multi-omics, Big Data, Deep Learning, Machine Learning and AI to reduce the complexity of ageing as an indication. Discover the partialities and opportunities of using system biology to target HIF-H inhibitor ad APJ Agonist to treat muscle ageing.
Kristen Fortney, Co-founder and Chief Executive Officer, BioAge
15:00 Panel: De-risking ageing drug development
The right early-stage data is crucial to move beyond the concept stage and secure investment.
Review the tools that can accurately assess how well lead compounds slow down the process ageing within early-stage research. And identify the key data for longevity drug discovery and addressing the hurdles to obtain the data.
David Weinkove, Co-Founder & CEO, Magnitude Biosciences
Patrick Burgermesiter, Partner, Kizoo Technology Capital
Joan Mannick, Head of R&D at Life Biosciences
14:00 Fireside chat: Building robust and scalable manufacturing and supply chain network for age-related cell and gene therapies
Julie Allickson, Director, Mayo Clinic Center for Regenerative Medicine
14:50 Panel: Beyond the therapeutic - The consumer and OTC regenerative medicine opportunity
Discussing the market opportunities for rejuvenation applications that can be utilised direct-to-consumer such as wound management, skin care and dental care.
Alan Goldstein, Managing Director of P&G Ventures, Proctor and Gamble
Saranya Wylves, Assistant Professor of regenerative medicine and dermatologist, Mayo Clinic School of Medicine
15:40 Afternoon Break
16:10 Roundtables
17:30 Close of day 1 and Rejuvenate reception
09:00 Keynote Panel: Investment landscape within Regenerative medicine and Longevity Therapeutics
Removing the taboo of longevity and regenerative medicine within traditional biotech investment dynamics. Understand how the landscape is changing with new investment providers and deep dive into their due diligence process.
Alexandra Bause, Investor Director, Apollo Ventures
Ronjon Nag, Managing Director and Founder, R42 Group
09:50 Keynote Panel: Translating and commercialising regenerative medicine and ageing science therapeutics
Assessing the route to market options by developing biologic or medical device designation. How do they differ in IP potential and market access parameters (pricing and reimbursement strategies)? How large a role is buy from big Pharma critical for commercialisation for regenerative products over companies establishing themselves as ‘big’ biopharma. Discussing how the advancements of regenerative medicine to translate real world interventions can be applied to longevity therapeutics and gain more interest from larger player and payers.
Joshua Hare, Co-Founder, Chief Science Officer and Chairman, Longeveron
Tea Shavlakadze, Director of Aging/Age-Related disorders, Regeneron Pharmaceuticals
Natalia Novac, Director Emerging Technology & Innovation, Eli Lilly
10:35 Morning Break
11:00 Panel: Commercialising skin with hard data
Skin, the largest organ, has seen commercial success in rejuvenation, particularly in Aesthetics and Cosmetics. But robust clinical data for dermatology is scrutinised. How much is the consumer is driving the market, is there enough data to back up the demand clinically? And what can be done to address the gaps? Hear about the innovative companies and technology the cosmetic and consumer market leaders are reviewing to back robust clinically proven research.
Betsy Bluestone, Head of Discovery - P&G Ventures, Procter & Gamble
Sibylle Jager, Scientific Directorate Manager, L’Oréal
Stephanie Manson-Brown, Head of Clinical Development, VP Allergan Aesthetics R&D, AbbVie
Longevity Therapeutics
Clinical Insights
11:50 Presentation: Macular degenerative clinical development via targeting BCL pathway
Explore ocular cell biology around the senescent triggers in across the BCL-xL pathway. Assess how the applied developed lead compound through the clinic. Hear the Phase II/III patient results.
Jamie Danaberg, Chief Medical Officer, UNITY Biotechnology
Regenerative Medicine Track
Clinical Insights
11:50 Presentation: Phase III clinical update of targeting muscle regeneration with PLX-PAD
Learn the clinical design process for the PLX-PAD to induce muscle regeneration after hip fracture surgery. Hear the up-to-date phase III clinical data from this cell therapy approach.
Nitsan Halevy, Chief Medical Officer, Pluristem
13:30 Dermatology pre-clinical development via modulation of RNA splicing
Lorna Harries, Chief Scientific Officer, Senisca
14:00 Harnessing endogenous immune biology to ablate pathogenic senescent cells and treat disease
Robin Mansukhani, CEO, Deciduous Therapeutics
13:30 Presentation: Preclinical data of comprehensive tissue types to target the age process in cardiovascular and neurodegenerative disease
Examine the in vivo and preclinical data from 36 tissue types associated with cardiovascular and neurology indications. Gain nights into how the preclinical results are being translated in the clinical trial status.
Tea Shavlakadze, Director of Aging/Age-Related disorders, Regeneron Pharmaceuticals
14:00 Presentation: Advancing aging frailty through the clinic with ageing clinical endpoints
Hear the latest data in the advanced 150 patient enrolled trial targeting ageing frailty. Discover ageing biomarkers and clinical endpoints used for an aged, focused indication. Explore whether the phase II trial with Lomecel-B is positive is reducing inflammation and improving physical function.
Joshua Hare, Co-Founder, Chief Science Officer and Chairman, Longeveron
14:30 Afternoon Break
15:00 Panel: Tackling Immunogenicity in gene therapy, cell therapy and organ transplantation
Discussing the triggers off allogenic graft rejection, the mechanistic understanding of immunogenicity and importance when developing cell and gene therapy.
Confirmed:
Stefan Tullius, Professor of Surgery, Transplant Surgery, Harvard Medical School
Michael Hufford, Co-Founder and CEO, Lygenesis
15:50 Panel: Longevity therapeutic clinical trial review and forward thinking
Deep dive into the pros and cons of the p53 and mTOR longevity related trials to assess how to set future trials for success. Assess the decision process around picking the right indication for drug development. Examine the clinical design tools (biomarker, endpoints and analytical tools.)
Joan Mannick, Head of R&D at Life Biosciences
Nathaniel David, Co-Founder, UNITY Biotechnology
16:40 Roundtables
17:20 Closing Remarks
17:30 Congress Closes
