1:00PM - 1:10PM

Welcome Remarks: Karmella Haynes (Emory University)                          

Opening Keynote Address: Clayton Yates, Johns Hopkins University

"Reassessing the Biology of Cancer through the Lens of African Ancestry and Equity"

"Bringing Our Legacy to the Table"

Moderator:  Marian Ackun-Farmmer (Georgia Tech/Emory)

Panelists: Antentor O Hinton Jr. (Vanderbilt University), Pamela Price (The Balm in Gilead), Lakeita Servance (Georgia Tech), Sahee Abdelmomin (Tulsa Innovation Labs)

Amplifying the Next Generation: New and Upcoming voices and Outreach Outcomes

Moderator: Simone Douglas-Green (Georgia Tech/Emory)

Rapid Fire Presentations from undergrad and PhD trainees

Sheyla Cordova (University of Miami): "Characterizing Concentration Gradient Formation in a Microfluidic System"

Kaseba Chibwe (Washington University): "Usage and Accessibility Drive Microbial Community Variation within a Tertiary-Care Pediatric Hospital"

Abigail Dzordzorme (MIT): "Distinct Nanoparticle Surface Chemistry Influences Early P. Aeruginosa Biofilm Association"

Junior PI Presentations

Marian Ackun-Farmmer (Georgia Tech/Emory)

Catherine Whittington (Worcester Polytechnic Institute)

Networking Challenge Reception led by Simone Douglas-Green (Georgia Tech/Emory)

7:30AM - 8:00 AM

Networking & Morning Coffee

8:00AM - 8:10AM

Morning Remarks: Karmella Haynes (Emory University)

8:10AM - 9:00AM

Keynote Speaker: Edward Botchwey, Georgia Tech

"Reprogramming Pro-Fibrotic Macrophage Metabolism to Promote Tissue Regeneration"

9:00AM -10:30AM

Session 2: Health and Medical Applications

Session Chair: Simone Douglas-Green (Georgia Tech/Emory)

Invited Speaker: Michelle Gaines, Spelman College

"Interfacial Chemical Properties of Polymer Microgels & Hair"

Invited Speaker: Sossena Wood, Carnegie Mellon University

"Addressing the Need for Inclusive Neurotechnology for Darker Hair and Skin Types"

Jada Selma, Medtronic, Inc.

"Cryoballoon Ablation Versus Antiarrhythmic Drugs As Initial Treatment for Paroxysmal Atrial Fibrillation"

10:15AM - 10:45AM

Coffee Break

10:45AM - 12:15PM

Session 3: Nucleic Acid and Genome Design

Session Chair:  Marian Ackun-Farmmer (Georgia Tech/Emory)

Invited Speaker: Angela Alexander Bryant, Clemson University

"Advancing Precision Medicine: Peptide Nanocarriers for Nucleic Acid Delivery in Cancer Therapy"

Invited Speaker: Timothy L. Downing, UC Irvine

"Biophysical regulation of cell fate transitions"

Invited Speaker: Aaron Streets, UC Berkeley

"New tools for multimodal precision measurement of single cells and single molecules."

12:15PM - 1:30PM

Lunch Sponsored by Burroughs Wellcome Fund

Industry Mentor Lunch, chaired by Karmella Haynes (Emory University)

Session 4: Regenerative Engineering

Session Chair: Jamal Lewis (University of Florida)

Invited Speaker: Wilton Williams, Duke University

"Vaccine Induction of HIV-1 Neutralizing B Cell Clonal Lineages in Humans”

Matheus Oliveira de Souza, Ragon Institute of MGH, MIT and Harvard

"HIV-1 Antibody Optimization Using Directed Evolution and Yeast Surface Display"

Invited Speaker: David Rockliffe, National Science Foundation

"Funding Opportunities in Systems and Synthetic Biology at NSF"

Invited Speaker: Tony Dickherber, National Cancer Institute

“NCI Funding Opportunities"

Rapid Fire Presentations

Faith Zablon (North Carolina A&T State University): "Simplified Gold-Locked Nucleic Acid Nanohybrid Sensor for Detection of Cellular and Exosomal Mir-9-3p for Breast Cancer Detection"

Annie Scutte (National High Magnetic Field Laboratory): "Rheological Characterization of 3D Alginate-Gelatin Bacterial Biofilms"

Haryana Y. Thomas (University at Buffalo): "A mathematical model of kidney fibrosis in diabetes"

Ivana Parker (University of Florida): "Ethnic Disparity in Diagnosing Asymptomatic Bacterial Vaginosis Using Machine Learning"

Kierra Franklin (Emory University): "Development of Engineered Synthetic Reader-Effectors with Enhanced Binding to H3K27me3"

Shelbe Johnson (MIT): "CRISPR/Cas9-Based Cell Line Generation for sequential Integration of Antibody Genes"

David Oliver (University of Miami): "Acrylic-Based Culture Plate Format Perfusion Device to Establish Liver Endothelial-Epithelial Interface"

Poster Session and Reception

7:30AM - 8:00AM

8:10AM - 9:00AM

Keynote Speaker: Sarah Richardson (Microbyre)

"'Synthetic Biology' Has Got to Go: Reevaluating and Replacing a Failed Philosophy"

9:00AM - 10:30AM

Session 5: Synthetic and Computational Biology

Session Chair: Karmella Haynes (Emory University)

Invited Speaker: Thomas C. Tubon, Jr., BioMADE

Invited Speaker: Leopold Green, Purdue University

"Unraveling Sepsis Wound Healing: Insights from Immune Cell Dynamics and Molecular Signaling for Designing Therapeutic Interventions"

Nolan English, Oak Ridge National Laboratory

"Towards Physiology Informed Generative Modeling in Drug Design"

10:45AM - 12:15PM

Session 6: Cell Systems Engineering

Session Chair: Monet Roberts (Virginia Tech)

Invited Speaker: Briana Simms, University of Cincinnati

"How did we get here: Design strategies for nanomaterials crossing the blood-brain-barrier"

Clinton Smith, University of Florida

"A Multi-Fluorophore Staining Scheme for Identification and Quantification of Vomocytosis"

Sydney Floryanzia, University of Washington

"Evaluating the Effects of Culture Conditions on Astrocyte and Pericyte Response to Oxygen-Glucose Deprivation Injury"