SPRING 2010 ISSUE
President's Column
Fellow members of ISACB and ISACB Supporters:

The new hallmark of today's clinical and political future is information.  From electronic health records to data mining tools for research, there is an ever increasing flow of information.

In order to improve patient care, it is critically important that we take an interdisciplinary approach in our effort to gather and apply new information in the development of innovative therapies and novel diagnostics. The International Society for Applied Cardiovascular Biology (ISACB) provides a unique forum to discuss, debate, and deliberate on how best to apply existing knowledge, how to integrate new discoveries into patient care, and how best to manage the ever increasing flow of scientific information and engineering technology.
 
At our Biennial Meeting this coming fall, we will hear from thought leaders in clinical medicine, the biological and chemical sciences, as well as biomedical engineering.   I encourage you to attend and come prepared to offer your best new ideas that lie at the interface of the clinical, biological, and physical sciences. How we manage, share and collaborate in effectively using new information will dictate our ability to discover, innovate, and improve patient outcomes.
 
My hope is that our efforts to share knowledge will create an environment where no horizon is unattainable and where no patient is denied the best ideas that we might imagine.  As a society, it is our goal to ensure that modern miracles continue to alter the landscape of clinical medicine.
 
I look forward to seeing all of you in Boston where information, knowledge, and wisdom will meet.
 
Sincerely,
Elliot L. Chaikof, M.D., Ph.D.
President

ARTICLES
Successful Off-Year Meeting 2009 in Chiang Mai
Masanori Aikawa, MD, PhD
Director, Center for Interdisciplinary Cardiovascular Sciences, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA; Executive Council Member, ISACB


Stuart WilliamsISACB holds biennial meetings as well as off-year meetings. Elena Aikawa and I enjoyed last November's off-year meeting in Chiang Mai, Thailand.  We had intense scientific discussions and active networking during the meeting.  In addition, the meeting venue - the Mandarin Oriental Dhara Dhevi - was truly remarkable.  This society always chooses attractive cities for their meetings, and I believe that Chiang Mai was one of the best. Read More >>>
Education for Careers in Applied
Cardiovascular Biology

Stuart K. Williams, Ph.D.
Cardiovascular Innovation Institute,
Louisville, KY


Stuart WilliamsDuring the early years of the ISACB the importance of luring students into our society was considered critical to the future of our society as well as the field of applied cardiovascular biology.  Did the choice of the word "applied" in our society's name cause some students to avoid attendance?  When does a student decide to pursue a career in applied cardiovascular biology?  Most of our senior members will remember the day when a student first asked whether they should become a basic scientist or an applied scientist.  And our answer was and remains a critical point in the future of a young scientist.  It is unfortunate that we still must address this and many other false dichotomies when helping students decide their course of studies based on what is seen as a fork in the road.  Read More>>>

So What Are Biomaterials?
David Williams, Ph.D.
Editor-in-Chief, Biomaterials
Professor and Director of International Affairs,
Wake Forest Institute of Regenerative Medicine, USA

This brief essay is based on a presentation given at the ISACB meeting in Chiang Mai, October 2009, which itself was based on a Leading Opinion Paper published in Biomaterials (1)
For many years I have been concerned that the traditional concepts of materials science and engineering are becoming outdated when they are applied to the application of materials in medicine. Being initially trained as a materials engineer, I held onto the view that materials were "substances useful for making objects." This posed no problem when those materials were used for manufacturing what we now consider to be classical or traditional medical devices. A titanium alloy follows conventional laws of metallurgy and is used in total joint replacements, mechanical heart valves and implantable electronic devices. A silicone elastomer follows the laws of rubbery elastic solids and is used in implantable and non-implantable medical devices. Polyetheretherketone (PEEK) complies with the laws of thermoplastic polymers and is used in a wide variety of medical devices. In each case, we can see that they are substances and extremely useful. It is usual to consider those substances as solids because we do not normally make things out of liquids and gases, and by convention we assume that we can see them and hold them. Moreover, we usually consider that the objects are made by a top-down manufacturing process, in which bulk material is shaped by one of many molding, extrusion, casting, or other engineering processes. Read More >>>

12th Biennial Meeting of the
INTERNATIONAL SOCIETY FOR APPLIED CARDIOVASCULAR BIOLOGY (ISACB)
Boston, 2010 - Sept. 22-25, 2010, Cambridge Marriott Hotel
 
ISACB:
Provides a forum for communicating issues related to the translation of innovative cardiovascular research from the laboratory to the bedside.

Uniquely nurtures strong face-to-face communication and is a most effective alliance among academic scientists, clinicians and industry-based scientists.

Serves as a key forum for discussion of solutions to difficult clinical, scientific and technical challenges engendered by the validation of the efficacy and safety of diagnostic imaging and laboratory tests, and therapeutic procedures and devices, including advanced biomaterials, endovascular techniques, stents, and vascular grafts, valves, and cardiac assist and other innovative devices.

 
The theme of the 2010 Boston meeting is Regeneration, Remodeling, and Repair: Mechanisms, Models, and Therapies for Heart and Vascular Disease.  Sessions will delve into topics such as therapy for congestive heart failure, controlling vascular remodeling in multiple dimensions, and stem cell therapy and cardiovascular regeneration. 
 
A Satellite Symposium "Molecular Imaging: Looking Toward Translation of Cardiovascular Technologies" will take place from 12-4 PM on Wednesday, September 22, 2010 in the Longwood Medical Area in Boston, Massachusetts, immediately preceding the Welcome Reception and formal opening of the 12th Biennial Meeting of ISACB. Speakers from academia and industry will discuss the key role of molecular imaging to accelerate translation of cardiovascular research on diagnostics and therapies into clinical practice. The organizers hope to arrange a high-quality video link of this Symposium to the Cambridge Marriott.



Submit Your Abstract to ISACB
The theme of the 2010 Boston ISACB meeting is Regeneration, Remodeling, and Repair: Mechanisms, Models, and Therapies for Heart and Vascular Disease.  Sessions will delve into topics such as therapy for congestive heart failure, controlling vascular remodeling in multiple dimensions, and stem cell therapy and cardiovascular regeneration.  The meeting venue will be the Cambridge Marriott Hotel.
 
Submit your abstract and get it published in the eJournal of Cardiovascular Pathology. 
 
Click here to submit your abstract or learn more about the meeting program and speakers


Deadline: April 15, 2010

ISACB
In This Issue:
President's Column
M. Aikawa: Chiang Mai Meeting Update
S. Williams: Education for Careers in Applied Cardiovascular Biology
D. Williams: So What Are Biomaterials?
ISACB's Satellite Meeting and Abstract Submission
ISACB's 12th Biennial Meeting, Boston
ISACB 12th Biennial Meeting

September 22-25, 2010
Boston, Massachsetts

Learn More >
Join Our Mailing List
Letter to the Editor
 
Welcome to the new eCirculator editor: Elene Aikawa, M.D., Ph.D.
Assistant Professor of Medicine
Harvard Medical School
Director, Vascular Biology Program
Center for Interdisciplinary Cardiovascular Sciences Brigham and Women's Hospital

Have an interesting article to share or meeting to promote in the eCirculator? Send an e-mail to Elena Aikawa (eaikawa@partners.org) or isacb1@aimbe.org.
 
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