Program Agenda

9:00 AM – 9:10 AM
Welcome Remarks
Sriram Balasubramanian, PhD, Meeting Chair

Welcome Remarks from Host Institution
Dr. Paul Brandt-Rauf, ScD, MD, DrPH, Dean, BIOMED, Drexel University

Session One: Development and Pediatric Disorders

9:10 AM – 9:20 AM
Keynote Lecture – Live presentation by Dr. Carl-Eric Aubin, Polytechnique Montreal
Title: Biomechanical Modeling and Simulation to Improve the Treatment of Complex Spine Deformities

9:20 AM – 9:25 AM
Live Q&A with Keynote Speaker

9:25 AM – 9:40 AM
Podium Presentations – Pre-recorded Video Presentations (5 minutes each)

Automated Vertebral Segmentation from Spinal Radiographs using a Convolutional Neural Network
Girish Viraraghavan
Drexel University

Most Important Predictive Features of Curve Progression in Adolescent Idiopathic Scoliosis Using Backward Elimination Method
Ausilah Alfraihat
Drexel University

Finite Element Simulation of Scoliosis Correction and Growth after Vertebral Body Tethering
Christian D’Andrea
Drexel University

9:40 AM – 9:50 AM
Live Q&A Panel with Podium Presenters

Session Two: Aging, Degeneration and Injury

9:50 AM – 10:00 AM
Keynote Lecture – Live Presentation by Dr. Lisbet Haglund, Montreal General Hospital
Title: Cell Senescence and Senolytic Drugs for Intervertebral Disc Ageing and Degeneration

10:00 AM – 10:05 AM
Live Q&A with Keynote Speaker

10:05 AM – 10:25 AM
Podium Presentations – Pre-recorded Video Presentations (5 minutes each)

Biomechanical Evaluation of Acute Lumbar Endplate Injury
Dalin Wang
Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai and Nanjing First Hospital, Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing, Jiangsu, China

Bone Metabolism is an Early Predictor of Spinal Fractures
Helene Chesnais
University of Pennsylvania

Systemic deletion of SerpinA1 Models the Bone Loss and Intervertebral Disc Degeneration from Genetic Emphysema
Neharika Bhadouria
Indiana University-Purdue University

Shift in Dorsal Root Ganglia Gene Expression Profile After Intervertebral Disc Injury depending on Sex and Peripheral Pain Pathway
Jennifer Gansau
Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai

10:25 AM – 10:35 AM
Live Q&A Panel with Podium Presenters

10:35 AM – 10:55 AM
Podium Presentations – Pre-recorded Video Presentations (5 minutes each)

N-glycome of Notochordal Cell-rich Nucleus Pulposus During Ageing
Büşra Günay
National University of Ireland Galway

Sox9 Deletion Causes Severe Intervertebral Disc Degeneration Characterized by Apoptosis, Matrix Remodeling, and Compartment-specific Transcriptomic change
Maria Tsingas
Thomas Jefferson University

Elevated Inflammatory Gene Expression in Intervertebral Disc Tissues in Mice with ADAM8 Inactivated
Yejia Zhang
University of Pennsylvania

Phlpp1 Deficiency Decelerates Inflammation and Age-associated Intervertebral Disc Degeneration in Mice
Changli Zhang
Emory University

10:55 AM – 11:05 AM
Live Q&A Panel with Podium Presenters

Session Three: Therapeutics, Imaging and Biomarkers

11:05 AM – 11:15 AM
Keynote lecture – Live Presentation by Dr. Benjamin Walter, The Ohio State University
Title: Imaging Based Biomarkers for IVD Degeneration

11:15 AM – 11:20 AM
Live Q&A with Keynote Speaker

11:20 AM – 11:50 AM
Podium Presentations – Pre-recorded Video Presentations (5 minutes each)

Genipin-Crosslinked Fibrin Seeded with Oxidized Alginate Microbeads as a Novel Composite Biomaterial Strategy for Intervertebral Disc Cell Delivery
Christopher Panebianco
Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai

The Macroarchitecture of Biomimetic Proteoglycans is Responsible for the Micromolecular Engineering of Cartilage Pericellular Matrix
Elizabeth Kahle
Drexel University

The Combined Role of Tenomodulin and Chondromodulin-1 on Intervertebral Disc Biomechanical Function
Emily Ferreri
Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai

Hydrogel Nucleoplasty Improves Disc Height and Condition in a Goat Model of Moderate-Severity Disc Degeneration
Alessandra Fusco
University of Pennsylvania, School of Veterinary Medicine

In Vivo Longitudinal Assessment of Chondroitinase-Induced Disc Degeneration in Goats via MRI and Radiographs
Kyle Meadows
University of Delaware

Predicting and Characterizing the Probability for Continued Opioid Use in the Chronic Low Back Pain Population using the novel Network Phenotyping Strategy Method
Ayesha Firdous
University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine

11:50 AM – 12:05 PM
Live Q&A Panel with Podium Presenters

Session Four: COVID-19 Challenges and Equity / Diversity in Spine Research

12:05 PM – 12:20 PM
Keynote lecture – Live Presentation by Dr. Dawn Elliott, University of Delaware
Title: Racial Injustice and White Privilege: What a (White) Person in the Academy Can Do?

12:20 PM – 12:25 PM
Live Q&A with Keynote Speaker

12:25 PM – 12:30 PM
Podium Presentations – Pre-recorded Video Presentations (5 minutes each)

Recommendations to Increase Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in STEM fields – A Student’s Perspective
Virginia Orozco
Drexel University

12:30 PM – 12:35 PM
Live Q&A Panel with Podium Presenters

12:35 PM – 12:55 PM

Special Panel discussion on “Equity, Diversity and Inclusion in Academic, Research and Clinical Environments”

Panelists:

Dr. Dawn Elliott, Past-President – Biomedical Engineering Society (BMES)
Dr. Karma Foucher, Chair – Orthopedic Research Society (ORS) Diversity, Equity and Inclusivity Committee
Dr. Neil Malhotra, Associate Professor of Neurosurgery, Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania

Moderator:

Dr. Anita Singh, Chair, Department of Biomedical Engineering, Widener University

12:55 PM – 1:00 PM
Student/Trainee Podium and Poster Presenter Awards, and Concluding Remarks

Symposium Format:

  • Each session will begin with a Keynote speaker: Live presentation (10 minutes) followed by Live Q&A (5 minutes).
  • Podium presentations (6 presentations per session): Pre-recorded video presentations (max 5 minutes duration each) with Live panel Q&A (max 15 minutes) at the end of each session.
  • Poster Presentations (no limit per session): Links will be available to watch the Pre-recorded video presentations (max 5 minutes duration each) and emailed/archived Q&A. No posters will be needed.