Conference: Stem Cells, Cell Therapy and Bioengineering in Lung Biology and Diseases 2023

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The 10th Stem Cells, Cell Therapy and Bioengineering in Lung Biology and Diseases Conference will be held 17-20 July 2023, at the University of Vermont in Burlington, which has been the venue of all of the conferences since the biannual series began in 2005. The conference fills an important niche in the rapidly moving fields of stem cells, cell therapies, lung biology, and bioengineering. In addition to stimulating extensive discussion and debate by international leaders and up and coming investigators and trainees, an important deliverable is a set of guidelines for basic and translational research to be utilized by both investigators and funding agencies. As in previous years, junior investigators, trainees, and investigators from underrepresented groups will be prioritized for inclusion in conference organization, oral presentations, chairing activities, discussions, and poster sessions. In 2023, an exciting new High School STEM Experience will be introduced to foster the next generation of scientists by providing on opportunity for participants to engage with scientific faculty and trainees from around the world and further gain experience with state-of-the-art scientific techniques.Repair and regeneration of a diseased lung with stem cells or bioengineered tissues are exciting potential therapeutic approaches for a variety of lung diseases and critical illnesses. Over the past decade, increasing evidence in preclinical models suggests that cells which are not normally resident in the lung, notably mesenchymal stromal cells (MSCs) can be utilized to modulate immune responses after injury, but there have been challenges in translating these promising findings to the clinic. In parallel, there has been a surge in bioengineering studies investigating use of artificial and acellular lung matrices as scaffolds for three-dimensional lung or airway regeneration, with some recent attempts of transplantation in large animal models. The combination of these studies with those utilizing stem cells, induced pluripotent stem cell derivatives, and/or cell therapies is a promising and rapidly developing research area. These studies have been further paralleled by significant increases in understanding the molecular and cellular events by which endogenous lung stem and/or progenitor cells arise and differentiate during lung development and in normal and pathologic repair and remodeling after lung injury. For the 2023 conference, scientific symposia have been chosen to reflect the most cutting-edge advances in the field and will include sessions focusing on the integration of omics with function, the role of the extracellular matrix, and the influence of immune cells on lung repair and regeneration. These cutting edge basic and translational science studies are rapidly enhancing fundamental understanding of lung repair and regeneration and the planned conference will continue to help shape further progress.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.