Scientific Sessions
- Keynote Address
- President's Symposium
- Historical Perspectives Symposium
- State-of-the-Art Lectures
- Minisymposia
Keynote Address
- John D. Gearhart, Ph.D. (University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania), The Intersection Between Stem Cell Biology and Reproduction.
President’s Symposium: Genomics, Genetics, and Reproductive Biology
Chair: John H. Nilson (Washington State University, Pullman, Washington), President, Society for the Study of Reproduction.
- Huntington Willard, Ph.D. (Duke University, Durham, North Carolina), ‘Omics and Reproduction.
- David H. Ledbetter, Ph.D. (Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, Georgia), Advances in Genomic and Genetic Technology That Enhance Detection of Fetal Abnormalities.
- Robert E. Braun, Ph.D. (The Jackson Laboratory, Bar Harbor, Maine), Stem Cells and Germ Cell Differentiation.
Historical Perspectives Symposium: A Tribute to Anita Payne
Chair: Sally A. Camper, Ph.D. (University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan)
- Dale “Buck” Hales, Ph.D. (Southern Illinois University, Carbondale, Illinois), Anita Payne: Pioneer Spirit and Guiding Light.
- Phyllis M. Wise, Ph.D. (University of Washington, Seattle, Washington), Anita Payne: Scientist, Teacher, Mentor, Advisor, Friend, and So Much More.
- Marco Conti, M.D. (University of California, San Francisco, California), Title to be announced.
State-of-the-Art Lectures
Co-Chairs: Leslie L. Heckert, Ph.D. (University of Kansas Medical Center, Kansas City, Kansas); Ruth Ann Keri, Ph.D. (Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, Ohio)
- Myles Brown, M.D. (Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts), Title to be announced.
- Ruth H. Lehmann, M.D. (Skirball Institute of Biomolecular Medicine, New York, New York), Lipid Control of Germ Cell Migration.
- James (Jay) C. Cross, Ph.D. (University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, Canada), Developmental Potential and Plasticity of Stem Cells in the Placenta.
Minisymposia
I. Genomic and Nongenomic Actions of Steroids in the HPG Axis (Supported by the Mahesh Neuroendocrine Program Fund)
Chair: Jon E. Levine, Ph.D. (Northwestern University, Evanston, Illinois)
- Jon E. Levine, Ph.D. (Northwestern University, Evanston, Illinois), Fertility and Fatness: Roles of Nonclassical ERalpha Signaling in Brain.
- Iain J. Clarke, Ph.D. (Monash University, Clayton, Victoria, Australia), The Nexus Between Metabolic and Reproductive Circuits in the Hypothalamus.
- Suzanne Moenter, Ph.D. (University of Virginia, Charlottesville, Virginia), The Minuses and Pluses of Estradiol Feedback to GnRH Neurons.
II. Signaling Pathways Controlling Follicular Development
Chair: Diane M. Duffy, Ph.D. (Eastern Virginia Medical School, Norfolk, Virginia)
- Diego H. Castrillon, M.D., Ph.D. (University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, Texas), PI3K Signaling via Foxo3 in Primordial Follicle Activation.
- Melissa E. Pepling, Ph.D. (Syracuse University, Syracuse, New York), Estrogen Signaling and Regulation of Primordial Follicle Formation.
- Alan Schneyer, Ph.D. (Pioneer Valley Life Science Institute, Springfield, Massachusetts), Defects in Follicle Development and Fertility in FST288-only Mice.
III. Sex-Specific Differences in Gene Regulation
Chair: Joan S. Jorgensen, D.V.M., Ph.D. (University of Wisconsin, Madison, Wisconsin)
- Diane M. Robins, Ph.D. (University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan), Sex-Specific Regulation by the Rs1 KRAB Zinc Finger Proteins Impacts Reproduction, Metabolism, and Evolution.
- Ariane Paoloni-Giacobino, M.D. (University of Geneva, Geneva, Switzerland), Imprinting and Sex-Specific Modulations in Gene Expression.
- Alexander S. Kauffman, Ph.D. (University of California, La Jolla, California), Sex Differences and Kiss1 Neurons: Mechanisms and Functions.
IV. Germ Cell Microenvironment
Chair: Kathleen Molyneaux, Ph.D. (Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, Ohio)
- Kathleen Molyneaux, Ph.D. (Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, Ohio), BMPs and the Embryonic Microenvironment of PGCs.
- Shosei Yoshida, M.D., Ph.D. (National Institute for Basic Biology, Okazaki, Japan), Seminiferous Tubule Microenvironment in the Mouse Testis.
- Teresa Woodruff, Ph.D. (Northwestern University, Chicago, Illinois), Ovarian Rigidity Regulates Follicle Function and Egg Quality.
V. Evolution and Development of the Placenta
Chair: Fuller W. Bazer, Ph.D. (Texas A&M University, College Station, Texas)
- Derek E. Wildman, Ph.D. (Wayne State University, Detroit, Michigan), Deciphering the Evolution of Placentation by Integrating Comparative Genomic and Anatomical Approaches.
- Michael J. Soares, Ph.D. (University of Kansas Medical Center, Kansas City, Kansas), The Prolactin Family: Evolution, Placentation, and Insights about Function.
- John D. Aplin, Ph.D. (University of Manchester, Manchester, England), Placental Evolution and the Glycocode.
VI. Genomics of Domesticated Species
Chair: Douglas F. Antczak, V.M.D., Ph.D. (Cornell University, Ithaca, New York)
- Douglas F. Antczak, V.M.D., Ph.D. (Cornell University, Ithaca, New York), Title to be announced.
- Thomas E. Spencer, Ph.D. (Texas A&M University, College Station, Texas), Endogenous Retroviruses: From Infectious Elements to Essential Genes.
- Xiuchun (Cindy) Tian, Ph.D. (University of Connecticut, Storrs, Connecticut), Title to be announced.
VII. Hormone-Responsive Malignancies (Sponsored by the Society for Gynecological Investigation)
Chair: Robert N. Taylor, M.D., Ph.D. (Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, Georgia)
- Kunle Odunsi, M.D., Ph.D. (Roswell Park Cancer Institute, Buffalo, New York), The Race Between Ovarian Cancer and Immunity: How Hormones and Inhibitory Molecules Set the Pace.
- Kimberly Leslie, M.D. (University of Iowa, Iowa City, Iowa), Endometrial Cancer: A Hormone-Responsive Malignancy.
- Serdar Bulun, M.D. (Northwestern University, Chicago, Illinois), Aromatase and Breast Cancer: From Bench to Bedside.
VIII. Cell Adhesion Dynamics in Reproduction
Chair: Gustavo Blanco, M.D., Ph.D. (University of Kansas Medical Center, Kansas City, Kansas)
- C. Yan Cheng, Ph.D. (The Population Council, New York, New York), Cell Adhesion Junctions in the Testis: Are They a Target for Contraception?
- Rex A. Hess, Ph.D. (University of Illinois, Urbana, Illinois), Claudin 5, Germ Cells, and the Blood-Testis Barrier.
- A.M.M. van Pelt, Ph.D. (University of Amsterdam, Amsterdam, The Netherlands), Adhesion Properties in Spermatogonial Stem Cells.
IX. Implantation and the Maternal-Fetal Interface
Chair: Brent Bany, Ph.D. (Southern Illinois University of Medicine, Carbondale, Illinois)
- Kathleen Caron, Ph.D. (University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, North Carolina), Adrenomedullin Dosage at the Maternal-Fetal Interface: A Tale of Two Sides.
- Thaddeus Golos, Ph.D. (University of Wisconsin, Madison, Wisconsin), Placental MHC and the Maternal-Fetal Immune Dialog in Primates.
- Sandra Blois, Ph.D. (Charite–University of Medicine Berlin, Berlin, Germany), Dendritic Cells in Implantation: New Players During Angiogenesis Process.
X. Mitochondria and Mitochondrial DNA in Oocytes, Embryos, and Disease
Chair: Richard J. Tasca, Ph.D. (NIH, NICHD, Rockville, Maryland)
- Weiwei Fan, Ph.D. (Salk Institute for Biological Studies, La Jolla, California), Mitchondrial DNA Mutations in Reproductive Medicine.
- Timothy Wai, Ph.D. (University of Cologne, Koln, Germany), Germline Transmission of Mitochondrial DNA in the Mouse.
- Shoukhrat M. Mitalipov, Ph.D. (Oregon National Primate Research Center, Beaverton, Oregon), Nonhuman Primate Model for Mitochondrial Gene Therapies.
XI. Energy Balance and Fertility
Chair: Carol F. Elias, Ph.D. (University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, Texas)
- Judith Y. Altarejos, Ph.D. (Salk Institute, La Jolla, California), Novel Role of the CREB Coactivator CRTC1 in Appetite and Reproductive Control.
- Manuel Tena-Sempere, M.D. (University of Cordoba, Cordoba, Spain), Metabolic Regulation of Reproduction: Roles of the Hypothalamic Kiss1 System.
- Carol F. Elias, Ph.D. (University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, Texas), Hypothalamic Sites of Leptin Action on Reproductive Neuroendocrine Axis.
XII. HIF1 and Hypoxia-Regulated Gene Expression in Reproduction
Chair: Mary Hunzicker-Dunn, Ph.D. (Washington State University, Pullman, Washington)
- Robert D. Koos, Ph.D. (University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland), HIF1: Essential Mediator of Estrogen Action in the Endometrium.
- Elke Winterhager, Ph.D. (Universitatsklinikum Essen, Essen, Germany), Hypoxic Regulation of Different Placental Molecules as an Adaptive Response to the Environment.
- Mary Hunzicker-Dunn, Ph.D. (Washington State University, Pullman, Washington), Role of HIF1 in Follicular Maturation.
XIII. Embryonic Stem Cells & Induced Embryonic Stem Cells from Domesticated Species
Chair: Jorge A. Piedrahita, Ph.D. (North Carolina State University, Raleigh, North Carolina)
- Paul Verma, Ph.D. (Monash Institute of Medical Research, Clayton, Victoria, Australia), Developments in Generating Pluripotent Cell Lines from Cattle.
- Margaret Hough, Ph.D. (University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada), Derivation of Canine Embryonic Stem Cell Lines.
- R. Michael Roberts, Ph.D. (University of Missouri - Columbia, Columbia, Missouri), FGF2- and LIF-Dependent Pluripotent Stem Cells from the Pig.
XIV. Common Steroidogenic Primordia in Gonadal and Adrenal Morphogenesis
Chair: T. Rajendra Kumar, Ph.D. (University of Kansas Medical Center, Kansas City, Kansas)
- Gary Hammer, M.D., Ph.D. (University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan), Adrenocortical Stem and Progenitor Cells: Implications for Adrenal Diseases.
- Ken-ichirou Morohashi, Ph.D. (Kyushu University, Fukuoka, Japan), Development of Fetal Steroidogenic Cells.
- Humphrey H.-C. Yao, Ph.D. (University of Illinois, Urbana, Illinois), Diverse Roles of the Hedgehog Signaling in the Establishment of Steroidogenic Cell Lineages in Fetal Adrenal Glands and Gonads.
XV. Effects of Environmental Contaminants on Female Fertility & Ovarian Function
Chair: Kwan Hee Kim, Ph.D. (Washington State University, Pullman, Washington)
- Retha Newbold, Ph.D. (NIEHS/NIH, Research Triangle Park, North Carolina), Developmental Effects of Environmental Estrogens on Subsequent Fertility and Ovarian Function.
- Brian K. Petroff, Ph.D. (University of Kansas Medical Center, Kansas City, Kansas), Chronic Effects of Dioxins on the Female Reproductive System in Rats.
- Jodi Anne Flaws, Ph.D. (University of Illinois, Urbana, Illinois), Effect of Methoxychlor on the Mammalian Ovary.