Scientific Sessions
(In Progress—information is subject to change)
- Keynote Address
- President’s Symposium
- Plenary Lecture
- Minority Affairs Symposium
- Ovarian Workshop Module
- Dynamics of Testicular Function Module
- Reproductive Tract Biology and Pregnancy Outcomes Module
- Environmental Influences on Reproduction Module
- Reproductive Neuroendocrinology Module
- Assisted Reproduction: Current Frontiers and Emerging Technologies
Keynote Address
- Anthony Atala, M.D. (Wake Forest Institute for Regenerative Medicine, Winston-Salem, North Carolina, USA). Renegerative Medicine: New Approaches to Healthcare.
President's Symposium
- Patrick Lonergan, Ph.D. (University of Dublin, Dublin, Ireland). Current Challenges and Translational Research Associated with Dairy Cattle Infertility.
- W. Hamish Wallace, M.D. (Royal Hospital for Sick Children, Edinburgh, Scotland, Great Britain). Fertility Preservation for Young People with Cancer: What Are the Remaining Challenges?
Plenary Lecture
Anita Payne New Perspectives in Reproductive Biology Lecture
- Lori T. Raetzman, Ph.D. (University of Illinois, Urbana, Illinois, USA). Development of the Pituitary, Gatekeeper of Gonadotropins.
Minority Affairs Symposium
- Sarah K. England, Ph.D. (Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, Missouri, USA). The Timing of Labor; a Scientist's Perspective.
- Devon Payne-Sturges, Dr.P.H. (Environmental Protection Agency, Washington, DC, USA). Humanizing Science: Making Research Relevant for Achieving Heath Equity.
Ovarian Workshop Module
The Oocyte
- Trudee Fair, Ph.D. (University College Dublin, Dublin, Ireland). Oocyte Development in Cattle: Factors Affecting Competence.
- Daniel Dumesic, M.D. (University of California, Los Angeles, California, USA). The PCOS Oocyte and its Microenvironment.
- Andrew Pask, Ph.D.(University of Connecticut, Storrs, Connecticut, USA). A Role for Estrogen in Somatic Cell Fate of the Mammalian Gonad.
Debate: Can We and Should We Be Freezing Oocytes From Humans?
- Nicole Noyes, M.D. (NYU Fertility Center, New York, New York, USA). Title to be announced.
- David F. Albertini, Ph.D. (University of Kansas Medical Center, Kansas City, Kansas, USA). What We Know and Don't Know about Human Oocyte Cryopreservation.
Ovarian Cancer
- Denise C. Connolly, Ph.D. (Fox Chase Cancer Center, Philadelphia, Pennsyvlania, USA). Development of Mouse Models to Study Ovarian Cancer Biology and Response Therapy.
- Anne-Marie Mes-Masson, Ph.D. (University of Montreal, Montreal, Canada). Biomarkers in Epithelial Ovarian Cancer—or Should We Go with the Flow?
- David Huntsman, M.D. (University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada). From Subtype-specific Biologic Insights to Subtype-specific Ovarian Cancer Control.
Debate: Cellular Origins of Ovarian Cancer
- Louis Dubeau, M.D., Ph.D. (Keck Hospital Of USC, Los Angeles, California, USA). An Origin from the Fallopian Tube Cannot Account for all Tumors Historically Regarded as of Primary Ovarian Origin.
- Patrica A. Shaw, M.D. (Toronto General Hospital, Toronto, Ontario, Canada). Title to be announced.
Ovarian Workshop Keynote
- Marco Conti, M.D. (University of California, San Francisco, California, USA). Oocyte Maternal mRNA Translation and Developmental Competence: A Genome-wide Analysis.
Ovulation and PCOS
- Thomas E. Curry, Ph.D. (University of Kentucky Medical Center, Lexington, Kentucky, USA). The Matrix Metalloproteinase System and Ovulation: Expression, Regulation, and Function in the Human and the Rat.
- Darryl Russell, Ph.D. (University of Adelaide, Adelaide, Australia). Staying Flexible: Tissue Remodelling Required for Folliculogenesis and Ovulation.
- Elisabet Stener-Victorin, Ph.D. (University of Gothenburg, Gothenburg, Sweden). Androgens and Development of PCOS—Effects of Non-pharmacological Treatment.
Ovarian Toxicology
- Aileen Keating, Ph.D. (Iowa State University, Ames, Iowa, USA). Ovarian Metabolism of Xenobiotics.
- Ronit Machtinger, Ph.D. (Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Boston, Massachusetts, USA). Bisphenol A (BPA) Exposure and Human Oocyte Meiotic Maturation.
- Samantha F. Butts, M.D. (University of Pennsyvlania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA). Smoking and Genetic Variation in Metabolism of Environmental Chemicals: A Model for Environmental Reproductive Toxicology.
The Cutting Edge—Follicle Reserve
- Blanche Capel, Ph.D. (Duke University, Durham, North Carolina, USA). Temporal Differences in Granulosa Cell Specification in the Ovary Reflect Distinct Follicle Fates.
- Stephen Franks, M.D., Ph.D. (Imperial College London, London, England, United Kingdom). Aberrant Follicle Development in Polycystic Ovary Syndrome: Implications for Fertility and Reproductive Lifespan.
Dynamics of Testicular Function Module
Homeostasis
- Gerard Karsenty, M.D., Ph.D. (Columbia University Medical Center, New York, New York, USA). Endocrine Regulation of Male Fertility by the Skeleton.
- Marvin L. Meistrich, Ph.D. (University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, Texas, USA). Recovery of Spermatogenesis after Irradiation.
- Jeffrey Lysiak, Ph.D. (University of Virginia School of Medicine, Charlottesville, Virginia, USA). Impaired Clearance of Apoptotic Germ Cells Leads to Disruption of the Blood Testis Barrier and Spermatogenesis.
Testis Immune Function
- Mark Hedger, Ph.D. (Monash Institute of Medical Research, Clayton, Australia). Inflammatory and Immunoregulatory Signaling Pathways in Male Reproductive Function.
- Jannette M. Dufour, Ph.D. (Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center, Lubbock, Texas, USA). Immune-privileged Sertoli Cells: Induction of Regulatory T cells and Therapeutic Potential.
The Spermatogonial Stem Cell Niche
- Luiz R. de Franca, Ph.D. (Federal University of Minas Gerais, Minas Gerais, Brazil). Spermatogonial Stem Cell Niche in the Collared Peccary and other Non-model Vertebrates.
- Margaret T. Fuller, Ph.D. (Stanford University, Stanford, California). Regulation of Self-renewal and Differentiation of Spermtogonial Stem Cells by the Local Testis Microenvironment.
The Spermatogonial Stem Cell Niche: State-of-the-Art Talk
- Antoine H.F.M. Peters, Ph.D. (Friedrich Miescher Institute for Biomedical Research, Basel, Switzerland). Molecular Determinants of Histone Retention in Mouse and Human Spermatozoa.
Epigenetic Regulation, Sperm Quality, Trans-generational Effects
- Richard M. Sharpe, Ph.D. (University of Edinburgh, Ediburgh, Scotland, United Kingdom). Susceptibility of the Fetal Testis to Disruption by Environmental Factors: Mechanisms and Species Differences.
- Michelle T. Lane, Ph.D. (University of Adelaide, Adelaide, Australia). You Are What Your Father Ate—Paternal Programming of Reproductive and Metabolic Health in Offspring.
Meiosis
- Mary Ann Handel, Ph.D. (The Jackson Laboratory, Bar Harbor, Maine, USA). Mutations Affecting Male Meiosis.
- James Turner, M.D., Ph.D.(MRC National Institute for Medical Research, London, England, United Kingdom). Meiotic Silencing and Mammalian Infertility.
RNA Biology and Spermatogenesis I: Young Investigator Seminar
- P. Jeremy Wang, M.D., Ph.D. (University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA). Biogenesis and Function of Pachytene piRNAs in Mice.
RNA Biology and Spermatogenesis II: Cutting Edge
- Wei Yan, Ph.D. (University of Nevada School of Medicine, Reno, Nevada, USA). Occupy the Cell: We, Noncoding RNAs, Are the 99 Percent!
- Leendert Looijenga, Ph.D. (Erasmus Medical Center, Rotterdam, Netherlands). Clinical Impact of the Environmental Origin of Germ Cell Cancer.
Reproductive Tract Biology and Pregnancy Outcomes Module
Recent Concepts of Periimplantation Biology
- Hyunjung Jade Lim, Ph.D. (Konkuk University, Seoul, Korea). Regulation of Autophagic Response in the Mouse Blastocyst.
- D. Randall Armant, Ph.D (Wayne State University, Detroit, Michigan, USA). Serotonin Signaling in Pre- and Peri-implanation Development Revealed in a Knockout Model.
State-of-the-Art Talk
- Jan J. Brosens, Ph.D. (Imperial College, London, England, United Kingdom). Decidualization as a Biosensor of Embryo Viability.
Decidualization
- Hugh S. Taylor, M.D. (Yale School of Medicine, New Haven, Connecticut, USA). Endometrial Stem Cells.
- Gunter P. Wagner, Ph.D. (Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut, USA). Origin of the Endometrial Gene Regulatory Network of Placental Mammals.
Regulation of Immune Responses in Reproductive Tissues
- Jan Ernerudh, M.D., Ph.D. (Linköping University, Linköping, Sweden), Tolerance Mechanisms at the Fetal Maternal Interface: The Role of Decidual Macrophages.
- Joy L. Pate, Ph.D. (Pennsylvania State University, State College, Pennyslvania, USA). Immune Cells in the Ruminant Corpus Luteum: Friends or Foes?
State-of-the-Art Talk
- Sarah Robertson, Ph.D. (University of Adelaide, Adelaide, Australia). Novel Models for Establishing the Role of Immune Cells in Reproductive Processes.
Immune Responses to Gestation Signals
- Gil G. Mor, M.D., Ph.D. (Yale School of Medicine, New Haven, Connecticut, USA). Toll-like Receptors and Inflammation During Pregnancy.
- Thomas R. Hansen, Ph.D. (Colorado State University, Fort Collins, USA). Maternal/Fetal Infection with Virus Activates Interferon and Attenuates Chemokine Responses (Abstract 104).
Translational Models for Endometriosis Research
Joint Minisymposium by SSR and SGI
- Ov D. Slayden, Ph.D. (Oregon National Primate Research Center, Beaverton, Oregon, USA). Nonhuman Primate Models for Translational Research in Endometriosis.
- Kathy L. Timms, Ph.D. (University of Missouri, Columbia, Missouri, USA). Rodent Models for Translational Research in Endometriosis.
- Ayman Al-Hendy, M.D., Ph.D. (Meharry Medical College, Nashville, Tennessee, USA). Uterine Fibroids and Endometrial Dysfunctions.
Transgenerational Effects of Toxicants
- Kaylon L. Bruner-Tran, Ph.D. (Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Nashville, Tennessee, USA). Early Life Toxicant Exposure and Transgenerational Reproductive Consequences.
Endometrial Cancer
- Jae-Wook Jeong, Ph.D. (Michigan State University, Grand Rapids, Michigan, USA). Understanding the Progression of Endometrial Cancer Using Animal Models.
- Jose M. Teixeira, Ph.D. (Dana-Farber/Harvard Cancer Center, Boston, Massachusetts, USA). Contribution of the Endometrial Microenvironment to Carcinogenesis.
Environmental Influences on Reproduction
Impact of Maternal Diet and Stress on Offspring
- Deborah J. Clegg, Ph.D. (University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, Texas, USA). It’s ALL in the Hypothalamus! Sex, Reproduction, and Obesity.
- Antonio E. Frias, M.D. (Oregon Health & Science University, Portland, Oregon, USA). Maternal High Fat Diet Decreases Placental Blood Flow and Increases the Frequency of Stillbirth in a Non-human Primate Model of Excess Nutrition.
Young Investigator Seminar: Impact of Maternal Diet on Offspring
- Carey Satterfield, Ph.D. (Texas A&M University, College Station, Texas, USA). Differential Fetal Responses to Maternal Nutrient Restriction: A Population Variance Approach.
Environmental Influences on Reproduction: Diet, Stress, Toxicants
- Emily S. Jungheim, M.D. (Washington University in St. Louis School of Medicine, St. Louis, Missouri, USA). Impact of Obesity on Oocyte and Embryo Outcome.
Assisted Reproduction: Current Frontiers and Emerging Technologies
Impact of Maternal Factors on Embryonic Development
- Aleksander Rajkovic, M.D., Ph.D. (Magee-Womens Research Institute and Foundation, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA). Molecular Mechanisms and Consequences of Premature Ovarian Aging.
- Justin St. John, Ph.D. (Monash University, Clayton, Australia). The Control of Mitochondrial DNA Replication in Gametes, Embryos and Early Development.
Assessment of Oocyte and Embryo Quality
- Dagan Wells, Ph.D. (University of Oxford, Oxford, England, United Kingdom). Title to be announced.
- Claude Robert, Ph.D. (Universite Laval, Sainte-Foy, Quebec, Canada) Transcriptome Analyses of In Vitro-Produced Embryos Suggest Developmental Competence and Embryo Quality Are Two Distinct Concepts.
ART—Is It Worth the Risk?
- Carmen Sapienza, Ph.D. (Temple University School of Medicine, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA). DNA Methylation and Gene Expression Differences Associated with Assisted Reproduction.
- Richard T. Scott, M.D. (Robert Wood Johnson Medical School, Morristown, New Jersey, USA). Comprehensive Chromosome Screening of Human Embryos for ART Outcomes.
Reproductive Neuroendocrinology
Hypothalamic Control of Reproduction
- Tony M. Plant, Ph.D. (University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA). The Neurobiology of GnRH Pulsatility: A Mode of Hypothalamic Activity Essential for Folliculogenesis, Ovulation and Spermatogenesis.
- Vincent Prevot, Ph.D. (INSERM, Lille, France). Semaphorin 3A/Neuropilin-1 Signaling Mediates GnRH System Development and Plasticity.
Young Investigator Seminar: The Foxy Pituitary: Emerging Roles for Forkhead Transcription Factors in Gonadotrope Development and Function
- Varykina G. Thackray, Ph.D. (University of California, San Diego, California, USA). FoxO Regulation of Gonadotropin Hormone Synthesis in Pituitary Gonadotropes.
- Buffy S. Ellsworth, Ph.D. (Southern Illinois University, Carbondale, Illinois, USA). The Forkhead Transcription Factor, Foxp3, is Required for Normal Pituitary Function.
Knocking Out Genes in Neuroendocrine Tissues
- Andrew Wolfe, Ph.D. (Johns Hopkins Hospital, Baltimore, Maryland, USA). Models for the Study of Metabolic and Gonadal Regulation of the Pituitary Gonadotroph.
- Sally Camper, Ph.D. (University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA). Genetics of Pituitary Insufficiency and Stem Cell Regulation: A Paradigm Shift.
ASRM Distinguished Research Scientist
- Joe Leigh Simpson, M.D. (March of Dimes Foundation, White Plains, NY, USA). Genetic Causes of Premature Ovarian Failure (POF).
2012 SRF New Investigator
- Petros Marangos, Ph.D. (University of Ioaninna, Ioannina, Greece). The DNA Damage Response in Mammalian Oocytes.
SSR New Investigator
- Jon M. Oatley, Ph.D. (Washington State University, Pullman, Washington, USA). Title to be announced.