Speaker Biographies
Keynote Speakers
Dr. Tom Appleton, MD, PhD
Dr. Tom Appleton is passionate about rheumatology research, communication, and clinical care. He is Division Head of Rheumatology at St. Joseph’s Health Care London and Western University. He founded the Western Ontario Registry for Early Osteoarthritis (WOREO) Knee Study, the Synovial Translational Biology Laboratory at Western, and established single cell RNA sequencing and molecular spatial profiling in the London and Western biomedical research community. As a clinician scientist, his research focuses the of resolution of inflammation in osteoarthritis and other forms of arthritis.
Dr. Nidhi Bhutani, PhD
Dr. Nidhi Bhutani an Associate Professor in the Department of Orthopaedic Surgery at Stanford University, and a member of Stanford Bio-X, the Wu Tsai Human Performance Alliance, and the Maternal & Child Health Research Institute. She studies stem cell reprogramming, cellular differentiation, and the epigenetic mechanisms that drive tissue repair and disease. Her team is uncovering how changes in DNA methylation and demethylation contribute to aging and osteoarthritis, with the goal of developing new strategies for tissue regeneration and precision therapies.
Dr. Matthew Bogyo, PhD
Dr. Matthew Bogyo is a Professor of Pathology and Microbiology and Immunology at Stanford University. He leads a research program applying chemical biology and proteomics to the study of disease mechanisms and drug discovery. He founded the Chemical Proteomics Department at Celera Genomics before joining Stanford in 2003, where he is also a member of the Comprehensive Cancer Center and the Molecular Imaging Program. His research focuses on developing chemical probes to study protease function in cancer, infectious disease, and the immune system.
Dr. Gillian Hawker, MD
Dr. Gillian Hawker is a Professor of Medicine and Rheumatology at the University of Toronto and a Clinician Scientist and Staff Rheumatologist at Women’s College Hospital. She previously served as Chief of Medicine at Women’s College Hospital and as Sir John and Lady Eaton Chair of the Department of Medicine at the University of Toronto. Her research focuses on improving care and outcomes for people living with arthritis, with an emphasis on health services, equity, and access to care.
Invited Talks
Dr. Kelsey Collins, PhD
Dr. Kelsey Collins is an Assistant Professor of Orthopaedic Surgery and Anatomy at the University of California, San Francisco. She leads a research program focused on the role of interorgan crosstalk in musculoskeletal pain. Her lab develops and applies tissue engineering platforms, multi-omic analyses, and stem cell tools to uncover the signaling mechanisms between blood, adipose, and musculoskeletal tissues in the context of osteoarthritis, aging, and obesity.
Dr. Olivier Julien, PhD
Dr. Olivier Julien is an Associate Professor of Biochemistry at the University of Alberta and Associate Director of the Alberta Proteomics and Mass Spectrometry Facility. He leads a research program focused on understanding the roles of proteases in apoptosis, cell differentiation, inflammation, and viral infections. His lab integrates proteomics, mass spectrometry, and cell biology to uncover the molecular mechanisms that regulate these fundamental biological processes.
Dr. Mohit Kapoor, PhD
Dr. Mohit Kapoor is a Full Professor in the Departments of Surgery and Laboratory Medicine and Pathobiology at the University of Toronto and Co-Director of the Schroeder Arthritis Institute at University Health Network. He leads a research program focused on understanding the pathophysiology of osteoarthritis and identifying new therapeutic strategies to prevent cartilage degeneration. His lab combines molecular and cellular biology, animal models, and clinical tissue samples to study disease mechanisms, fibrosis, autophagy, and biomarkers across varying stages of osteoarthritis.
Dr. Roman Krawetz, PhD
Dr. Roman Krawetz is a cell and developmental biologist focused on stem cell biology and regenerative medicine in joint injury and disease. He leads a research program aimed at understanding the role of synovial stem cells in the onset and progression of osteoarthritis. His work combines insights into inflammation and early disease mechanisms with the development of novel diagnostics and therapies, with the goal of improving care and outcomes for patients living with osteoarthritis.
Dr. Sarah Manske, PhD
Dr. Sarah Manske is an Associate Professor in the Department of Radiology at the Cumming School of Medicine. She leads a research program using 3D quantitative imaging, including HR-pQCT, micro-CT, and MRI, to investigate the role of bone in musculoskeletal disease. Her work focuses on understanding how bone contributes to the onset and progression of conditions such as osteoporosis, osteoarthritis, and rheumatoid arthritis, with the goal of improving diagnosis and treatment strategies.
Dr. Holly Sparks, DVM, PhD
Dr. Holly Sparks is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Veterinary Clinical & Diagnostic Sciences at the University of Calgary and holds a Canada Research Chair in Equine Regenerative Medicine. She leads a research program focused on understanding the cellular and molecular mechanisms of tendon development, maintenance, and repair. Her work aims to translate these insights into regenerative medicine approaches that improve outcomes for patients with tendon injuries in both human and veterinary medicine.