WEBINAR SERIES—Building Public Support for Biomedical Research and the Critical Role of Animal Studies

March 10, 2022

Watch the on-demand webinar

This virtual event will feature presentations by prominent scientists highlighting the importance of animal research, from basic to preclinical and translational science that ultimately provides the foundation for the development of new therapeutic approaches. Speakers will discuss the wider implications of this work, including the role of animals and non-animal technologies in advancing these studies. The keynote talk, presented by Edison Liu, MD, PhD, of The Jackson Laboratory in Bar Harbor, Maine, will be followed by sessions on public policies affecting research, informing and educating the public about the importance of science and the role of animal studies, and the advancement of animal welfare and new technologies to refine, replace or reduce animal use in research. This program will teach scientists how to build public support for their work in light of the increasing political and societal pressure against animal research.

Moderator

Dennis Brown, PhD, FAPS, is APS’ chief science officer and was the Society’s 90th president. In the role of chief science officer, he serves as APS’ primary scientific spokesperson and advocate, and oversees the Science Policy Department. Brown is also a professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School in Boston and director of the Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) Program in Membrane Biology. He is the associate director of the MGH Center for Systems Biology and director of the MGH Office for Research Career Development.

Speakers

Edison Liu is a professor and president emeritus at The Jackson Laboratory in Bar Harbor, Maine. He is also director of the Jackson Laboratory’s National Cancer Institute (NCI)-designated Cancer Center. Liu was the founding executive director of the Genome Institute of Singapore. Previous positions include scientific director of the NCI's Division of Clinical Sciences and professor of Medicine, Biochemistry, Genetics, and Epidemiology at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Liu has published over 340 scholarly papers about the functional genomics of human breast cancer and translational cancer medicine and has received numerous awards for his work.

Eryn Dixon, PhD, is a postdoctoral research scholar in the Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis’ Division of Nephrology. Dixon received her PhD from the University of Maryland, Baltimore, where she studied in vitro model systems for autosomal dominant polycystic kidney disease. Her research focuses on elucidating sex differences in the transition from acute kidney injury to chronic kidney disease. Dixon is a trainee member of the American Physiological Society (APS) Animal Care & Experimentation Committee and sits on the Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology's Animals in Research and Education Subcommittee.

Jim Newman is the director of strategic communications for Americans for Medical Progress (AMP) in Washington D.C., where he leads AMP’s media and communications programs. He is also the editor of a monthly newsletter focused on outreach and a weekly subscription newsletter about research communications and security. Newman’s previous positions include director of external communications for The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center and the director of media relations for Oregon Health & Science University (OHSU) and OHSU’s Oregon National Primate Research Center, where he managed communications to counter claims and actions by several animal rights groups. Other experience includes account supervisor at KGBTexas Communications and work as a television news producer.

Stefano Gaburro, PhD, scientific director at Tecniplast in Buguggiate, Italy, has a strong academic background in preclinical research, mainly in neuroscience. He helps researchers refine their scientific approaches to improve methodologies and their use of lab products. Gaburro has also served on the APS’ Neuroscience and Physiology in Industry committees.