Gordon Blunn is a bio-engineer at the Institute of Orthopedics and Musculoskeletal Science at University College London; he is based at the Royal National Orthopedic Hospital. He has been at this Institution for 25 years and during this period of time he has investigated the use of the fixation of implants to the skeleton. He has translated a number of novel treatments and designs into patients, which has enhanced implant fixation. He is currently the president of the British Orthopedic Research Society. Over the last 5 years he has secured in excess of £3.6 million in funding, holds the position of Chief Scientific Officer for Stanmore Implants Worldwide Ltd. and is co-director of the London Implant Retrieval Centre (LIRC). He has extensive research experience in orthopedic medical devices, materials and musculoskeletal tissues. A number of his research projects have been translated into clinical practice. He has worked on the reattachment of tendons to bone and to implant surfaces, the integration of implants with the skeleton, the wear of implant bearing materials and the use of bone graft substitute materials. Recently his research has focused on the design and development of implants, retrieval analysis and reconstruction of bone and joints. He has published over 150 papers in peer-reviewed journals; holds a number of patents on medical devices as well as being a scientific adviser to a number of SMEs.

Orthopaedic medical devices, Materials and Musculoskeletal tissues

Theodore Eliades graduated from the School of Dentistry, University of Athens, Greece, and completed the Orthodontic postgraduate program of the Ohio State University earning a Master’s as well as a doctorate from the University of Athens, School of Medicine, and a PhD from the University of Manchester,UK; he has also obtained certificates in human resources management (Univ. of Athens), leadership management, cultural integration management (NLP), and management (Swiss management center). His research has generated over 170 papers and 35 book chapters, which have received 4700 citations (H index 38). He has edited 9 textbooks published by major houses, some translated into 5 language. An elected Fellow of the Institute of Materials, Minerals and Mining, and the Royal Society of Medicine, Prof. Eliades is the first dentist who was awarded the Fellowship grade of membership from both the Royal Society of Chemistry, and the Institute of Physics. He is affiliated with institutions in the US and Europe (Texas, Marquette, Manchester and Bonn), is currently the editor-in-chief of the J Dent Biomec, Assoc.Editor of the Eur J Orthod, the Am J Orthod Dentofacial Orthop, and Progress Orthod, Editorial Board member in 6 and reviewer in 40 periodicals. He has served as a member of the task Force for harmonization of worldwide postgraduate orthodontic education of the World Federation of Orthodontists and the revised Erasmus guidelines committee for postgraduate orthodontic education in Europe.

Enamel-adhesive interfacial phenomena and alterations during orthodontic treatment (structure, roughness, color, gloss). In vivo-ageing of orthodontic materials by means of surface analysis (Auger and ESCA, EDX and SEM) as well as mechanical properties of used dental and biomedical materials with associated clinical implications in bonding and mechanotherapy. Clinical trials assessing the efficiency of orthodontic materials. Development and testing of new adhesives based on non-Bis-GMA containing monomer systems (degree of conversion, bond strength monomer leaching). Corrosion potential and ionic release of alloys and leaching of polymeric materials in the oral environment. BPA release and estrogenicity of polymers. Mechanics of materials (strength, fatigue, bond strength) and tissues with reference to PDL properties in health, disease and developmental/ageing status.

Andy Lewis completed his degree and PhD at Aston University. He spent his early career with ICI, working in the area of advanced polymer membranes and subsequently with Johnson & Johnson leading projects in absorbent technologies. Andy Lewis is Research & Technology Director for Biocompatibles UK Ltd, a UK-based SME involved in biomaterials development and medical device manufacture (now part of BTG). He specializes in the development of advanced biomedical polymer systems, for instance, to enhance the biocompatibility of implants or to modulate delivery of active agents in the body. These technologies have been applied to novel drug-device combination products for use in interventional therapies in the treatment of cardiovascular disease and cancer. He also coordinates the external research programmes with a number of academic collaborators and is named on over 60 scientific publications and patents in the fields of polymers and biomaterials. He has a BSc in Biochemistry & Chemistry, a PhD in Chemistry and is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Chemistry.

Polymeric Materials, Biomaterials, Biomaterial Engineering, Combination Products, Drug Delivery, Polymers, Embolisation, Biocompatibility, Cancer Therapy, Encapsulation, Polymer Chemistry, Biomimetics, Hydrogel, Polymerization, Biomaterial Science, Micelles

Dr. Fenniri was educated at the University of Louis Pasteur in Strasbourg, France, receiving his undergraduate degree in chemistry and biochemistry (1989, top of his class), and his M.Sc./Ph.D. degrees in supramolecular science and engineering (1990/1994) under the supervision of Professor Jean-Marie Lehn (Nobel Laureate). He then joined the Scripps Research Institute in California, USA, where he carried out his postdoctoral training under the supervision of Professor Richard A. Lerner (President and CEO). In 1997 he moved to Purdue University, where he initiated his independent academic career, and established the Purdue Laboratory for Chemical Nanotechnology (1999). In 2003, He joined the National Research Council and the University of Alberta to build and lead the Supramolecular Nanoscale Assembly program, and contribute to the shaping of the National Institute for Nanotechnology (NINT), its research programs and facilities, and the recruitment of highly qualified personnel. NINT has since grown from 4 principal investigators in 2003 to a vibrant research and technology organization of over 350 researchers in 2013.

In addition, Dr. Fenniri held a full professor position with the Department of Chemistry (since 2003-2013) and adjunct full professor positions with the department of biomedical engineering (since 2010) with the faculty of medicine, and with the department if Chemistry (since 2013) at the University of Alberta. Dr. Fenniri is currently Professor Chemical and Biomedical Engineering at Northeastern University, Boston, MA, USA.

Dr. Fenniri has achieved international recognition as a leader in the areas of self-assembly, supramolecular chemistry, nanomedicine, combinatorial chemistry, and materials sciences. His group works at the forefront of basic and applied nanosciences, in collaboration with various academic institutions, federal laboratories, and with the private sector. Dr. Fenniri’s contributions appeared in over 190 publications, 8 patents, and over 400 contributed national and international conference papers. Dr. Fenniri has also presented his work in over 150 invited distinguished lectures, colloquia and seminars around the globe. His research programs are supported by the Natural Science and Engineering Research Council of Canada, Alberta Advanced Education and Technology, the US National Institutes of Health, the National Research Council of Canada, the University of Alberta, and several private, provincial and federal funding organizations.

Dr. Fenniri is the recipient of several academic and professional honours and awards, including the Xerox UAC Award (2006–2008), the 3M Faculty Award (2000, 2002), the Showalter Trust Fund Award (1999, 2001), the Trask Trust Fund Technology Innovation Award (2000), the Cottrell Teacher Scholar Award (2000–2005), and the US National Science Foundation Career Award (1999–2003). Dr. Fenniri is Member of the Editorial Board of several scientific journals and serves on several national and international scientific boards, panels, and committees.

Dr. Fenniri has been an invited professor at the Université de Strasbourg and the Collège de France (2010), the National University of Taiwan (2007), and the University of Colorado Boulder, USA (2004). He has also been DAAD Visiting Professor at Regensburg University, Germany (2002, 2003).

Nanotechnology for biomedical applications, nanoscale materials for drug delivery, and cell therapeutics and regenerative medicine.

Professor Ramesh K. Agarwal is the William Palm Professor of Engineering and the director of Aerospace Engineering Program and Aerospace Research and Education Center at Washington University in St. Louis from 1994 to 200. He was the Sam Bloomfield Distinguished Professor and Executive Director of the National Institute for Aviation Research at Wichita State University. Dr. Agarwal received Ph.D in Aeronautical Sciences from Stanford University in 1975, M.S. in Aeronautical Engineering from the University of Minnesota in 1969 and B.S. in Mechanical Engineering from Indian Institute of Technology, Kharagpur, India in 1968. Professor Agarwal has worked in Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD), renewable energy systems and nanotechnology. He is the author and coauthor of over 300 publications and serves on the editorial board of fifteen journals. Dr. Agarwal is a Fellow of fifteen societies including American Association for Advancement of Science (AAAS), American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA), American Physical Society (APS), American Society of Mechanical Engineers, Society of Manufacturing Engineers (SME), Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE), American Academy of Mechanics (AAM), and Institute of Physics. Astronautics (AIAA), American Physical Society

Nanomaterials, Carbon Nanostructures, Nanoparticles, Numerical Modeling and Simulation

Guillaume Saint-Pierre is a self-motivated R&D Program and project management professional and a material science group leader at a Madrid based private research center. He has significant years of experience, in related proficiencies and a background in roadmap development, product innovation and lifecycle leadership. He also has strong expertise (market, technical and legislative) in Medical devices (Class IIB, III), In-vitro diagnostic medical devices (IVD) and sensor technology for medical and environmental applications.

Medical devices (electrochemical actuators/diagnostic, drug combined combination products, implantable solution for cellular and acellular therapies), drug delivery device, encapsulation technology and material engineering in a broader definition (functional coatings, high performance fibers, smart packaging, biotransformation, air/water treatment solutions)

Julio San Roman has completed his Doctor in Chemistry (Polymers Science) in 1975 and currently heads the Group of Biomaterials, Instituto de Ciencia y Tecnología de Polímeros, Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Cientificas, CSIC at Madrid, Spain. He is a Full Professor in the Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Cientificas and a Member of the European Society for Biomaterials ESB, since 1987 and of the Council of the Society since 2006. He is the Fellow of the Biomaterials Societies since 2004. He held the president position of Iberian Society for Biomechanics and Biomaterials, Polymer Section of the Spanish Royal Society of Chemistry and European Polymer Federation. He has been a member of the Scientific Committee of ESB meetings in the last 10 years adn the chairman of the European Polymer Congress EPF 2011 organised in Granada, Spain, and chairman of the 2013 congress of the European Society for Biomaterials organised in Madrid, Spain. The Scientific activities are centred in the study and development of polymer systems for biomedical applications, and specifically in Tissue Engineering, Polymer Drugs and Drug Delivery Systems. He has published more than 400 refereed articles in specialised journals of Polymer Science, Biomaterials, and the Biomedical field. He has contributed with more than 40 Chapters in specialised books and is co-editor of two books on biodegradable polymers for biomedical applications and Biomaterials.

Biomaterials, Hydrogels, Biopolymers, Tissue engineering,

Sandeep K. Vashist is the Head of Immunodiagnostics at Hahn-Schickard-Gesellschaft für angewandte Forschung e.V. (HSG-IMIT) and Laboratory for MEMS Applications, Department of Microsystems Engineering (IMTEK) at University of Freiburg, Germany. He was the Bioanalytical Scientist at Bristol-Myers Squibb Company, Dublin, Ireland (2006-2009) and the Team Leader at NUS Nanoscience and Nanotechnology Institute, Singapore (2009-2012) after completing his Ph.D. from Central Scientific Instruments Organisation, India (2006). He pioneered and transferred successfully many technologies to industries and healthcare; filed several patents; and, published extensively (>100 manuscripts) in high IF journals and highly prestigious conferences. Based on his research outputs, he has been constantly awarded by renowned institutions for scientific research excellence, innovation and performance; received the topmost international research fellowships; and, awarded the invited memberships of societies such as RCS. He is the international expert reviewer for ~36 scientific journals (IF b/w 2.5-41) and numerous funding agencies; Executive Editor of J Basic Appl Sci and J Pharma Bioanal Sci; and Editorial Board member of J Nanomed Nanotech. His research interests are in the fields of nanotechnology, point-of-care devices, immunodiagnostics and biosensors.

Development of Nanomaterials/Nanotechnology based Biosensors and Diagnostics; Development of rapid immunodiagnostic kits using lab-on-a-chip platforms; Biomolecular immobilization and surface modification strategies; Signal enhancement using nanomaterials/polymers/design of platforms; Development of cost-effective and simple bioanalytical procedures; Bioanalytical sciences; Diabetic monitoring and screening; Nanomedicine and Nanotoxicity.

Mr. Bastianelli started his career in the Pathology Department of the Erasme University Hospital in Belgium. He joined Procter & Gamble Pharmaceuticals in 1996, where he was involved in the marketing of drugs in the field of bone diseases. In 1999, he became a consultant for McKinsey & Co, where he was involved in strategic and organizational missions for major pharmaceutical as well as biotechnology companies. From 2002 until mid-2006, Mr. Bastianelli worked as VP Corporate Development for ProSkelia, focused on bone diseases and hormone disorders. He was responsible for the management of the R&D portfolio, resources allocation and planning, alliances, collaborations and downstream integration. He was one of the main contributors to the merger with Strakan. Enrico Bastianelli has been CEO of Bone Therapeutics since 2006.

Orthopedic materials, Biomaterials, bone diseases and hormone disorders

Sergey V. Dorozhkin completed his Ph,D in inorganic chemistry and chemical technology in 1992 and post-doctoral fellowship on the surface nucleation, solid/liquid interface and biomineralization during 1996-1997 at Strasbourg University (France) and on calcium phosphate based biomaterials and bioresorbable organic-inorganic composites during 1997-1998 at Nantes University (France). He has also held industrial positions in many companies. He is the author of more than 160 articles on different areas related to biomaterials, bioceramics etc.

Biomaterials, Bioceramics , Mechanical Properties of Biomaterials, Apatite, Calcium Phosphates, Biomineralization, Inorganic Materials and Surface Chemistry, Bone Cements, Fundamentals of Dental Caries, Dental Erosion and Vascular Calcification, Simulated Body Fluid (SBF), Porous Bioresorbable Scaffolds, Industrial Production of Biomaterials and Bioceramics, Organic-Inorganic Composites and Hybrid Biomaterials, Tissue Engineering, Phosphoric Acid and Chemical Engineering.

Esmaiel Jabbari is Professor of Chemical Engineering at University of South Carolina. He is internationally known for his work on synthesis and processing of biomimetic bioinspired materials for drug delivery and tissue engineering applications. He has published extensively in the areas of biomaterials, drug delivery, and tissue engineering. He has edited four books, published one encyclopedia entry, 18 book chapters, over 90 refereed journal papers, over 80 refereed conference proceedings, presented over 30 invited seminars, and more than 200 presentations at National and International conferences.

He was elected to the College of Fellows of the American Institute for Medical and Biological Engineering AIMBE in 2013. He received the Berton Rahn research prize award in Orthopedic Research from the Arbeitsgemeinschaft für Osteosynthesefragen AO Foundation in 2012. In 2008 he received the Stephen B. Milam Research Award from the Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery Foundation for contribution to auto-inductive biomaterials for repair of maxillofacial and cranial tissues. He is the North America Editor of the Journal of Biomaterials and Tissue Engineering and serves on the Editorial Board of International Journal of Biomaterials and International Journal of Biomedical Nanoscience and Nanotechnology. He is a member of the Outstanding College Students of America, the New York Academy of Sciences, Who is Who in Engineering Education, and Who's Who in America. He is also a member of honorary engineering society Tau Beta Pi, Chemistry Society Phi Lambda Upsilon, and Research Society Sigma Xi.

Bioinspired materials, Skeletal tissue engineering, Multi‐scale composite materials, Self-assembled nanogels for growth factor delivery, Drug targeting to cancer stem cells, Stem cell encapsulation and delivery, Model gels to control cell microenvironment

Anand Ramamurthi is an Associate Professor of Molecular Medicine and Biomedical Engineering at the Cleveland Clinic with adjunct appointments at the University of Akron (Integrated Biosciences Program), and Case Western Reserve University (BME). He received his PhD in Chemical Engineering, from Oklahoma State University, Stillwater, OK in 1999 and subsequently was an American Heart Association postdoctoral fellow at the Lerner Research Institute of the Cleveland Clinic (1999-2001), where he developed novel, glycosaminoglycan (GAG)-based biomaterials for biomimetic tissue engineering of aortic heart valve replacements.

Prior to his appointment at the Cleveland Clinic in 2010, Dr. Ramamurthi was a tenured faculty in the Departments of Bioengineering at Clemson University and Regenerative Medicine and Cell Biology the Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston, SC. His research program focuses on enabling biomimetic regeneration and repair of extracellular matrix structures, specifically the poorly regenerated elastic matrix component, both in vitro, and in situ at sites of chronic matrix disruption (e.g., abdominal aortic aneurysms and pelvic organ prolapse). His research projects span cardiovascular tissue engineering, biomimetic vascular matrix assembly, GAG-based biomaterials for vascular endothelialization and matrix regenerative repair, mechanisms of matrix degeneration in abdominal aortic aneurysms (AAAs), directed matrix regenerative therapies for AAAs, vascular nanomedicine, stem cell -based matrix regenerative therapies, in vivo bioreactor systems for vascular tissue engineering.

He is a member of several international professional societies in the cardiovascular sciences, biomaterials, and tissue engineering fields, and is a Professional Member of the American Heart Association Council on Arteriosclerosis, Thrombosis, and Vascular Biology. He serves on several national committees such as that of the North American Vascular Biology Organization (NAVBO), on the editorial broad of several scientific journals in the field of Tissue Engineering, Regenerative Medicine, and Vascular Biomedicine, and actively reviews for the NIH, NSF, AHA, and nearly 30 journals including Tissue Engineering, Biomaterials, and Acta Biomaterialia. He serves on the external advisory board of the NIH-supported Center for Biomedical Research Excellence (COBRE) in Biomaterials for Tissue Regeneration (CBTR) in South Carolina, and on the Inventions Peer Review Committee of Cleveland Clinic Innovations, the commercialization wing of the Cleveland Clinic.

Anand has been an invited presenter at several national conferences and has chaired past conference symposia on the topic of directed elastic matrix regenerative repair. He has 50 peer-reviewed publications to date, numerous abstracts, proceedings, several book chapters, and approved and filed patents. His research has been funded by the NIH, AHA national and affiliate centers, NSF, and industry.

Vascular Tissue Engineering, Cardiovascular degenerative Medicine, Biomimetic Matrix Assembly, Elastin Pathology and Elastic Matrix Regenerative Repair, Therapies for Aortic Aneurysms, Blood-Material Compatibility, Glycosaminoglycan-Based Biomaterials, Stem Cells for Vascular Therapies

Dr. Murugan Ramalingam is Professor at the Centre for Stem Cell Research (a unit of the Institute for Stem Cell Biology and Regenerative Medicine-Bengaluru), Christian Medical College Campus, India. Concurrently he is Adjunct Professor at the Tohoku University, Japan. Prior to joining the CSCR, he was Associate Professor of Biomaterials and Tissue Engineering at the Institut National de la Santé et de la Recherche Médicale, Faculté de Chirurgie Dentaire, Université de Strasbourg, France. He has worked at the WPI Advanced Institute for Materials Research, Japan, as an Assistant Professor. He has also worked at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) and the National Institutes of Health (NIH), under the U.S. National Academies Associateship program. He received his Ph.D. in Biomaterials from the University of Madras. He has also undergone training in Ethical and Policy issues on Stem Cells from Harvard University, USA, and in Operations Management from the University of Illinois-Chicago.

His current research interests are focused on the development of multiphase biomedical materials, through conventional to nanotechnology to biomimetic approaches, microfabrication, cell patterning, stem cell differentiation, tissue engineering and drug delivery.He is the author of over 200 publications, including peer-reviewed journal papers, conference proceedings, book chapters, authored books, edited books, and patents relevant to biomaterials, stem cells, and tissue engineering. His current h-index is 24 with over 4400 citations. He has organized several international conferences and chaired Biomaterials, Nanobiotechnology, Stem Cells and Tissue Engineering sessions. He also serves as a board member of several international scientific and research committees in various public and private bodies and grant reviewer of various international funding agencies.

He serves on the editorial boards of multiple biomaterials and tissue engineering-related journals, including as the Editor-in-Chief of the Journal of Biomaterials and Tissue Engineering, the Journal of Bionanoscience and the American Journal of Stem Cell Research. He is a recipient of several prestigious fellowships and awards, including CSIR Fellowship (India), SMF Fellowship (Singapore), NRC National Academies Fellowship (USA), Nationale Professeur des Universités (France), Fellow of Institute of Nanotechnology (UK) and Fellow of Royal Society of Chemistry (UK).

Stem cell differentiation, Cell patterning, Interface tissue engineering, Biomaterials, Biomolecular delivery.

Min Sheu has received his Ph.D. in Bioengineering from University of Washington at Seattle, WA, USA. Since graduation, he has led several teams in R&D of various companies in the medical device industry, including AST Products, Boston Scientific Corp., Atrium Medical (acquired by Maquet Getinge Group) and Covidien (merged with Metronic). He has skillful experience in the development of medical devices, including drug eluting ureteral stents, drug coated stents, antimicrobial and antithrombogenic dialysis catheters, biocompatible flow diverters and vascular embolization implants. His primary expertise is in the development of Class III biomaterial implants, drug-device combination products and medical coatings, and he has over 12 issued and 16 pending US patents as well as 16 peer-reviewed publications in these areas. Recently, Dr. Sheu founded a new company in Taiwan, InnoCept Biomaterials, Inc., to develop novel biomaterial implants for vascular and cancer therapies. InnoCept was later acquired by Sunmax Biotechnology, Co., Ltd., a collagen-based medical device company in Taiwan. Currently, Dr. Sheu serves as the General Manager of Sunmax Biotechnology.

Biomaterials, medical devices, combination product and drug delivery; Surface coating technologies for medical device, drug delivery and tissue engineering; Wound healing and soft tissue repair; Vascular and tumor embolization

Ipsita Roy is a microbial biotechnologist with special expertise in bacterial-derived biodegradable polymers. She is currently a Reader at the School of Life Sciences, University of Westminster, London, UK. She was awarded the prestigious Inlaks Scholarship and the Overseas Research Students Award to study for her Ph.D. at the University of Cambridge. During her time at Cambridge she was awarded the Churchill College Scholarship, the Lundgren Scholarship, Leche Trust Scholarship and the Cambridge University Philosophical Society Fellowship Award. Her postdoctoral work was at the University of Minnesota, USA, at the Bioprocess Technology Institute, where she worked on fatty acid biosynthesis. She taught at the Indian Institute of Technology, India, for four years as an Assistant Professor. During this time she worked actively on the production of biodegradable polymers from Streptomyces. She has been at the University of Westminster since 2000 and leads the Applied Biotechnology Research Group.

Ipsita Roy’s group is currently focused on the production of novel Polyhydroxyalkanoates, PHAs, a family of biodegradable and biocompatible polymers produced by bacteria under nutrient limiting conditions. Her group has pioneered the production of PHAs from Gram positive bacteria such as Bacillus sp., which lack immunogenic properties and hence are highly suitable for medical applications. These include applications in the area of hard tissue engineering, soft tissue engineering, wound healing and drug delivery. She has published over 100 research papers in her area, chaired and organized sessions and presented her work at numerous international conferences. She is an editor of the Journal of Chemical Technology and Biotechnology (JCTB) and has edited an ‘In Focus’ Journal on Biodegradable Polymers, a special issue of the JCTB.

Currently she is editing another In Focus issue on ‘Drug Delivery’. She regularly reviews manuscripts for many journals including Biomaterials, Bio-macromolecules, Journal of the Royal Society Interface, Journal of Chemical Technology and Biotechnology, Journal of Applied Physics, Material Science and Engineering, Applied Microbiology and Biotechnology, Tissue Engineering, Antonie van Leeuwenhoek, Biotechnology Journal and Reactive and Functional Polymers. She is on the BBSRC, NSERC, Canada, FWF, Austria and NSFC, China, grant-reviewing panels and is the Vice Chair, Biotechnology section, SCI, London, UK. She has been appointed expert in the field of Materials Science and Engineering by the Italian Agency for the Evaluation of University and Research (ANVUR).She has also been appointed by the European Research Council Executive Agency, "ERCEA" to the panel involved in the peer review evaluation of proposals.

Tissue engineering, Drug delivery, Molecular Enzymology, Quorum sensing, Elicitation, Bacterial metabolism, Fungal interactions, Carbohydrate biochemistry and Nanobiotechnology