Current Research Day
            Event Information
      
      
        September 26, 2025
Gatton Student Center
160 Avenue of Champions
Lexington, KY 40508
Event Schedule
Abstract Book
  
	        
            Science As Art
      	
			
                          Event Speakers
Gill Award for Outstanding Contributions to Cardiovascular Research
Joseph Hill, MD, PhD
Professor
UT Southwestern Medical School 
Featured Speaker
Claire Pomeroy, MD, MBA
President
Lasker Foundation
Alumni Speaker
Frank Davis, MD
Assistant Professor
University of Michigan
Trainee Opportunities
      
            Rapid-Fire Presentations
      
    
    Selected abstracts (3-5), submitted by staff and trainees, will be presented in five-minute oral presentations followed by Q&A from a faculty panel. The panel will award $500 to the best presentation based on quality of the science and effective communication.
Selected from abstracts submitted by August 29.
        
            Rapid-Fire Presentations
      
      
      
    Selected abstracts (3-5), submitted by staff and trainees, will be presented in five-minute oral presentations followed by Q&A from a faculty panel. The panel will award $500 to the best presentation based on quality of the science and effective communication.
Selected from abstracts submitted by August 29.
      
            Trainee Presentations
      
    
    Selected abstracts (2), submitted by trainees, will be presented in 10-minute oral presentations followed by Q&A from attendees.
Selected from abstracts submitted by August 29.
        
            Trainee Presentations
      
      
      
    Selected abstracts (2), submitted by trainees, will be presented in 10-minute oral presentations followed by Q&A from attendees.
Selected from abstracts submitted by August 29.
      
            90-Second Poster Pitches
      
    
    Staff and trainees have the opportunity to market their science and poster in 90-second advertisements.
All abstracts are eligible. Prior registration required.
        
            90-Second Poster Pitches
      
      
      
    Staff and trainees have the opportunity to market their science and poster in 90-second advertisements.
All abstracts are eligible. Prior registration required.
      
            Poster Presentations
      
    
    Staff and trainees will present their work in a judged poster session. Cash prizes are awarded for the best presentations by staff, postdocs, graduate students, and undergraduates.
Posters are judged in 10-minute timed sessions. Presenters should budget five minutes to present their poster with five minutes for the judge's questions. All attendees are assigned a poster to judge, so presenters should be prepared to present their work succinctly and to a broad audience. After the judged sessions, presenters will remain at their posters for the general poster session.
Poster size is recommended at 36in x 48in landscape format.
All abstracts are eligible. Prior registration is required.
        
            Poster Presentations
      
      
      
    Staff and trainees will present their work in a judged poster session. Cash prizes are awarded for the best presentations by staff, postdocs, graduate students, and undergraduates.
Posters are judged in 10-minute timed sessions. Presenters should budget five minutes to present their poster with five minutes for the judge's questions. All attendees are assigned a poster to judge, so presenters should be prepared to present their work succinctly and to a broad audience. After the judged sessions, presenters will remain at their posters for the general poster session.
Poster size is recommended at 36in x 48in landscape format.
All abstracts are eligible. Prior registration is required.
      
            Abstract Requirements
      
    
    Abstracts should begin with a title followed by authors and their affiliations. The presenting author should be listed first. A succinct description of the research project should follow, concluding with an acknowledgment of the project's funding source. The entire abstract must be in at least 11-point font and fit on one PDF page.
        
            Abstract Requirements
      
      
      
    Abstracts should begin with a title followed by authors and their affiliations. The presenting author should be listed first. A succinct description of the research project should follow, concluding with an acknowledgment of the project's funding source. The entire abstract must be in at least 11-point font and fit on one PDF page.
      
            2025 Winners
      
    
    Undergraduate Poster Award (1st Place): Valerie Guzman
Stewart Whitman Award: Sohei Ito
Outstanding Post Doc (2nd Place) Award: Shayan Mohammadmoradi
Deneys Van der Westhuyzen Award: Victoria Alvord
Outstanding Graduate Student (2nd Place): Clairity Voy
Outstanding Graduate Student (3rd Place): Jimmy Xue
Outstanding Staff: Elizabeth Gordon
Rapid Fire Poster Presentation: Alex Pettey
Outstanding Medical Student: Garrett Anspach
        
            2025 Winners
      
      
      
    Undergraduate Poster Award (1st Place): Valerie Guzman
Stewart Whitman Award: Sohei Ito
Outstanding Post Doc (2nd Place) Award: Shayan Mohammadmoradi
Deneys Van der Westhuyzen Award: Victoria Alvord
Outstanding Graduate Student (2nd Place): Clairity Voy
Outstanding Graduate Student (3rd Place): Jimmy Xue
Outstanding Staff: Elizabeth Gordon
Rapid Fire Poster Presentation: Alex Pettey
Outstanding Medical Student: Garrett Anspach
Gill Award for Early Contributions to Cardiovascular Research
Amy Siebert-McKenzie, PhD
Assistant Professor
Oakland University
Khalid El Saafien, PhD
Assistant Professor
LSU Health Science Center, Shreveport
Masataka Nishiga, MD, PhD
Instructor
Stanford Cardiovascular Institute
Mengmeng Huang, PhD
Postdoctoral Research Fellow
Harvard Medical School 
  
	        
            Aortic Symposium 2025
      	
			
                          
            				  Event Sponsors