ACADEMIC KEYNOTES
(More speakers to be announced soon)
Nazif Alic
Professor of Ageing and Gene Regulation, UCL
Prof Nazif Alic's work aims to understand how fine-tuning gene expression can optimise animal physiology for healthy ageing. He uses the fruit fly as the model organism and his research interests span several components of the transcriptional machinery: from the basic apparatus to specialised transcription factors.
Marc P. Bernegger
Founding Partner, Maximon
Longevity Investors
Marc P. Bernegger is a serial-tech entrepreneur who has been following developments in the field of longevity since 2009.
He is a founding partner of Maximon, a company builder focused on delivering healthy aging solutions today. Since its launch in 2021, Maximon has already established five companies, each with a science-backed, measurable impact on human aging. Among these ventures is the AYUN clinic in Zurich, which aims to revolutionize the longevity clinic market by offering proactive, personalized health care using cutting-edge diagnostics and treatments.
Besides co-founding the longevity company-builder Maximon and Longevity Investors, he launched the fund AltAlpha Digital and is among others in the board of CfC St. Moritz and GenTwo.
Marc started his entrepreneurial journey by founding the party platform usgang.ch right after college (acquired by Axel Springer Media). He is also a co-founder of amiando, a ticketing platform, which was purchased by Xing and named “Global Technology Pioneer” by the World Economic Forum (WEF).
Marc holds a master's degree in law from the University of Zurich and is an alumni of the Singularity University.
Evelyne Bischof
Chief Physician, Renji Hospital Jiaotong University
Dr. Evelyne Bischof is a specialist in Internal Medicine, Artificial Intelligence (AI). Her research focus is oncology and longevity medicine, Artificial Intelligence (AI) and digital health, precision medicine, biogerontology, and geronto-oncology. Dr. Bischof is also the founding Vice-President of the Healthy Longevity Medicine Society. She has extensive experience in scientific research and clinical practice at the following well-known and highly reputable institutions: University Hospital of Basel, Fudan Cancer Institute and Hospital; Zhongshan Hospital, Renji Hospital and Shanghai East Hospital.
Sebastian A Brunemeier
General Partner, Healthspan Capital
Sebastian A. Brunemeier is a biotech VC and company builder focused on longevity & regenerative medicine. He is Co-Founder and General Partner of Healthspan Capital, and CEO and Founder of ImmuneAGE Bio (stealth), focused on immune system rejuvenation. Over the last 5 years, he has co-founded 4 longevity biotech (“LongBio”) companies with a total equity value of >$600M. He was Co-Founder and Chief Investment Officer at Cambrian Biopharma, Co-Founder and COO of Samsara Therapeutics, and Principal at Apollo Health Ventures (the first and largest aging-focused venture capital fund in the world with $200M AUM). Altogether, these organizations have raised ±$400M in the last 4 years. He was a Fulbright Fellow on the biology of aging, a Skaggs-Oxford Scholar at the Scripps Research Institute, and a SENS Foundation Scholar at the Buck Institute for Research on Aging. His education includes dropping out of DPhil (PhD) training in biochemistry of aging at the University of Oxford as a Clarendon Scholar and he holds a Master’s in Life Science Business Management and Molecular Neuroscience from the University of Amsterdam as an Amsterdam Excellence Scholar. He served as trustee of the British Society for Research on Aging, a mentor at The New York Academy of Sciences, and as an advisor or board member to: VitaDAO/Molecule.to, Equator Therapeutics, Revivo Therapeutics, and McKinsey & Company.
Liangkai Chen
Associate Professor, PhD Supervisor, Huazhong University of Science and Technology
Dr. Chen's primary research focuses on nutrition and healthy aging. His work integrates epidemiological studies and model animals to investigate the relationships between dietary nutrition, lifestyle, metabolism, and age-related diseases. As the principal investigator, he has led more than ten national-level projects, including grants from the National Natural Science Foundation of China and the National Key Research and Development Program of the Ministry of Science and Technology (as sub-project leader). He has published over 40 SCI-indexed papers in prominent journals such as JAMA Neurology, British Journal of Sports Medicine, Diabetes Care, Journal of Sport and Health Science, Age and Ageing, Journal of Cachexia, Sarcopenia and Muscle, BMC Medicine, Stroke, and etc., with H-index 27. Dr. Chen has also contributed to the development of a nutritional biomarker detection method, which received group standard approval, and he holds three authorized patents. His research achievements have been recognized with the Third Prize of the Hubei Provincial Science and Technology Progress Award. Dr. Chen currently serves as a member of the Committee on Elderly Nutrition of the Chinese Nutrition Society, the Committee on Nutritional Epidemiology of the Chinese Nutrition Society, and the Committee on Obesity Prevention of the Chinese Association for Health Education. He is also a council member of both the Hubei Nutrition Society and the Hubei Association for Food Science and Technology.
Burcu Demiray
Group Leader, Department of Psychology & Healthy Longevity Center, University of Zurich
Dr. Demiray is a lifespan developmental psychologist by training and a research group leader at the University of Zurich, who aims to understand and promote healthy adult development and aging. She develops and uses real-life methodologies (e.g., smartphone sensing, experience sampling) to examine adults’ social and cognitive activities in the real world. She uses an interdisciplinary approach in data analytics (e.g., machine learning) and in her applied research in order to develop innovative tools and solutions for older adults (e.g., e-learning platform). She is an established scientist with entrepreneurial experience, who translates scientific findings into innovation that makes a social impact in our increasingly aging and digitized world.
Barry Halliwell
Distinguished Professor, Department of Biochemistry, Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore
Chairman, Biomedical Advisory Council, Agency for Science, Technology and Research
Professor Halliwell graduated from Oxford University with BA (first class honours) and D.Phil degrees and holds a Doctor of Science (DSc) degree from the University of London. He was a faculty member with King’s College University of London (1974-2000) and held a prestigious Lister Institute Research fellowship. He was a Visiting Research Professor at the University of California Davis and Berkeley (1995-1999). He now holds several key positions in Singapore.
He is recognized for his pioneering work on the role of free radicals and antioxidants in biology, being one of the world’s most highly-cited scientists (Hirsch-Index of 171) and was chosen as a Citation Laureate (2021) for pioneering research in free-radical chemistry including the role of free radicals and antioxidants in human disease. The distinction is awarded by Clarivate to researchers whose work is deemed to be of “Nobel Class” as they are among the most influential, even transformative, in their fields. He was one of 16 scientists (three only in Chemistry) in the 2021 Hall of Citation Laureates.
His research focuses on the role of free radicals and antioxidants in human disease, particularly Alzheimer's and other neurodegenerative diseases, identifying novel approaches to delay or prevent such diseases.
Rujun He
Co-founding Partner & Vice President of Raw Materials, Jiangsu Jin San Biotechnology Co., Ltd.
With 15 years in product promotion, he has amassed extensive user data and market expertise from TOP companies like Midea, Yanghe, Smith, and Alibaba.
Specializing in user-centric product development, He has pioneered the use of L-ergothioneine in global products, notably creating an groundbreaking eye wash that is gentle, anti-inflammatory, and restorative. This unique product offers relief to those with dry eye syndrome, cataracts, and frequent screen users.
Looking ahead, He aims to expand the application of L-ergothioneine across various industries, bringing its benefits to households worldwide and enhancing beauty and health for all.
Yunlong Hou
General Manager, Shanghai Yiling Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd.
Dr. Yunlong Hou is the General Manager of Shanghai Yiling Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd., and a Doctor of Pharmacology as well as a Senior Engineer. He leads the Anti-Aging Center of the National Key Laboratory for Innovation and Translation of Luo's Pathology Theory and serves as the Director of the Pharmacology Department at the Hebei Province Institute of Integrated Traditional Chinese and Western Medicine Research for New Drug Evaluation. In the academic community, Dr. Hou holds multiple positions, including being a doctoral supervisor at Hebei University of Chinese Medicine and Nankai University, as well as a master's supervisor at Hebei Medical University and Jinan University. Additionally, he is the Secretary-General of the Anti-Aging Professional Committee of the World Federation of Chinese Medicine Societies, a member of the Chinese Medicine Toxicology and Safety Research Branch of the China Association of Chinese Medicine, and an executive director of the Chinese Medicine Pharmacology Branch of the China Information Association of Traditional Chinese Medicine.
Brian Kennedy
Co-Director, Centre for Healthy Longevity, National University Health System
Dr. Brian Kennedy is internationally recognized for his research in the basic biology of aging and as a visionary committed to translating research discoveries into new ways of detecting, delaying, preventing, and treating human aging and associated diseases. He is a Distinguished Professor in the Department of Biochemistry and Physiology at the Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine at the National University of Singapore. He also serves as the Programme Director for the Healthy Longevity Translational Research Programme and holds the role of Co-Director at the Centre for Healthy Longevity in the National University Health System.
Landon Lee
Director, Center for Continuous Care, SuperiorMed & Perennial Hospitals (Chengdu)
Dr. Landon Lee served as the director of the Continuous Care Center at West China Hospital, which is regarded as the second- best hospital in China. In 2019, he transitioned to leading the CCC unit at SuperiorMed & Perennial Hospitals, where this unit plays a pivotal role in the hospital's operational philosophy.
Terytty Yang Li
PI, Institute of Metabolism and Integrative Biology (IMIB), Fudan University
Dr. Terytty Yang Li acquired his PhD degree at the State Key Laboratory of Cellular Stress Biology, Xiamen University in 2015. Supervised by Prof. Sheng-Cai Lin, he revealed the regulatory mechanism of autophagy induction by the GSK3-TIP60-ULK1 signaling cascade (Science, 2012; Physiology, 2013), and a novel role of ULK1/2, the autophagy-initiating kinases, in the reprogramming of glucose metabolism during nutritional stresses (Molecular Cell, 2016). After PhD graduation, he continued working as postdoc in Prof. Sheng-Cai Lin’s lab and elucidated the physiological functions of acetyltransferase TIP60 in lipid synthesis (Nature Commun, 2018) and ULK1/2 in liver injury (Hepatology, 2018).
In 2017, he joined Prof. Johan Auwerx’s lab in École Polytechnique Fédérale Lausanne (EPFL), where he demonstrated that transcriptional coactivator CBP/p300 is an evolutionarily conserved node that promotes longevity in response to mitochondrial stress (Nature Aging, 2021), the essential role of v-ATPase/mTORC1-mediated ATFS-1 translation/ATF4 phosphorylation in mitochondrial UPR activation (J Cell Biol, 2022; Cell Discovery, 2023), and discovered a lysosomal surveillance response (LySR) that reduces proteotoxicity and extends organismal healthspan (BioRxiv, 2022b). In 2022, he was appointed as an independent PI at Institute of Metabolism and Integrative Biology (IMIB), Fudan University.
Guo-Dong Lu
Professor, School of Public Health, Fudan University
HoD, Department of Occupational Health and Toxicology, Fudan University
Professor Guo-Dong Lu is a faculty member at the School of Public Health, Fudan University, where he serves as the Head of the Department of Occupational Medicine and Toxicology. He is also an adjunct mentor for doctoral and master's students at the School of Public Health, Guangxi Medical University.
Prof. Lu holds Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees from Shanghai Medical College of Fudan University and a Ph.D. from the National University of Singapore (NUS). Following his studies, he completed a postdoctoral fellowship at NUS and later became a professor at Guangxi Medical University, as well as a Senior Visiting Scientist at the Cancer Science Institute of NUS.
He is currently the Deputy Director of the Specialty Committee of Toxicology Education of the Chinese Society of Toxicology and a Board Member of the Chinese Environmental Mutagen Society. Prof. Lu is the principal investigator of several key research projects, including those funded by the National Natural Science Foundation of China and the Natural Science Foundation of Guangxi Province.
His research focuses on the toxicology of aging in model organisms and the roles of glucose and lipid metabolism and autophagy in hepatocellular carcinoma. He has published articles in journals such as Gastroenterology, Hepatology, and Autophagy, often as the first or corresponding author.
Yu-Xuan Lyu (Lu)
Research Assistant Professor, Institute of Advanced Biotechnology, Southern University of Science and Technology, China
Guest Researcher, Max Planck Institute for Biology of Ageing, Germany
Dual Fellow, European EMBO and Marie Curie
European Future Research Leader Award, EU
German Talent, German Foreign Office
Dr. Yu-Xuan Lyu (Lu) previously worked in Germany with internationally renowned expert Professor Linda Partridge, founding director of the Max Planck Institute for Biology of Ageing and Vice-President of the British Royal Society. Over the past five years, he has published articles in journals such as Nature, Nature Aging (2), eLife, and PNAS. His "Rapamycin Anti-Ageing Trilogy" research was recognised as a breakthrough and selected as one of the few Research highlights in the Max Planck Society in 2022.
He serves as a reviewer for several internationally renowned journals, including eLife, EMBO reports, and Science Advances. Moreover, he led a team that won the Longhack Longevity Startup Competition in 2022. Subsequently, he co-founded and developed the #FlyScreen startup project, focusing on discovering new compounds to cure age-related diseases. These projects are now officially financially supported by the Max!mize incubator at Max Planck Innovation.
He formally returned to China at the beginning of 2024 to join the Southern University of Science and Technology in Shenzhen.
Jim Mellon
Chairman, Burnbrae Group
Deputy Chairman & Co-Founder, Juvenescence
Jim Mellon is a British entrepreneur and philanthropist with interests in a number of industries. Through his private investment company, The Burnbrae Group, he has substantial real estate investments as well as major shareholdings in private and public companies in sectors such as banking, commodities, leisure and healthcare. He is a recognised thought leader in the field of ageing research and longevity. His groundwork into the field is summarised in the book Juvenescence. Jim and his partners have set up Juvenescence, a company developing therapies for ageing and the diseases of ageing.
Jim sits on the Board of Trustees of the Buck Institute for Research on Aging, and the American Federation for Aging Research. He is also a trustee of Lifeboat Foundation, is an Honorary Fellow of Oriel College at the University of Oxford and sits on the Advisory Board of the Milken Institute's Centre for the Future of Aging. Jim has been honoured by the AFAR with the George E. and Marie J. Doty Award for his support of ageing research.
Richard A. Miller
Professor of Pathology, University of Michigan
Director, Paul Glenn Center for Biology of Aging
Richard A. Miller, M.D., Ph.D., is a Professor of Pathology at the University of Michigan, and the Director of Michigan's Paul F. Glenn Center for Biology of Aging Research. He received the BA degree in 1971 from Haverford College, and MD and PhD degrees from Yale University in 1976-1977. After postdoctoral studies at Harvard and Sloan-Kettering, he moved to Boston University in 1982 and then to his current position at Michigan in 1990.
Dr. Miller has served in a variety of editorial and advisory positions on behalf of the American Federation for Aging Research and the National Institute on Aging, and served as one of the Editors-in-Chief of Aging Cell. He is the recipient of the Nathan Shock Award, the AlliedSignal Award, the Irving Wright Award, an award from the Glenn Foundation, and the Kleemeier Award for aging research, and was a Senior Scholar of the Ellison Medical Foundation.
He is a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, and a Member of the Association of American Physicians. At Michigan, he directs the Geriatrics Center's Biogerontology program, and the Paul F. Glenn Center for Aging Research.
His research program includes ongoing studies of the mechanisms that link stress, nutrients, and hormones to delayed aging in mice, and works to develop new approaches to slow aging and disease through drugs, early life dietary restriction, and targeted mutations. He also studies the ways in which cells from long-lived birds, rodents, and primates may differ from those of short-lived species.
Phil Newman
Founder & CEO, Longevity.Technology
Phil Newman is Founder and CEO of www.Longevity.Technology, the leading media and consumer brand supporting the longevity megatrend.
In his career he has held multiple C-level management positions; applying his marketing and business development expertise into: longevity, IoT, bionics, medical devices, biopharma, 3D manufacturing, smartgrid and sustainability.
In 2018 he saw an opportunity in the emerging longevity field to create a media platform that addressed science, business and investment activity. Launched in 2019, www.longevity.technology rapidly became the leading news service with unparalleled domain authority enabling the company to expand its reach into investment, education and ecommerce.
James Peyer
CEO, Cambrian Bio
Dr. James Peyer is the Chief Executive Officer and Founder of Cambrian Bio. Fascinated with the biology of aging since he was a teenager, he has spent his life pursuing his mission to develop therapeutics to treat, and ultimately prevent, some of today’s most debilitating chronic diseases. James was previously Founder and Managing Partner at Apollo Ventures, the first global longevity-focused venture capital firm, investing across the US and Europe. He earned his PhD in stem cell biology at University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center as a National Science Foundation Fellow and received his B.A. with special honors from the University of Chicago.
Bruno Ribeiro Do Couto
Head, Brain Health Optimization Units, SHA Wellness Clinics
Professor, Department of Human Anatomy and Psychobiology, University of Murcia, Spain
Professor Bruno Ribeiro Do Couto is an expert in cognitive performance and Neuropsychology. He has a European degree of Doctor in Psychology from the University of Valencia. Since he enrolled in the Clinical Psychology program at the Higher Institute of Health Sciences in Porto, Portugal, he has dedicated himself to studying the functioning of the brain. After the doctorate he completed his training with a post-doctorate at the Institute of Molecular Biology of the University of Porto and at the Príncipe Felipe Research Center, in Valencia.
Ribeiro is a professor at the University of Murcia, in the Department of Human Anatomy and Psychobiology, and teaches classes in several international master's and postgraduate programs. He has done research stays at various prestigious universities, including the University of Bordeaux, Kings College London, the University of California, Harvard University and Illinois University. He has published more than 35 high-impact scientific articles.
Currently, Professor Ribeiro is investigating how a healthy brain works to ensure that this organ is in its optimal shape with the help of new brain neurostimulation technologies.
He is in charge of the state-of-the-art Brain Health Optimization Units at SHA Wellness Clinic, both in Spain and in the new headquarters in Mexico.
Vincenzo Sorrentino
Assistant Professor, National University of Singapore
Vincenzo Sorrentino is an Italian-born scientist in the fields of aging, mitochondrial biology and neuromuscular degeneration. He obtained his PhD Cum Laude at the University of Amsterdam, in the lab of Prof. Noam Zelcer, on LDL-cholesterol regulation by the ubiquitin-proteasome system, with publications including in European Heart Journal and Circulation Research. Subsequently, he moved to Lausanne, Switzerland, for his postdoctoral research in Prof. Johan Auwerx's lab at the EPFL. His work there focused on the understanding of mitochondria and NAD+ metabolism in neurodegeneration and muscle aging, with his research discoveries on Alzheimer's disease and muscle aging published in Nature (2017) and Cell Reports (2021). He then obtained a position as Group Leader at the Nestlé Institute of Health Sciences in Lausanne, to lead research focused on integrating basic discoveries on nutraceuticals and their effects on mitochondria and protein homeostasis with their translation into novel clinical applications. Since December 2022, he is an Assistant Professor at the NUS with the Dept. of Biochemistry and the Healthy Longevity TRP, Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, to continue to develop his research on how metabolism, nutrition and proteostasis are linked and impact on health and aging.
Jiucun Wang
Director, Department of Anthropology and Human Genetics, School of Life Sciences, Fudan University
Co-Director, Joint Laboratory of Skin Phenome
Jiucun Wang is a Professor and Doctoral Supervisor at the School of Life Sciences and the Human Phenome Institute at Fudan University. She holds the positions of Director of the Department of Anthropology and Human Genetics and Deputy Director of the Institute of Rheumatology, Immunology, and Allergy at Fudan University, and Co-Director of the Joint Laboratory of Skin Phenome. She is also the Co-Director of the Innovative Unit for Skin and Dermatological Population Genetics, and works on New Technologies for Prevention and Control at the Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences. Additionally, she serves as the President of the Shanghai Anthropological Society and is a board member of the Genetics Society of China. Professor Wang co-founded the International Network of Scleroderma Clinical Care and Research (InSCAR) and serves as the Secretary General and Vice President of the Fudan-Taizhou Institute of Health Sciences.
Her research primarily focuses on the genetic mechanisms of rheumatic diseases, including scleroderma, as well as phenomic studies related to skin conditions and high-altitude adaptation. She also leads several key national research projects, including the National Key Research and Development Program (as Principal Investigator), major projects funded by the National Natural Science Foundation, projects from the Innovative Unit of the Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, and sub-projects under the Shanghai Municipal Science and Technology Major Project. She has published over 200 research papers in peer-reviewed journals.
Zhao Wang
Senior Professor, School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Tsinghua University
Prof. Zhao Wang is currently a Senior Professor in the School of Pharmaceutical Sciences at Tsinghua University, a member of the Scientific Committee of Aging and Anti-aging of the Chinese Gerontological Society, a Standing Member of Chinese Association of Traditional Chinese Medicine Branch, and a reviewer of the National Natural Science Foundation of China. Besides, he serves as a member of editorial board of Journal of Pharmacological Sciences and Food Science and Human Wellness. He has worked on studying of aging and aging related diseases as well as their biological mechanisms, with a focus on neuropharmacology and metabolic pharmacology, especially the pharmacology related with brain aging, bone aging and degenerative diseases such as AD and osteoporosis. Prof. Wang has published over 200 research articles, reviews and book chapters, and made many academic presentations in related conferences.
Min Wei
Former Research Associate Professor, Davis School of Gerontology, University of Southern California
Scientific Director, L-Nutra, Inc
Dr. Wei has a broad background in biochemistry, cell biology, molecular biology, specific training in biogerontology as well as experience in clinical research. Dr. Wei’s research focuses on the characterization of mechanisms underlying cellular protection and lifespan regulation, the role of proto-oncogenes in promoting age-dependent genomic instability, and the translation of biogerontological findings into clinical applications. As a co-investigator or PI on several university- and NIH-funded grants, Dr. wei had studied the role of inflammation and calorie restriction in attenuating age-related brain pathologies in rodent models as well as in elucidating signaling pathways underlying the controls of cellular protection and life span in model organisms. In addition, he had been leading preclinical research of applying dietary interventions in alleviating the side-effects and enhancing the efficacy of chemo-therapy in cancer treatment. He had worked on 2 cancer-related clinical trials as co-investigator and am the PI of a phase II clinical trial on using dietary intervention to augment immune response in the elderly.
Qiuliyang Yu
Principal Investigator & Doctoral Supervisor, Shenzhen Institute of Advanced Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences
National High-Level Oversea Young Talent
Shenzhen National Talent
In 2012, Qiuliyang Yu obtained a Bachelor’s degree in Chemistry from Wuhan University and was awarded the Excellence Scholarship by the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology the same year to study abroad. In 2014, he received a Master’s degree in Chemistry from École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL) in Switzerland. In 2018, he obtained a Ph.D. from École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne and was awarded the Excellent Doctoral Dissertation Prize. The following year, he completed his postdoctoral work at the Max Planck Institute for Medical Research. From 2019 to 2020, he served as the Research Director at the Swiss pharmaceutical company Nuvamid SA. In November 2020, he was approved for the National High-Level Overseas Talent-Youth Project and joined the Shenzhen Institute of Advanced Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, as a Researcher and Ph.D. supervisor. He was also recognized as a National Leading Talent in Shenzhen.
His main research field is chemical biology, aiming to develop novel biomolecular detection technologies and devices through rational protein design and high-throughput screening to address practical issues in clinical and drug development. The NAD+ sensing protein he led in the development has been translated in drug screening for degenerative diseases, as well as in animal and clinical experiments, enabling rapid, portable, and accurate detection of NAD+. This technology is an important enabling science for personalized supplementation of NAD+ precursors. He has published papers as the first author or corresponding author in journals such as Science, Nature Metabolism, Angew. Chem., and Aging Cell, and has applied for more than ten patents both domestically and internationally.
Hongbing Zhang
Tenured Professor, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences & Peking Union Medical College
Distinguished Professor, China Medical Board
Dr. Hongbing Zhang is a distinguished scientist with a notable academic and research career. He earned the Outstanding Dissertation Award from the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania and completed his postdoctoral training at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and Harvard Medical School, where he also served as a lecturer. Currently, he is a tenured professor at the Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences & Peking Union Medical College, a Distinguished Professor of the China Medical Board, a recipient of the National Science Fund for Distinguished Young Scholars, and a member of the State Key Laboratory of Common Mechanisms for Major Diseases. From 2014 to 2023, he has been recognized as one of China's Highly Cited Researchers and is currently ranked among the World's Top 2% Scientists.
His research primarily focuses on the dysregulation of the mTOR signaling pathway and its role in the onset, diagnosis, and treatment of diseases such as cancer. His work encompasses a wide range of conditions from rare diseases, such as hereditary breast cancer and tuberous sclerosis complex, to common cancers like liver, pancreatic, and lung cancer. By simulating human gene mutations in animal models and constructing disease models, Dr. Zhang explores the mechanisms underlying tumor development and other diseases, aiming to identify effective therapeutic strategies. His research efforts have led to the advancement of clinical trials and provided a foundation for the translation of basic medical research into clinical practice, promoting precision medicine. Notably, his work has made significant strides in making tuberous sclerosis complex and similar conditions preventable and treatable, thus alleviating the lack of medical care and treatments for some patients.
Guangqian Zhou
Professor & Doctoral Supervisor, School of Medicine, Shenzhen University
Guangqian Zhou is a Professor in medicinal stem cells and a supervisor of PhD students at School of Medicine, Shenzhen University. Prof. Zhou has extensive experience in stem cell anti-aging and regenerative medicine, and serves as a founder of a national high-tech enterprise. Prof. Zhou put great effort in promoting the translation and industrialization of advanced therapeutics and medicinal products (ATMP) in the field of longevity medicine, and he is a believer and practitioner of "intellectual longevity." Prof. Zhou serves as Director of the Anti-Aging and Regenerative Medicine Center at Shenzhen University, Director of the Key Laboratory of Anti-Aging and Regenerative Medicine in Shenzhen, Joint Leader of the Shenzhen Cytological Quality Testing and Evaluation Public Service Platform, Vice Chairman of the Shenzhen Cell Therapy Technology Association. He is a Committee Member of the International Society for Cell Therapy (ISCT), Member of the International Society for Stem Cell Research (ISSCR), Executive Committee Member of the Aging and Anti-Aging Research Branch of the China Geriatrics Society, Member of the Stem Cell Branch of the Chinese Society for Cell Biology, and Vice President of the Shenzhen Cell Therapy Association.
Fangfang Zhu
Tenure-track Associate Professor, School of Biomedical Engineering, Shanghai Jiao Tong University
Founder, HemaCell Therapeutics/Xue Ji Bio
Fangfang Zhu is a tenure-track associate professor at the School of Biomedical Engineering, Shanghai Jiao Tong University. Her research areas include stem cell biology and cancer immunology. She earned her PhD in Cell Biology from Peking University and completed her postdoctoral training at Stanford University under the mentorship of Professor Irving Weissman, the "Father of Stem Cells" and Director of the Stanford Institute for Stem Cell Biology and Regenerative Medicine. Dr. Zhu has published dozens of articles in academic journals such as Cell Stem Cell, Nature Communications, PNAS, Nucleic Acids Research, and Signal Transduction and Targeted Therapy, with over 2400 citations. After returning to China, she founded Xueji Biotech in 2021, the third company worldwide and the first in China dedicated to in vitro platelet regeneration from stem cells.
BIOHACKING KEYNOTES
Boyang
Founder, Immortal Dragons
Boyang is the founding partner at Immortal Dragons (https://id.life), a purpose-driven longevity fund. He is also senior venture fellow at Healthspan Capital, one of the most active longevity fund. Boyang has been guest speaker at longevity conferences (https://www.timepielongevityforum.com/, https://www.edgecity.live/lanna) and podcasts (https://sv101.fireside.fm/149). He was one of the first 300 recipients of Minicircle's Gene Therapy.
Boyang previously founded P12 (https://p12.network/), a profitable gaming infrastructure company in Southeast Asia.
Boyang received Computer Science degree from National University of Singapore and Yale University.
Christopher Chappell
Owner, Resurgence Wellness
Clinician
Consultant
Dr. Christopher Chappell is the owner of Resurgence Wellness, a leading regenerative medical center in Arlington, Texas, known for its innovative anti-aging treatments and state-of-the-art technology. The center has received significant attention for conducting the world's first multi-generational plasma exchange involving tech entrepreneur Bryan Johnson, marking a milestone in anti-aging medical practices.
Additionally, Dr. Chappell has applied his expertise in business consulting to assist over 90 medical enterprises in launching, scaling, or preparing for sale. His "Growth Biz In A Box" system has been instrumental in enhancing the operations and financial success of these businesses, providing specialized strategies tailored to the needs of healthcare professionals in a fast-evolving industry.
Brian M. Delaney
President, Age Reversal Network
Brian M. Delaney has helped found and has run a number of research organizations focused on healthy longevity, including the Calorie Restriction Society International and Vitality in Aging (VIA) Research Group. He is a co-founder of the venture capital company Emergency Longevity Ventures, and is on the Industry Advisory Board of Life Extension Advocacy Foundation. He sits on the board of several longevity-focused groups including Mind First Foundation, and is clinical trials coordinator for RaDVaC (Rapid Deployment Vaccine Collaborative), which designed an open-source nasal SARS-CoV-2 vaccine in early 2020. He has published a book and numerous articles about healthy longevity.
His current work is focused on brain health, particularly the unique health challenges faced by carriers of the ε4 allele of APOE.
David Ishee
Head, Research and Development, Open Discovery Institute
David Ishee is a pioneering biohacker and geneticist, known for his innovative work in the field of genetic engineering. With over a decade of experience, David has been at the forefront of biohacking, exploring the boundaries of biotechnology to create novel organisms and solutions. He is particularly renowned for his efforts in developing affordable, open-source genetic modification techniques that empower individuals and small labs to participate in cutting-edge science.
David’s work includes significant advancements in animal genetic engineering, where he focuses on creating ethical and practical applications that challenge conventional approaches. He is a strong advocate for democratizing science, believing that access to genetic modification should not be limited to large corporations or governments.
In addition to his hands-on work in the lab, David is an influential voice in the biohacking community. He has been featured in prominent documentaries, including Unnatural Selection on Netflix and Citizen Bio on Showtime, and continues to push the boundaries of what is possible in genetic engineering.
Bryan Johnson
Founder & CEO, Blueprint
In 2013, Bryan sold his company Braintree Venmo to PayPal for $800 million, and subsequently founded the "Blueprint Project," aiming to utilize various scientific technologies and data-driven approaches, to establish an iterative health system to slow down the aging process and reverse age-related damage. To achieve this, he and his team have extensively reviewed nearly all anti-aging research, identifying and precisely measuring over 400 biological markers. He has thoroughly quantified over 80 organs throughout his body to understand their physiological age and functional levels. In just seven months, he achieved a significant milestone by reducing his biological age by 5.1 years, including lowering his heart age to 37, skin age to 28, and lung age to an impressive 18.
Bryan is a pioneer in experimenting with cutting-edge therapies, with some of his most well-known initiatives including the world's first multigenerational plasma exchange with his son and father, and a gene therapy project conducted on a mysterious Caribbean island. He openly shares his entire protocols and data for public use, and even directly states in videos that the gene therapy project has not received FDA approval. Willing to take risks, invest resources, and test on himself as a "human guinea pig," Bryan constantly pushes the boundaries of human understanding and possibilities in the field of anti-aging.
Adeel Khan
Founder & CEO, Eterna Health
Co-founder & CMO, Minicircle
Dr. Adeel Khan is a globally recognized leader in the field of regenerative medicine, specializing in the clinical application of cell and gene therapies combined with tissue engineering. His groundbreaking work has positioned him at the forefront of translating advanced scientific discoveries into practical, life-changing medical treatments. With a focus on enhancing tissue repair and regeneration, Dr. Khan's innovative approaches leverage the potential of stem cells and genetic modifications to treat a variety of complex conditions.
Dr. Khan's expertise is not limited to theoretical research; he is deeply involved in clinical practice, where he has successfully applied these cutting-edge therapies to improve patient outcomes. His contributions to regenerative medicine extend beyond the clinic, as he is a sought-after speaker and educator, sharing his knowledge and insights with peers and students worldwide. Through his pioneering work, Dr. Khan continues to push the boundaries of what is possible in medicine, aiming to provide more effective and personalized treatments for patients globally.
Stanislav Skakun
Co-founder & CEO, Biodata
Stanislav Skakun is the CEO and founder of Biodata, a platform specializing in medical and biological data storage and bioinformatics. Simultaneously, he is a self-quantification enthusiast. Since 2014, Skakun has been conducting self-measurement experiments, assessing 300-400 biochemical parameters in his body each month. Consequently, this experiment has collected data from over 15,000 medical measurements, making it one of the largest experiments of its kind. Skakun believes that the key to success lies in foundational health—sufficient nutrition, balanced hormones, and a healthy nervous system.