Andreas Möller, Professor, Director, JC STEM Lab of Personalized Cancer Medicine, Li Ka Shing Institute of Health Sciences, Chinese University of Hong Kong - Conference Chairperson

Andreas Möller Biographical Sketch

Professor Andreas Möller is a trained biochemist and cancer biologist, with >20 years’ experience in cancer research. He is Professor in the Faculty of Medicine at the Chinese University of Hong Kong, supported by the prestigious Global STEM Professor fellowship. In addition, he is the Director of the Jockey Club Laboratory of Precision Cancer Medicine at the Li Ka Shing Institute of Health Sciences. Previously, between 2012 and 2023, he led the Tumour Microenvironment Laboratory at the QIMRB Medical Research Institute, Brisbane, Australia. Professor Möller has a strong background in cancer cell biology, extracellular vesicle (EV) biology, hypoxia research, cancer metastasis and cancer immunology. He is Member of the Board of Directors of the International Society of Extracellular Vesicles since 2022, and since 2024 elected Executive Chair for Meetings and Programs as well as one of the founders and Executive Board Member of the Asia Pacific Societies of Extracellular Vesicles.

Christopher P. Locher, Founder and CEO, Versatope Therapeutics, Inc.

Christopher P. Locher Biographical Sketch

Christopher P. Locher, PhD is the CEO and a co-founder of Versatope Therapeutics, a clinical-stage Massachusetts-based company currently focused on the development of immunotherapeutics using nano-vesicles. He previously led drug discovery projects at Vertex Pharmaceuticals in Boston, inflammatory diseases at Opsona Therapeutics in Ireland and malaria and alphaviruses vaccines at Maxygen in California. He completed postdoctoral training at the University of California, San Francisco, was a Fulbright Hays Research Fellow at the Institute of Tropical Medicine in Antwerp, Belgium and received his PhD in Tropical Medicine and BA in Biological Sciences from the University of Hawai`i.

Juntaro Matsuzaki, Professor,
Division of Interdisciplinary Genetics and Nanomedicine, Research Center for Drug Discovery, Keio University Faculty of Pharmacy

Juntaro Matsuzaki Biographical Sketch

Prof. Juntaro Matsuzaki is a Board-Certified Gastroenterologist. He earned his MD and PhD from Keio University School of Medicine in 2005 and 2013, respectively. In 2015, he joined the Japanese multicenter national project at the National Cancer Center Research Institute (the Ochiya Lab), focusing on comprehensive profiling of circulating microRNAs across 13 types of solid cancers. His pivotal contributions included identifying serum microRNA biomarkers for early-stage cancer detection using advanced bioinformatics. In 2019, he furthered his research career by joining the McManus Lab at UCSF. There, he played a role in developing in vivo models to investigate mechanisms of intercellular RNA delivery. In 2021, he joined the Keio University Faculty of Pharmacy as a PI, where he leads numerous multicenter collaborative projects to uncover the functional potential of extracellular RNAs. In 2025, he was appointed Chair of the Program in Pharmaceutical Sciences at the Keio University Graduate School of Pharmaceutical Sciences. He also serves as a Board Director of the Japanese Society for Extracellular Vesicles (JSEV) and a Councilor of the Japanese Cancer Association.

Nao Nishida-Aoki, Associate Professor, Global Center for Science and Engineering, Faculty of Science and Engineering, Waseda University

Nao Nishida-Aoki Biographical Sketch

Nao Nishida-Aoki is an Associate Professor at the Global Center for Science and Engineering, Faculty of Science and Engineering, Waseda University, Japan. Her research focuses on extracellular vesicle (EV)-mediated communication between cancer and host cells within physiological tumor microenvironments. She received her Ph.D. from Kyoto University in 2014, studying transcriptional regulation in stress-tolerant yeast. Then she joined National Cancer Center Research Institute (Tokyo, Japan) as a postdoctoral fellow, demonstrating the therapeutic potential of targeting cancer-derived EVs in breast cancer metastasis. At Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center (Seattle, WA, USA), she explored molecular mechanisms of cancer-host cell interactions in a physiological tissue context, utilizing organotypic tumor tissue slices and in vitro tumor-associated macrophage polarization model. Her current work integrates organotypic tissue models, live imaging, and spatial analysis to understand how cancer EVs shape metastatic microenvironments. She has served as a committee member of the Japanese Society for Extracellular Vesicles since 2022.

Palsamy Periyasamy, Associate Professor, University of Nebraska Medical Center

Palsamy Periyasamy Biographical Sketch

Dr. Palsamy Periyasamy is an Associate Professor in the Department of Pharmacology and Experimental Neuroscience at the University of Nebraska Medical Center in Omaha, Nebraska. He earned his Ph.D. in Biochemistry from the University of Madras, India. Dr. Periyasamy’s research focuses on the cellular, molecular, and epigenetic mechanisms underlying HIV-associated neuroinflammation and the effects of substance use on central nervous system dysfunction. His laboratory investigates how HIV proteins, antiretroviral therapy, and drugs of abuse alter astrocyte and microglial function, promoter DNA methylation, non-coding RNA expression, inflammasome signaling, autophagy, lysosomal homeostasis, extracellular vesicle communication, and regulated cell death pathways. Dr. Periyasamy has led federally funded research examining glial responses in NeuroHIV, with particular emphasis on pyroptosis, ferroptosis, PANoptosis, and extracellular vesicle-mediated intercellular communication. His work has contributed to understanding how disease-associated molecular cargo is transferred between cells within the brain and how these processes may promote persistent neuroinflammation and neurodegeneration.

He has authored more than 75 peer-reviewed publications in journals including Autophagy, Journal of Neuroscience, Redox Biology, and Journal of Extracellular Vesicles, along with several book chapters. His research has been supported by multiple NIH grants, as well as collaborative projects addressing NeuroHIV and substance use disorders. Dr. Periyasamy also contributes to graduate education, scientific mentoring, interdisciplinary neuroscience research, NIH peer review, and academic editing. His contributions have received recognition from professional societies and international research-ranking initiatives. His long-term goal is to identify molecular targets and therapeutic strategies that can reduce neuroinflammation, neurodegeneration, and neurological impairment in people living with HIV.

Shannon Callen, Research Coordinator, University of Nebraska Medical Center

Shannon Callen Biographical Sketch

Research Coordinator at the University of Nebraska Medical Center (UNMC), where he supports preclinical neuroscience research using non-human primate and rodent models. His interests include microglial biology, neuroinflammation, neuroplasticity, neuroHIV, drugs of abuse, and computational approaches to studying the brain.

Shilpa Buch, Professor and Senior Executive Vice Chair of Research, University of Nebraska Medical Center

Shilpa Buch Biographical Sketch

I am currently a Professor and Executive Vice Chair for Research, and Director of the Nebraska Center for Substance Abuse Research at the University of Nebraska Medical Center (UNMC). I received my PhD in Microbiology in 1982 from Maharaja Sayajirao University in Baroda, India, and subsequently moved to Canada for postdoctoral training.

I began my independent research career as an Assistant Professor at the Hospital for Sick Children in Toronto. I later joined the University of Kansas, where I established a research program focused on understanding how addictive drugs interact with HIV-1 to exacerbate neurological complications. After rising through the academic ranks at Kansas, I was recruited in 2007 to the University of Nebraska in Omaha as a Full Professor.

My laboratory employs a comprehensive, multipronged research strategy utilizing complementary model systems that range from in vitro cell cultures to rodent models and the more translationally relevant non-human primate (macaque) model of SIV pathogenesis. In recent years, my research has expanded to investigate the role of exosomes as intercellular communicators that transport key signaling mediators, including small non-coding RNAs and microRNAs, to regulate gene expression and cellular crosstalk across distant target cells.

I lead a highly collaborative and nationally and internationally engaged research program and have authored over 260 peer-reviewed publications. I have maintained continuous NIH funding throughout my career and continue to serve on NIH study sections. My work has been recognized by several national and international scientific societies. I am particularly honored to have received the Wybran Award (2012) and the Distinguished Service Awards (2013 and 2023). Additional recognitions include the UNMC Scientist Laureate Award (2016), the Kansas City Scientist Award, and the Women in Neuroscience Award from the International Society of Neurovirology (2016).

Mentorship has been a central pillar of my career. I played a leadership role in the Women’s Mentoring Program at UNMC (2015-2017) and have been deeply committed to fostering the development of trainees and junior faculty. I have served as Secretary of the Society on NeuroImmune Pharmacology, organized and chaired multiple scientific symposia, and been invited to speak at numerous national and international conferences. Currently, I am serving as a President of American Society for Intercellular Communication (ASIC). To further strengthen my leadership skills, I completed the Executive Leadership in Academic Medicine (ELAM) Program, which supports the advancement of women leaders in academic medicine nationwide.

Sven Kreutel, CEO, Particle Metrix, Inc.

Sven Kreutel Biographical Sketch

Sven Kreutel studied biology at the University of Hohenheim in Stuttgart, Germany. After his graduation in biology, he received his PhD in microbiology and protein biochemistry at the University of Hohenheim under Prof. Dr. Andreas Kuhn and Dr. Dorothee Kiefer working on the light sensing and signal transduction in photosynthetic bacteria. Since then he worked in different sales and sales manager positions within the life science industry from clinical research over biology to nanoparticle sciences. In 2021 he was appointed as CEO of the American subsidiary of Particle Metrix.

Takahiro Ochiya, Distinguished Professor, Tokyo Medical University

Takahiro Ochiya Biographical Sketch

Dr. Takahiro Ochiya was a Chief of Division of Molecular and Cellular Medicine at the National Cancer Center Research Institute, Tokyo since 2011 and he is currently appointed as professor of Tokyo Medical University (since 2018). After he got Ph.D. in 1988 in Osaka University and then went to do a post-doc at La Jolla Cancer Research (The SF Burnham Institute for Medical Research), CA, USA. Dr. Ochiya’s lab focuses the development of novel animal models, methods, and strategies to study cancer development and metastasis. Especially, current focuses are siRNA- and microRNA-based diagnosis and therapy of cancer. He is also one of the top scientist in the study of extracellular vesicles (EV). Dr. Ochiya is awarded as web of science top 1% highly cited researchers (HCR) 2019, 2020, 2021, and 2022 and carries President of Japanese Society of Extracellular Vesicles (JSEV) since 2014.