Keynote Speakers 

Professor David Harrison
Division of Cardiology, Emory University, Atlanta, Georgia, USA
RD Wright Lecturer 

David Harrison is the Bernard Marcus Professor of Medicine at Emory University. Dr Harrison is also the Director of Cardiology at Emory. His career has been devoted to basic research related to vascular function, the practice of cardiology and the education of young physicians. His work currently focuses on Hypertension, Inflammation and Adaptive Immunity. Dr. Harrison has been an Established Investigator of the American Heart Association and has served on numerous committees for the AHA and editorial boards of multiple journals, including Circulation, Circulation Research, Atherosclerosis Thrombosis and Vascular Biology, the Journal of Clinical Investigation and Hypertension. He has given numerous invited and named lectures related to his research, including, Robert M. Berne Distinguished Lecture to the American Physiology Society and the Sir George Pickering Lecture to British Hypertension Society Annual Scientific Meeting. In 2004, Dr. Harrison received the Novartis Award from the American Heart Association Council on High Blood Pressure, which is the highest award given for hypertension research.

 

Professor David Celermajer
Department of Cardiology, Royal Prince Alfred Hospital, Sydney, Australia
Austin Doyle Lecturer

  David Celermajer is the Scandrett Professor of Cardiology and Medicine, Central Clinical School and Heart Research Institute. His work encompasses basic, clinical and public health research. His interests lie in the area of early detection and prevention of heart disease. He has won numerous awards and prizes for ongoing contributions in his field including the Commonwealth Health Minister’s Award for Excellence in Health and Medical Research, in 2002 “for outstanding lifetime achievement in health research”. In 2006, Professor Celermajer was elected as a Fellow of the Australian Academy of Science.

Dr Anthony Ashton
University of Sydney, Australia
Colin I Johnston Lecturer

Anthony Ashton is an R. Douglas Wright Fellow, NH&MRC, Senior Lecturer, University of Sydney and Scientific Director, Division of Perinatal Research, Royal North Shore Hospital. Anthony is a vascular biologist with significant experience in the manipulation of blood vessel formation. He undertook post-doctoral training at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine in New York. Whilst in New York he published several seminal manuscripts on the regulation of blood vessel formation in cardiovascular disease. In 2006 Anthony was awarded a NHMRC Biomedical Career Development Award to return to the Perinatal group and explore his unique findings examining the role of human-specific genes in complications of pregnancy. In January 2007 he was awarded the positions of Scientific Director of Basic Research and Team Leader of the Program into Vascular Development and Placentation at the Perinatal Research group in the Kolling Institute. His main research interests are in understanding the basis for the formation of new blood vessels, the destruction of existing blood vessels and how these processes are altered to complicate multiple processes, including placental formation and fetal development.