PRiME 8th Annual Symposium

Professor at Université Paris Cité, France
Director of the Cell Biology and Metabolomics Platforms at Gustave Roussy, Villejuif, France

Dr. Guido Kroemer’s work focuses on the pathophysiological implications of cell stress and death in the context of aging, cancer and inflammation. He discovered the ignition of regulated cell death pathways by mitochondrial membrane permeabilization, the cytoprotective and antiaging effects of macroautophagy, as well as the decisive role of immunogenic cell death in anticancer treatments. With over 1,800 scientific articles, including 76 in CNS journals—Cell (17 papers), Nature (6), Nature Medicine (26), Science (18), and Science Translational Medicine (9), 500,000 citations and an h-index of 320, he is Europe’s most cited biomedical researcher.  Dr. Kroemer is member of the Academia Europaea, Austrian Academy of Sciences, Chilean Academy of Sciences, Chinese Academy of Engineering, European Academy of Cancer Sciences (EACS), European Academy of Sciences (EAS), European Academy of Sciences and Arts (EASA), European Molecular Biology Organization (EMBO), German Academy of Sciences (Leopoldina) and Royal Spanish Academy of Sciences.  Dr. Kroemer’s contributions have been recognized with numerous distinctions, including the European Union–sponsored Descartes Prize and two European Research Council Advanced Investigator Awards. He has also received the most prestigious cancer research honors from Belgium (Baillet-Latour Health Prize, Dautrebande Prize), France (Prix Duquesne, Prix Léopold Griffuel, Grand Prix Ruban Rose) and Switzerland (Brupbacher Prize), as well as the most generously endowed national science awards from Italy (Lombardia è Ricerca Prize) and Portugal (BIAL Biomedical Research Award). 

Talk Title: "Precision geromedicine" 

Talk Abstract: Precision medicine is commonly defined as the adaptation of medical interventions to individual biological characteristics. In geromedicine, this principle requires a departure from chronological age and disease-based nosology toward “gerotypes” anchored in the hallmarks of aging: patient-specific configurations of aging mechanisms, including defective autophagy, mitochondrial dysfunction, cellular senescence, chronic inflammation, altered nutrient sensing and dysbiosis. Gerotypes are neither mutually exclusive nor stable. Rather, they constitute dynamic, multidimensional states that may evolve spontaneously or under therapeutic pressure. Their identification therefore requires longitudinal integration of molecular, cellular and physiological biomarkers, followed by causal validation of the dominant, therapeutically actionable process. This conception calls for a new clinical trial architecture. Instead of permanently assigning participants to one intervention according to a baseline biomarker, gerotype-guided trials should repeatedly reassess biological state and modify treatment accordingly. Participants may initially receive an intervention matched to their predominant gerotype; early biomarker responses then trigger continuation, intensification, combination, switching or discontinuation according to prespecified decision rules. Sequential randomization permits comparison of entire adaptive treatment strategies, rather than isolated drugs, while embedded mechanistic analyses determine whether gerotype conversion mediates clinical benefit. Such trials should jointly optimize health-span outcomes, toxicity, treatment burden and equity. Precision geromedicine thus becomes a learning system in which diagnosis and therapy co-evolve, transforming heterogeneous aging trajectories into experimentally testable, dynamically adjustable and clinically meaningful interventions for each individual over time.

Scientist, Krembil Brain Institute, University Health Network
Assistant Professor, Department of Immunology, University of Toronto

Dr. Valeria Ramaglia is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Immunology at the University of Toronto and a Scientist at the Krembil Brain Institute. She received her Bachelor’s degree from the University of Bologna in Italy. After completing a Master of Science degree at the University of Toronto, she obtained her PhD from the University of Amsterdam and completed postdoctoral training at the Netherlands Brain Bank and the Complement Biology Group at Cardiff University in the UK. She is the recipient of several awards, including the Government of Canada Award for International Studies, the Connaught Scholarship from the University of Toronto, and the Wellcome Trust Value in People Award. At the Krembil Brain Institute, Dr. Ramaglia studies how aging alters the immune system and contributes to cognitive decline in people with neurodegenerative diseases. Her research has uncovered age-related alterations in immune cells located at the borders of the brain. She is now investigating the mechanisms driving these changes and their impact on brain health. By understanding these processes, Dr. Ramaglia's work aims to identify new therapeutic strategies to preserve cognitive function in people facing neurodegeneration. 

Talk Title: "Towards precision medicine in multiple sclerosis"

Talk Abstract: There is currently no treatment for progressive multiple sclerosis (PMS), but the recent HERCULES trial offers hope that Bruton’s tyrosine kinase inhibitors (BTKi) may slow disease progression. Although BTKi did not reduce relapses, they delayed progression in some, but not all, non-relapsing PMS patients. What distinguishes BTKi responders from non-responders?
Post-mortem studies show that PMS is biologically heterogeneous. Some patients develop aggregates of immune cells in the leptomeninges, the membranes covering the brain. Because BTKi penetrate the brain and target immune cells, they may be particularly effective in patients with leptomeningeal inflammation. However, we currently lack a way to identify these patients, limiting our ability to target therapies such as BTKi to those most likely to benefit. Traditional animal models have not addressed this gap because they do not reproduce leptomeningeal inflammation and grey matter injury. We therefore developed a novel animal model of MS that recapitulates these key features of PMS. Using this model, we tested BTKi and, consistent with HERCULES, found no protection against relapse-related biology. Importantly, however, BTKi reduced leptomeningeal inflammation and prevented grey matter injury in the brain. We also identified proteins in spinal fluid that track with leptomeningeal inflammation in both our mouse model and patients, revealing a potential biomarker of compartmentalized inflammation. If validated, this spinal fluid proxy could transform PMS clinical trial design by enabling targeted enrollment of patients with this specific pathology, improving trial precision and statistical power, increasing the likelihood that effective therapies are identified for patients with progressive MS.

Assistant Professor, Department of Laboratory Medicine & Pathobiology, University of Toronto
Senior Scientist, Toronto General Hospital Research Institute

Director, AgeTech LaunchPad Toronto
Professor, University of Toronto

Alex Mihailidis is a Professor at the University of Toronto, with appointments in Occupational Science and Occupational Therapy, Biomedical Engineering, and Computer Science. He is Director of AgeTech LaunchPad Toronto, a University-wide initiative bringing together researchers, older adults, caregivers, health and community organizations, industry, and government to advance innovation in aging. He is also Chief Strategy Officer and Associate Director, International, at Talent Innovation Canada and Vice-Chair of the Board of AGE-WELL, Canada’s technology and aging network, where he served as founding Scientific Director.

For more than 25 years, his research has focused on artificial intelligence, rehabilitation engineering, intelligent assistive technologies, smart homes, and robotics that support older adults and people with disabilities. He has published more than 250 papers and has led or participated in research programs valued at more than $100 million. He is a Fellow of the Canadian Academy of Health Sciences, the Canadian Academy of Engineering, and RESNA. In 2022, he was named one of the UN Healthy Ageing 50 leaders transforming how the world grows older.

Talk Title: "From Precision Medicine to Precision Aging: Designing AI and Technology Around the Person"

Talk Abstract: Precision medicine is increasingly using artificial intelligence, data, and digital technologies to tailor health interventions to the characteristics of an individual. However, supporting people as they age requires a broader view of precision—one that considers not only biology and clinical conditions, but also function, cognition, environment, personal preferences, social relationships, and access to care and community supports.

This presentation will explore the emerging concept of precision aging and the role that AI and AgeTech can play in making it practical. Drawing on examples from intelligent homes, assistive robotics, digital health, and technologies for people living with cognitive or physical challenges, I will discuss how systems can adapt to the changing needs and abilities of individuals over time. I will also examine the importance of keeping older adults and caregivers meaningfully involved in the design, validation, and ongoing use of these technologies.

Realizing this potential requires more than technical innovation. It depends on interdisciplinary research, responsible use of data and AI, meaningful community partnerships, and stronger pathways from discovery to implementation. I will highlight how initiatives such as AgeTech LaunchPad Toronto can connect precision medicine with the places where aging actually happens—in homes, communities, workplaces, and care settings—and help translate research into solutions that are useful, trusted, equitable, and scalable.

Assistant Professor, Department of Immunology, University of Toronto
Scientist, Krembil Research Institute, University Health Network

University Professor, Tanz Centre for Research in Neurogenerative Diseases, University of Toronto
Clinician Scientist, Krembil Brain Institute, University Health Network

Professor and James Hunter Family Chair in Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis Research at University of Toronto

PhD Candidate, Institute of Biomedical Engineering & Leslie Dan Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Toronto
2026 PRiME-HSC Fellow

Jingan (Charles) Chen is a PhD candidate in Dr. Bowen Li’s laboratory at the University of Toronto’s Institute of Biomedical Engineering. His research integrates RNA engineering, chemical modification, and lipid nanoparticle design to advance precision genetic medicines. He has developed chemically modified suppressor tRNAs that rescue disease-causing nonsense mutations in cystic fibrosis, alongside non-viral delivery systems that target therapeutic RNA to specific tissues. His interdisciplinary research bridges fundamental RNA design and therapeutic development, advancing RNA-based therapies for genetic diseases, with broader applications in gene editing, immunotherapy, and vaccination.

Postdoctoral Research Fellow, The Hospital for Sick Children
2026 PRiME-HSC Fellow

Precision Medicine Fellow, Temerty Faculty of Medicine, University of Toronto
2026 PRiME-UHN Fellow

Postdoctoral Researcher, Department of Immunology, University of Toronto
2026 PRiME-UHN Fellow