Fibrosis: Cross Organ Pathology and Pathways to Clinical Development (K4)
February 2-5, 2026  | Fairmont Banff Springs, Banff, AB, Canada
Florian Rieder, Tatiana Kisseleva and Marco Prunotto
Scholarship Deadline: Oct. 23, 2025 | Abstract Deadline: Jan. 13, 2026 | Early Registration Deadline: Dec. 4, 2025
* Session Chair † Invited but not yet accepted | Program current as of February 25, 2026 1 AM | For the most up-to-date details, visit https://www.keystonesymposia.org
Monday, February 2, 2026
4:00–8:00 PM Registration Van Horne Foyer
6:00–8:00 PM Welcome Mixer Van Horne Foyer
Tuesday, February 3, 2026
7:00–8:00 AM Breakfast President's Hall
8:00–8:10 AM Welcome Remarks (Joint) Van Horne A/B
8:10–9:00 AM Keynote Address (Joint) Van Horne A/B
  * Anne Fletcher, Monash University
Session Chair		  
  * Florian Rieder, Cleveland Clinic
Session Chair		  
  Thomas A Wynn, Pfizer
Anti-Fibrotic Therapy: Thinking outside the TGF-beta box		  
9:00–11:30 AM From Fibroblasts to Fibrosis, and Back Again (Joint) Van Horne A/B
  * Yuval Rinkevich, Chinese Institutes for Medical Research, Beijing, China
Session Chair		  
  * Tatiana Kisseleva, University of California, San Diego
Session Chair		  
  Boris Hinz, St. Michael's Hospital and University of Toronto
Mechanically Induced Chromatin Remodelling Stabilizes Myofibroblast Activation Through Enhanced DNA Methylation		  
  Sheila A. Stewart, Washington University School of Medicine
Stromal Reprogramming Sensitizes Metastatic Breast Cancer to Immunotherapy		  
  Michael B. Brenner, Harvard Medical School
Identifying Pathways for Targeting Fibroblasts in Inflammatory and Fibrotic Diseases		  
  Gisli Jenkins, Imperial College London
Short Talk: DEMISTIFIing Multi-Organ Fibrosis		  
  Angela Riedel, University of Würzburg
Short Talk: A TLR4-Dependent Fibroblast-Monocyte Axis in Tumor-Draining Lymph Nodes Contributes to Metastasis in Triple-Negative Breast Cancer		  
9:30–9:50 AM Coffee Break Van Horne Foyer
9:50–9:55 AM Award Recipient Acknowledgement Van Horne A/B
11:30–11:35 AM Jessica Langer, Helmsley Trust Introduction Van Horne A/B
11:35–1:00 PM Poster Setup Van Horne C
11:35–2:30 PM On Own for Lunch
1:00–10:00 PM Poster Viewing Van Horne C
2:30–4:30 PM Symposia Spotlight 1 Van Horne A
  * Robert Barrett, Cedars-Sinai Medical Center
Session Chair		  
  * Detlef B Schuppan, Univ Medical Center
Session Chair		  
  Khristian Bauer-Rowe Ramos, Sandford University School of Medicine
Creeping Fat Adipocytes Can Transdifferentiate Into Pro-Fibrotic CTHRC1+ Fibroblasts in Intestinal Fibrosis		  
  Chenxiao Liu, Ruijin Hospital, Shanghai jiaotong University School of Medicine
Spatiotemporal Decoding Reveals Pro-Fibrotic Niche Transitions in Intestinal Fibrosis of Crohn’s Disease		  
  Eric Nelius, University of Zurich
HIF Signaling and Type 2 Innate Lymphoid Cell Effector Functions in the Lung: A Tale of Inflammation versus Regeneration		  
  Irina Ferapontova, University of Zurich
Combined Ribosome Profiling and Immunopeptidomics of IPF Patient Fibroblasts		  
  Valerie Horsley, Yale University
Nuclear Mechanosensing Regulates Fibrosis Via Epigenetic Induction of Fibrotic Gene Expression		  
  Allen Wang, University of California, San Diego
Single Cell Multiomics Reveals Drivers of Metabolic Dysfunction-Associated Steatohepatitis		  
  Souradipta Ganguly, Sanford Burnham Prebys Medical Discovery Institute
Mechanistic Understanding of MASLD-Associated Cardiac Dysfunction and its Reversibility		  
4:30–5:00 PM Coffee Available Van Horne Foyer
5:00–7:00 PM Mechanisms of the Extracellular Matrix Environment Driving Disease Van Horne A
  * Gisli Jenkins, Imperial College London
Session Chair		  
  * Boris Hinz, St. Michael's Hospital and University of Toronto
Session Chair		  
  Rachel Lennon, University of Manchester
The Matrisome in Disease Pathology		  
  Natalie J. Torok, Stanford University
Viscoelasticity Promoting Cancer Progression		  
  Detlef B Schuppan, Univ Medical Center
Targeting the ECM to Treat Liver Fibrosis and Liver Cancer		  
  Peleg Hasson, Technion - Israel Institute of Technology
Short Talk: Inhibiting Enzyme-Mediated Fibronectin Fibrillogenesis – A Novel Mechanism For Fibrosis Inhibition		  
  Kate Hitpass Romero, The University of Auckland
Short Talk: Age-Related Meningeal Extracellular Matrix Remodeling Compromises CNS Lymphatic Function;		  
7:00–8:00 PM Social Hour with Dinner President's Hall
7:30–10:00 PM Poster Session 1 Van Horne C
Wednesday, February 4, 2026
7:00–8:00 AM Breakfast President's Hall
8:00–10:30 AM Fibroblast Heterogenity across Organs: A Critical Basis for Discovery and Therapy Translation Van Horne A
  * Thomas A Wynn, Pfizer
Session Chair		  
  * Tatiana Kisseleva, University of California, San Diego
Session Chair		  
  Suzanne Devkota, Cedars-Sinai Medical Center
Microbiome Influence on Adipose Tissue Fibrosis		  
  Stefanie Dimmeler, Institute of Cardiovascular Regeneration
Persistent Fibroblast Activation in the Hypertrophic Human Heart		  
  Matthew Buechler, University of Toronto
Leveraging Cross Tissue Fibroblast Heterogeneity in the Skin Microenvironment		  
  Dean Sheppard, University of California, San Francisco
Therapeutic Targeting of the Fibrotic Niche		  
9:00–9:20 AM Coffee Break Van Horne Foyer
10:30–11:00 AM Panel Discussion 1: Fibroblast Heterogeneity Across Organs Van Horne A
  * Thomas A Wynn, Pfizer
Panel Moderator		  
  * Tatiana Kisseleva, University of California, San Diego
Panel Moderator		  
  Matthew Buechler, University of Toronto
  
  Suzanne Devkota, Cedars-Sinai Medical Center
  
  Stefanie Dimmeler, Institute of Cardiovascular Regeneration
  
  Dean Sheppard, University of California, San Francisco
  
11:00–1:00 PM Poster Setup Van Horne C
11:00–3:30 PM On Own for Lunch
1:00–10:00 PM Poster Viewing Van Horne C
3:30–4:30 PM Career Roundtable (Joint) Van Horne B
  Viviana Cremasco, Novartis Biomedical Research
Director		  
  Alice Denton, Imperial College London
Associate Professor		  
  Ilyssa Gordon, Cleveland Clinic
Professor of Pathology		  
  Souradipta Ganguly, Sanford Burnham Prebys Medical Discovery Institute
Staff Scientist		  
4:30–5:00 PM Coffee Available Van Horne Foyer
5:00–7:00 PM Mechanisms that Drive the Progression and Regression of Fibrosis Van Horne A
  * Valerie Horsley, Yale University
Session Chair		  
  * Natalie J. Torok, Stanford University
Session Chair		  
  Scott L Friedman, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai
Genetics linked with Fibrosis: Commonalities and Differences across Organs		  
  Pilar Alcaide, University of Miami - Miller School of Medicine
The Crossroad of Cardiac Inflammation and Fibrosis: Cardiac fibroblasts-T Cell Interactions		  
  Tatiana Kisseleva, University of California, San Diego
Mechanisms of Regression of Liver Fibrosis		  
  Blandine Baffert, University of Virginia
Short Talk: ELMO1 Efferocytosis Protects Against Nephrotoxic Injury And Counters Fibrosis		  
  Lesley A. Hill, University of British Columbia
Short Talk: Mechanisms Regulating Mesenchymal Stromal Cell Quiescence and their Impact on Liver Regeneration, Fibrosis and Resolution		  
7:00–8:00 PM Social Hour with Dinner President's Hall
7:30–10:00 PM Poster Session 2 Van Horne C
Thursday, February 5, 2026
7:00–8:00 AM Breakfast President's Hall
8:00–10:30 AM Drug Development Pathways for Fibrosis – From Mechanisms to Medicine Van Horne A
  * Scott L Friedman, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai
Session Chair		  
  * David A Brenner, Sanford Burnham Prebys
Preclinical Models of Fibrosis: Are we able to Predict Therapy Response		  
  Marco Prunotto, Medicxi
Drug Development Pathways for Fibrotic Diseases: Lessons Learned		  
  Florian Rieder, Cleveland Clinic
From Mechanisms to Medicine in Intestinal Fibrosis		  
  William J Massey, Cleveland Clinic Research
Short Talk: Microbial Trimethylamine Exerts Pro-Fibrotic Properties in Inflammatory Bowel Diseases (IBD) and can be Targeted In Vivo to Prevent Intestinal Fibrosis.		  
  Sadatsugu Sakane, University of California San Diego
Short Talk: Ablation of Activated Hepatic Stellate Cells (Ahscs) Impairs Liver Regeneration in Mouse Model of Toxic Fibrosis		  
9:00–9:20 AM Coffee Break Van Horne Foyer
10:30–11:00 AM Panel Discussion 2: Preclinical Evaluation and Clinical Development in Fibrotic Diseases Van Horne A
  * Scott L Friedman, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai
Panel Moderator		  
  * David A Brenner, Sanford Burnham Prebys
Panel Moderator		  
  Marco Prunotto, Medicxi
  
  Florian Rieder, Cleveland Clinic
  
11:00–2:30 PM On Own for Lunch
2:30–4:30 PM Symposia Spotlight 2 Van Horne A
  * Rachel Lennon, University of Manchester
Session Chair		  
  * William J Massey, Cleveland Clinic Research
Session Chair		  
  Na Li, Shanghai University of Medicine and Health Sciences
Targeting Cholesterol Biosynthesis (DHCR7) and PPAR Signaling to Reverse Fibrosis and Inflammation Across MetALD/MASH Models		  
  Lorena Rosas, The Ohio State University
BAX Activation by BTSA1.2 Drives Senolysis of CTHRC1-positive Fibroblasts to Alleviate Pulmonary Fibrosis		  
  Michael Jeffrey Podolsky, Weill Cornell Medical College
SEL1L Regulates Lung Collagen Homeostasis		  
  Mallar Bhattacharya, University of California, San Francisco
Arginase 1-Dependent Myeloid–Fibroblast Metabolic Coupling Drives Collagen Synthesis in Lung		  
  Rafael Contreras, University of Alabama at Birmingham
Centromeric and Mitochondrial DNA Instability as Upstream Triggers of cGAS-STING-Mediated Fibrosis in Systemic Sclerosis		  
  Geoffrey Teixeira, Alentis Therapeutics
Claudin-1: A Cross-Organ Driver of Barrier Dysfunction with Disease-Modifying, Pan-Organ Antifibrotic Potential		  
  Wolfgang Merkt, University of Heidelberg
NK Cell Immunotherapy Reverses Lung Fibrosis by Eliminating Senescent Fibroblasts		  
  Wolfgang Jarolimek, Syntara Ltd
Lysyl Oxidase Inhibitors in Fibrotic Diseases: A Two-Pronged Therapeutic Approach Targeting Collagen Cross-Linking and Cell Signalling		  
4:30–5:00 PM Coffee Available Van Horne Foyer
5:00–6:45 PM Therapeutic Modulation of Stromal Cell Function (Joint) Van Horne A/B
  * Marco Prunotto, Medicxi
Session Chair		  
  * Michael B. Brenner, Harvard Medical School
Session Chair		  
  Viviana Cremasco, Novartis Biomedical Research
TGFβ Neutralization and Tumor Stroma Modulation: From Bench to Bedside		  
  Yuval Rinkevich, Chinese Institutes for Medical Research, Beijing, China
Regenerative Medicine and Tissue Repair		  
  Burkhard Ludewig, Kantonsspital St. Gallen
Immunomodulation of Myocardial Fibrosis		  
6:45–7:00 PM Meeting Wrap-Up: Outcomes and Future Directions (Organizers) (Joint) Van Horne A/B
  * Sanjiv A. Luther, University of Lausanne
  
  * Florian Rieder, Cleveland Clinic
  
7:00–8:00 PM Social Hour with Dinner President's Hall
8:00–9:00 PM Entertainment President's Hall
8:00–9:00 PM Cash Bar President's Hall
Friday, February 6, 2026
12:00–11:59 PM Departure