Obesity and Adipose Tissue (X1)
February 23-26, 2025  | Fairmont Banff Springs, Banff, AB, Canada
Paul Cohen, Ruth J Loos, Claudio J Villanueva and Christian Wolfrum
Scholarship Deadline: Dec. 5, 2024 | Abstract Deadline: Jan. 31, 2025 | Early Registration Deadline: Jan. 9, 2025
* Session Chair † Invited but not yet accepted | Program current as of November 25, 2025 10 AM | For the most up-to-date details, visit https://www.keystonesymposia.org
Sunday, February 23, 2025
4:00–8:00 PM Registration Van Horne Foyer
6:00–8:00 PM Welcome Mixer Van Horne Foyer
Monday, February 24, 2025
7:00–8:00 AM Breakfast President's Hall
8:00–9:30 AM Welcome and Keynote Session (Joint) Van Horne A/B
  * Paul Cohen, Rockefeller University
Session Chair		  
  * Elizabeth K Speliotes, University of Michigan
Session Chair		  
  Jeffrey M. Friedman, Rockefeller University
Obesity Causes and Treatment: The End of the Beginning		  
  Anna Mae Diehl, Duke University
Morphogens, Metabolism and MASLD (Metabolic Dysfunction-Associated Steatotic Liver Disease)		  
9:30–9:50 AM Coffee Break Van Horne Foyer
9:50–9:55 AM Award Recipient Acknowledgement Van Horne A/B
9:55–11:30 AM Genetic Insights into Body Fat Distribution and NAFLD (Joint) Van Horne A/B
  * Lucile Dollet, University of Copenhagen
Session Chair		  
  Elizabeth K Speliotes, University of Michigan
Human Genetic Insights into NAFLD		  
  * Ruth J Loos, University of Copenhagen
Genetics of Obesity and Body Fat Distribution		  
  Karen L. Mohlke, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Genetics and Genomics of Obesity-Associated Diseases		  
11:30–1:00 PM Poster Setup Van Horne C
11:30–2:30 PM On Own for Lunch
1:00–10:00 PM Poster Viewing Van Horne C
2:30–4:30 PM Health Equity Forum (Joint) Van Horne A
  * Joeva Barrow, Cornell University
Session Chair		  
  * Keren I Hilgendorf, University of Utah
Lean Adipocytes Secrete an Oxylipin That Protects Against Obesity-Accelerated Breast Cancer		  
  Lisa Lazarevski, University of Tübingen
Unraveling the Impact of White Adipose Tissue on Breast Cancer Metabolism And Therapy Resistance Using a Breast Cancer-On-Chip Model		  
  Clarissa Strieder-Barboza, Texas Tech University
Single-Nuclei Analysis Reveals Depot- And Disease-Specific Cell Types In Adipose Tissue Of Women With Gestational Diabetes		  
  Jennifer Below, Vanderbilt University Medical Center
Unmasking Early Cardiometabolic Risk In A High Risk Population		  
  Elizabeth C Heintz, Pennington Biomedical Research Center
Deletion of Hepatocyte NRF2 Accelerates MASH Progression Through Similar Mechanisms in Male and Female Mice		  
  Marijana Vujkovic, Philadelphia VA Medical Center / University of Pennsylvania
Genetic Variants Influence Chronic Liver Disease Progression through Distinct Pathways		  
  Donna Conlon, University of Pennsylvania
The Role of FOG2S657G in Metabolic Dysfunction-Associated Steatohepatitis		  
  Jashdeep Bhattacharjee, University of Southern California
The Role of MALRD1 on MASH Pathogenesis		  
4:30–5:00 PM Coffee Available Van Horne Foyer
5:00–7:00 PM Molecular and Cellular Biology of Adipocytes Van Horne A
  * Andrea Galmozzi, UW Madison SMPH
Session Chair		  
  Christian Wolfrum, ETH Zürich
Subtypes of Adipocytes in Mice and Humans		  
  Bruce M. Spiegelman, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute
Thermogenic Pathways in Adipocytes		  
  Silvia Corvera, University of Massachusetts Medical School
Mechanistic Insights from Human Adipocytes		  
  John Griffin, Pfizer, Inc
Short Talk: Inhibition of Activin Type 2 Receptor Signaling Blocks ACVR1C Signaling and Increases Adipose Lipolysis		  
  Shannon M Reilly, Weill Medical College of Cornell University
Short Talk: Fatty Acids Promote Uncoupled Respiration Via the Atp/Adp Carrier in White Adipocytes		  
7:00–8:00 PM Social Hour with Lite Bites President's Hall
7:30–10:00 PM Poster Session 1 Van Horne C
Tuesday, February 25, 2025
7:00–8:00 AM Breakfast President's Hall
8:00–11:00 AM Adipose Tissue Homeostasis Van Horne A
  * Mascha Koenen, Rockefeller University
Session Chair		  
  Rana K Gupta, Duke University School of Medicine
Establishing memory in adipose tissue influences future metabolic outcomes in obesity		  
  Patrick Seale, University of Pennsylvania
Adipocyte Progenitor Cells and Adipose Tissue Remodeling		  
  Lawrence Kazak, McGill University
An Activation Mechanism of Ucp1-Independent Thermogenesis		  
  Yun-Hee Lee, Seoul National University
Adipose Tissue Remodeling in Health and Disease		  
  Vissarion Efthymiou, ETH Zurich
Short Talk: Single-Nucleus Analysis Of Human White Adipose Tissue Reveals Adipocyte Subsets With Distinct Metabolic Profiles And Tshz3 As A Novel Adipogenesis Regulator		  
  Margo Emont, University of Chicago
Short Talk: Single Nuclear RNA-Sequencing Reveals Weight Loss-Induced Pathways for Adipose Tissue Remodeling		  
9:00–9:20 AM Coffee Break Van Horne Foyer
11:00–1:00 PM Poster Setup Van Horne C
11:00–3:15 PM On Own for Lunch
1:00–10:00 PM Poster Viewing Van Horne C
1:30–3:00 PM Career Roundtable (Joint) Van Horne B
  Ricardo J. Samms, Eli Lilly and Company
Senior Director		  
  Alexander Pfeifer, University of Bonn
Professor		  
  Marie Guerraty, University of Pennsylvania
Assistant Professor		  
  Henry H. Ruiz, New York Institute of Technology
Assistant Professor		  
  Catherine Charneski, Science Translational Medicine
Senior Editor		  
3:15–4:30 PM Meet the Editors (Joint) Van Horne B
  Deniz Senyilmaz Tiebe, EMBO Press
*Session Chair, Senior Scientific Editor		  
  Yevgeniya Nusinovich, AAAS/Science
Senior Editor		  
  Revati Sumukh Dewal, Nature Metabolism
Associate Editor		  
  Mari-Carmen Fernández-Agüera, Cell Metabolism, Cell Press
Scientific Editor		  
  Rachel Sager, Med, Cell Press
Associate Scientific Editor		  
  George Caputa, Nature
Senior Editor		  
  Tatyana Kuznetsova, Cell Reports Medicine
Senior Scientific Editor		  
  Catherine Charneski, Science Translational Medicine
Senior Editor		  
4:30–5:00 PM Coffee Available Van Horne Foyer
5:00–7:00 PM Role of Adipose Tissue in Organismal Metabolism Van Horne A
  * Erwei Li, Harvard Medical School
Session Chair		  
  Claudio J Villanueva, University of California, Los Angeles
Adipose-Liver Crosstalk		  
  Alexander Pfeifer, University of Bonn
Metabolites that Ignite Brown Fat		  
  Michael P Czech, University of Massachusetts Chan Medical School
Adipose Dysfunction in Obesity and Associated Diseases		  
  Shingo Kajimura, Harvard Medical School, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center
Role of Thermogenesis in Whole-Body Metabolism		  
7:00–8:00 PM Social Hour with Lite Bites President's Hall
7:30–10:00 PM Poster Session 2 Van Horne C
Wednesday, February 26, 2025
7:00–8:00 AM Breakfast President's Hall
8:00–11:00 AM The Biology of Therapeutics for Obesity and NAFLD (Joint) Van Horne A/B
  * Matthew Lynes, MaineHealth
Session Chair		  
  * Luca Lotta, Regeneron Pharmaceuticals Inc.
CIEDB, GPR75, INHBE in Obesity and NAFLD		  
  Rebecca A. Taub, Madrigal Pharmaceuticals
Thyroid Agonist Biology and Human Effects		  
  Ricardo J. Samms, Eli Lilly and Company
Dual Agonist Biology and Human Effects		  
  Jacqueline Beaudry, University of Toronto
Short Talk: Clearance of Postprandial Lipid Levels into Adipose Tissue with the Help of Glucose-Dependent Insulinotropic Peptide		  
  Carla Hovarth, ETH Zürich
Short Talk: Adipose Tissue as A First Responder: Early Effects of Survodutide on Systemic Insulin Sensitivity		  
  Joanne Hsieh, Gordian Biotechnology
Short Talk: Interrogating The Directionality And Mechanisms Of Genetic Associations As Part Of High-Throughput In Vivo Pooled Screening To Discover Novel Therapies For MASH		  
  Prabhu Ponnandy, University of Michigan
Short Talk: CRISPR Whole Genome Knock-Out Screen Identifies Potential New Targets For Treatment of MASLD.		  
9:00–9:20 AM Coffee Break Van Horne Foyer
11:00–1:00 PM Poster Setup Van Horne C
11:00–2:30 PM On Own for Lunch
1:00–10:00 PM Poster Viewing Van Horne C
2:30–4:30 PM Symposia Spotlight: Emerging Mechanisms Van Horne A
  * David M Merrick, University of Pennsylvania
Session Chair		  
  Rebecca L McIntyre, University of Copenhagen
Thermogenic and Dietary Control Of Adipose Plasticity Through A Cassette Of Repressive Metabolite GPCRs		  
  Dylan Duerre, University of Wisconsin
BCAA Catabolism Regulates Brown Adipose Tissue Thermogenesis Via Heme Biosynthesis		  
  Ethan C Fein, University of Pennsylvania
The Innate Thermogenic Capacity of Brown Adipose Tissue Develops Independently of Sympathetic Signaling		  
  Kaja Plucinska, The Rockefeller University
Circulating Signature of Acute Cold Exposure and Brown Fat Activation in Humans		  
  Daniele Neri, Columbia University Irving Medical Center
Selective, Acute Stimulation of Vasculature-Projecting Sympathetic Neurons in Brown Adipose Tissue Improves Glycemic Profile in Mice		  
  Ankit Sharma, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine
Defining the Role of Igf2 In Regulating Adipocyte Progenitor Proliferation and Adipogenesis		  
  Ryan P Ceddia, Vanderbilt University Medical Center
Negative Regulators of Natriuretic Peptides as Targets to Promote Adipocyte Browning		  
  Nathalie Chami, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai
Genetic Loci Associated with Higher Adiposity and Reduced Cardiometabolic Risk Point to Distinct Subtypes and Diverse Mechanisms		  
4:30–5:00 PM Coffee Available Van Horne Foyer
5:00–6:45 PM Population Biology in Obesity and Related Diseases Van Horne A
  * Kartik Rajagopalan, UT Southwestern Medical Center
Session Chair		  
  Paul Cohen, Rockefeller University
Brown Fat in Human Health and Disease		  
  Camilla C Schéele, University of Copenhagen
Identifying Novel Neuropeptides from Human Brown and White Adipocytes		  
  Matthias Blüher, University of Leipzig
Identification of Human Obesity Subphenotypes by Adipose Tissue Signatures		  
6:45–7:00 PM Meeting Wrap-Up: Outcomes and Future Directions (Organizers) Van Horne A
7:00–8:00 PM Social Hour with Lite Bites President's Hall
7:30–10:00 PM Poster Session 3 Van Horne C
Thursday, February 27, 2025
12:00–11:59 PM Departure