The annual ICMRS-ASBMR Membership Zoom Meeting was held online on October 9, 2021. Professor, Guozhi Xiao, the Program Committee Chair of ICMRS from Southern University of Science and Technology, hosted the meeting. He started by welcoming all ICMRS members, distinguished professors and nonmember guests to attend the meeting. Professor, Ling Qin, the outgoing president of ICMRS from the University of Pennsylvania, firstly introduced Professor Guozhi Xiao as the new president-elect, followed by her “Outgoing President Speech” in that she gave a summary report on the current state of ICMRS and the society’s progresses in the last two years under her leadership. She stated that, by working closely with the ICMRS Executive Committee, her team re-prioritized the initial goals to meet the challenges posed by unexpected COVID19 pandemic. Achievements in her term include, but not limited to, mask distribution during the pandemic, continuous expansion of ICMRS membership and collaborating centers, membership payment restructuring, establishment of ICMRS Scientific Frontier Webinar Series, and functionalization of ICMRS WeChat public account.  

Next, Professor Minghao Zheng from the University of Western Australia, officially made his inaugural address as the new ICMRS president (term 2021-2023). He delivered a presentation to share with his vision on how to honor the past, celebrate the present and embrace the future,  with the focus on three key areas - commemorate the contribution of past Chinese scholars in the field of musculoskeletal research and education; create more awards for members’ recognition and celebration of achievement and contribution in musculoskeletal research and to the society; and provide an engaging environment for better interactions and collaboration among the members

This year membership meeting has invited two keynote speakers. Dr. Janet Rubin, a Sarah Graham Kenan Professor of Medicine at the University of North Carolina @ Chapel Hill provided a highly fascinating presentation entitled “Cells differentiate dynamic from static strain: Nuclear entry of β-catenin, actin and YAP”. Dr. Chuanju Liu, a professor of orthopaedic surgery and cell biology at New York University, presented fundamental scientific findings from his laboratory in “Decoding Anti-inflammatory TNF Receptor 2 Signaling in Autoimmune and Musculoskeletal Diseases”.

Following the keynote speeches are our traditional Webster Jee Young Investigator Award ceremony and oral presentations by the six Webster Jee Young Investigator Awardees on their excellent award-winning research work in the field of bone and cartilage biology and diseases. This year’s winners are Xiaohao Wu from Southern University of Science and Technology, Yuhan Xia from Cornell Medical College and Hospital for Special Surgery, Gongsheng Yuan from University of Pennsylvania, Zhongyang Lv from Nanjing University, Xiaoan Wei and Zeyu Zheng both from Zhejiang University. A cash prize of $500 and an award plaque will be given to each awardee shortly after the meeting.

This meeting has achieved a great success with more than 370 ICMRS members and guests attended the meeting. Here are some screenshots of the meeting moments.