Co-sponsored by the International Chinese Musculoskeletal Research Society (ICMRS), Southern University of Science and Technology (SUSTech), the University of Hong Kong Shenzhen Hospital, Shenzhen Institutes of Advanced Technology of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, the Chinese University of Hong Kong, and South China Biomedical Materials (Shenzhen) Co., Ltd., the 4th International Chinese Musculoskeletal Research Conference (ICMRC-2019) was held at SUSTech, Shenzhen, China, August 9-12, 2019. The theme of this conference is “Strengthening basic research, Promoting scientific and technological innovation, and Serving the development of Greater Bay Area”. Nearly 700 delegates from all over the world participated in the conference.

The opening ceremony was presided over by Professor Guozhi Xiao, Co-Chairman of the Conference, Dean of Zhicheng College of SUSTech and Director of ICMRS Collaborating Research Center. Professor Xiao first expressed his warm welcome to the experts from all over the world who have long supported the international Chinese orthopaedic research. He said that this conference provided an important platform for a comprehensive understanding of the dynamics of the world's medical field. It will play an important role in enhancing academic exchanges, expanding academic horizons, understanding the dynamics of academic circles, and promoting scientific and technological innovation. At the same time, it has effectively created a "one belt, one road" health cooperation platform and broadened the health attributes of the construction and development of Greater Bay Area. He hoped that SUSTech would be able to enhance communication through this platform, seize opportunities and promote cooperation, and make positive contributions to the development of the Greater Bay Area.

Following that, Professor Changsheng Liu, the academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences and President of Shanghai University, Professor Kunzheng Wang, President-elect of the Chinese Orthopedic Association and Director of the Joint Surgery Center of Xi'an Jiaotong University, and Professor Dazhi Yang, Director of Spinal Surgery, First Affiliated Hospital of SUSTech, delivered opening remarks and congratulate the starting of ICMRC-2019. Finally, Professor Tingting Tang, President of ICMRS, briefly introduced the history and current status of the society as well as previous ICMRCs. On behalf of the society, he thanked all guests and representatives, sponsors, scientific and organizing committees of the conference for their support to the congress.

More than 90 invited speakers and distinguished scholars attended ICMRC-2019, including Professor Yixian Qin of Stony Brook University, Chair of Board of Directors, ICMRS, Prof. Ling Qin of University of Pennsylvania, President-elect of ICMRS, Professor William W. Lu of the University of Hong Kong, Professor Ling Qin of the Chinese University of Hong Kong, Professor X. Edward Guo of Columbia University and Professor Cao Xu of Johns Hopkins University, Professor James H-C. Wang of University of Pittsburgh, Professor Yongjun Wang of Shanghai University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Dr. Dou Dou of National Natural Science Foundation of China, Professor Renny Franceschi and Professor Peter Ma of University of Michigan, Professor Martin Lotz of Scripps Institute, Professor Francis Lee of Yale University, Professor Mattew Greenblatt of Weill Cornell Medical College, and Professor Motomi Enomoto-Iwamoto of University of Maryland.

During ICMRC-2019, the scholars discussed the important problems faced by orthopaedic diagnosis and treatment and the research direction of orthopaedic related diseases, exchanged their experiences in clinical, basic and translational research of orthopaedics, and provided new ideas for the future development of orthopaedics. The conference included three basic science venues and one clinical venue. The participants discussed the molecular mechanism of skeletal diseases, biomechanics, biomaterials, tissue regeneration, transformational medicine, targeted therapy, skeletal development and aging, joint biology, musculoskeletal diseases and treatment, and the application of new clinical technologies. The conference also conducted competition for Young Investigator Best Paper Awards. A total of 14 oral awards and 14 poster awards were selected (2 first prizes, 4 second prizes and 8 third prizes for each category).

ICMRC-2019 is another successful international Chinese orthopaedic research event held by ICMRS, following the previous ICMRCs in Suzhou in 2013, Changsha in 2015 and Shihezi in 2017, respectively. The continuous and rapid growth of abstract submissions and registered participants in this series of conferences reflects the continuous expansion of the multidisciplinary team of orthopaedic research in China, and the increasing academic impact of ICMRS. The conference, held at the SUSTech, also demonstrates the school's pragmatic and realistic academic style, opens up new opportunities for the school's foreign cooperation, and will play a positive role in promoting talent introduction and academic influence. Next, ICMRS, as an international platform, will help promote health development of the Greater Bay Area.

The 2019 annual ICMRS-ORS Membership Meeting was held in Austin on February 2nd, 2019. We have a total of 90 attendees with guests from NIH and JOR. To enhance the social bonding among our members and to better nurture our young investigators, this meeting continue last year’s format of roundtable discussions, by asking the attendees to choose their interested topic and stay at the corresponded table during the entire meeting.

The meeting started with a President’s Report presented by Dr. Ling Qin, President-elect and Chair of Program Committee, on behalf of current President Dr. Tingting Tang. This report summarizes the progress of our society during Dr. Tang’s presidency in the past one and half years, focusing on committees, membership, communication, education, development in China, and sponsored meetings. New committees have been established to increase the regional diversity of our society and enhance the scientific exchange among our members. They include Australia and Asean Development Committee, Europe Develop Committee, and Scientific Committees, which are subdivided into Bone and Joint Biology, Stem Cells and Regeneration, Biomechanical and Biomedical Engineering, Biomaterial and Translational Research. Dr. Qin also announced that our society’s biennial meeting, the 4^th International Chinese Musculoskeletal Research Conference will be held in Shenzhen, China, on August 9-12, this year and she encouraged our society members to submit abstracts and attend this meeting.

Following this, Dr. Stuart Goodman from Journal of Orthopaedic Research gave a talk about new developments of JOR and the journal’s outreach to China.

This meeting was then highlighted by the announcement of Webster Jee Young Investigator Awardees by Dr. Chuanju Liu: Jiahui Hang from Brown University, Yulong Wei from the University of Pennsylvania, and Wenguang Liu from Xi’an Jiaotong University. Each awardee gave a brief introduction about their outstanding research. They were presented with an award plaque and a cash prize of $500 each. 

The major part of this meeting is a 1-hour panel discussion of Promoting Research Integrity with panelists Drs. Yi-Xian Qin, James Wang, Ed Guo, and Stuart Goodman and Chaired by Dr. Jean Jiang. At the school Dean and department Chair levels, those panelists provided their perception and interpretation about research integrity, ethics, intellectual property, and conflicts of interest/disclosure. Questions from audience regarding specific cases further enhanced this discussion.

At the end, special thanks go to volunteers from our society who helped to organize this membership meeting: Dr. Wei Yao from UC Davis, Dr. Neil Dong from University of Texas, Dr. Sherry Liu from University of Pennsylvania, and abstract reviewers for Webster Jee Young Investigator Award.

2018 ICMRS Board Meeting, namely 2018 ICMRS Suzhou Expert Forum, was held in Castel Hotel, Suzhou, on October 16th 2018. More than 40 board members from all over the world gathered in Suzhou to attend the Board Meeting. The Meeting was hosted by ICMRS, and organized by The Second Affiliated Hospital of Soochow University.

ICMRS BOD Chair Prof. Yixian Qin presided over the meeting

ICMRS Chair Prof. Tingting Tang addressed the board meeting, detailing the development of ICMRS and its infrastructure, and looking forward to its further development.

Subsequently, experts from home and abroad, including Prof. Ling Qin and Prof. Liyun Wang, discussed the development and recent planning of the ICMRS through video conference.

Photo of Participating Members

ICMRS Board Meeting went on after coffee break. Professor Bin Li briefed and reported on the work of various research centers throughout the country, and highly evaluated the achievements of the research centers.

Next, representatives from newly established research centers in Nanjing, Guangzhou, Shenzhen and Dalian reported on their work one by one.

Following the introduction of the newly established research centers, Prof. Yixian Qin proposed the idea of Webster Jee Award Fund and exchanged views with a number of experts on specific operational details and funding sources.

Then, several candidates for the Chair of the Scientific Committee, such as Chen Lin, introduced their work briefly.

Prof. James Wang reported online about the challenges of ICMRS development and the way forward.

Prof. Hong Zhou and Prof. Ling Qin put forward their views.

Prof. Lucus Lu suggested that the development of North American scholars should be strengthened, which was supported by the experts.

Prof. Guozhi Xiao and Prof. Weijia Lv briefed the attending experts on behalf of the Preparatory Committee on the ICMRC agenda for 2019, which will be held in Shenzhen.

At last, Doctor Xiao Wang from the newest established “Institute of Osteoporosis Diagnosis and Treatments of Soochow University- ICMRS Collaborating Center for Osteoporotic Fractures” introduced the center’s recent achievements on iron metabolism and osteoporosis.

The opening ceremony of the newest established center, namely “Institute of Osteoporosis Diagnosis and Treatments of Soochow University- ICMRS Collaborating Center for Osteoporotic Fractures”, was held in Castel Hotel, Suzhou, on October 16th 2018. More than 40 board members from all over the world attended the opening ceremony.

Chair of China Development Committee of ICMRS Prof. Bin Li presided over the opening ceremony

ICMRS President, Prof. Tingting Tang addressed the opening ceremony

Vice President of 2nd Affiliated Hospital of Soochow University Mr. Zhiyuan Qian addressed the opening ceremony

The Director of the newest established center, namely “Institute of Osteoporosis Diagnosis and Treatments of Soochow University- ICMRS Collaborating Center for Osteoporotic Fractures”, Prof. Youjia Xu addressed the opening ceremony

Photo of the opening ceremony of “Institute of Osteoporosis Diagnosis and Treatments of Soochow University- ICMRS Collaborating Center for Osteoporotic Fractures”

Prof. Youjia Xu added that the establishment of “Institute of Osteoporosis Diagnosis and Treatments of Soochow University- ICMRS Collaborating Center for Osteoporotic Fractures”, would help to strengthen the co-operation and exchange among the centers and organizations, would help to promote the internationalization of osteoporosis research in the Soochow University and its affiliated hospital. At last, Prof. Youjia Xu said the newest center would like to take this opportunity to work with all the experts to take the study of osteoporosis to a new level.

2018 Australia Symposium of International Chinese Musculoskeletal Research Society (ICMRS)

Theme: Cutting edge research in bone biology and potential new therapies.

Perth, Western Australia - 4 October 2018

The 2018 Australia Symposium of International Chinese Musculoskeletal Research Society (ICMRS) was held in Perth, Western Australia, on the 4th of October 2018. Chaired by Prof. Jiake Xu, together with Prof. Yin Xiao, Prof. Yue Ding, Prof. Nathan Pavlos, and Prof. Xiaoling Zhang, more than 50 attendees were involved in this symposium. This meeting has put together a wide range of cutting-edge research in bone biology that appealed both clinician and basic scientists in musculoskeletal field. Topics presented by our invited speakers from China, the USA, Singapore and Australia include bone cell biology, novel therapeutic applications for bone disease, biomaterials and bone tissue engineering, 3D bioprinting for tissue and organ, as well as translational of biomaterials in orthopaedics field. Dinner time after the symposium was also provided for further networking and discussion. The breadth and depth of this symposium, alongside with the breathtaking scenery beside Swan River, delivered a vibrant and valuable meeting for all members.

The 2018 annual ICMRS-ASBMR Membership Meeting was held in Montreal, Canada, on September 28, 2018. More than 80 ICMRS members attended this meeting. To enhance the social bonding among our members and to better nurture our young investigators, this meeting adopted a new format, roundtable discussions, by asking the attendees to choose their interested topics during online registration and stay at the chosen table during the entire meeting. Each table was led by 2-4 discussion leaders volunteered by the lifetime members of our society.

The meeting started with a Welcome Message from Dr. Ling Qin, President-elect and Chair of Program Committee, by acknowledging those ICMRS members who help to organize this meeting and introducing the new meeting format. Following that, Dr. Tingting Tang gave a Presidential Speech summarizing the progress of our society since his inauguration last year and his future plan in the next year, focusing on leadership and committees, membership recruitment, communications, regional development, journals, and fundraising. Specifically, he introduced the newly established Scientific Committees, including the Bone and Joint Biology Committee, the Stem cells and Regenerative Medicine Committee, the Biomechanical and Biomedical Engineering Committee and the Biomaterials and Translational Research Committee. Dr. Lin Chen from Army Medical University in Chongqing, Dr. Gang Li from Chinese University of Hongkong, Dr. Ming Zhang from the Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Dr. Changsheng Liu from East China University of Science and Technology in Shanghai have been nominated as the chair for each committee.

This meeting was then highlighted by the announcement of Webster Jee Young Investigator Awardees: Yunshu Wu from Sichuan University, Kazuki Inoue from Hospital for Special Surgery, Yujiao Han from Shanghai Institute of Biochemistry and Cell Biology, and Robert Tower from the University of Pennsylvania. Each awardee gave a brief introduction about their outstanding research. They were presented with an award plaque and a cash prize of $400 each.

 

 

The following roundtable discussions were set in 8 tables with topics such as Pathways to be independent, Industry career, Opportunities in China, Bone remodeling, Osteocyte biology, Bone biomechanics, Cartilage and diseases, and Mesenchymal stem cells. These discussions were actively carried out till the end of the meeting.  

 

The ASBMR 2018 Annual Meeting will be held in Montréal, Québec, Canada on September 28 – October 1.  For ICMRS members attending this meeting, we would like to highlight the following education-related events.

1. Emerging Investigator's Program

This special one-day program, taking place on Friday, September 28, provides a cohesive agenda of popular Annual Meeting sessions with increased opportunities for networking with, and mentorship from, respected leaders within the bone sciences field. As Dr. Mike Evans, ASBMR President said, “There is no better way for a trainee to kick-start their career than by learning from and networking with the best and brightest within our field at the premier meeting in bone and mineral metabolism.”  To register, please visit the 2018 ASBMR Annual Meeting Registration Site or the Registration counter in Montréal. 

2. Meet the Professors

September 28, 11:30 AM-12:30 PM
Topics include:

• ·         Biology of the Periosteum
• ·         Challenges in Treating Renal Bone Disease
• ·         Diabetes and Skeletal Health
• ·         Extracellular Matrix and Bone
• ·         Factors that Influence Mouse Model Variability
• ·         Mechanisms of Age-related Bone Loss, Osteoporosis, Sarcopenia and Frailty
• ·         Osteomacs
• ·         The Bone Microenvironment and Cancer Progression

September 29, 11:00 AM-12:00 PM
Topics include:

• ·         AFF, Drug Holiday
• ·         Bone Muscle Interactions
• ·         Effects of Cancer and Cancer Therapies on the Skeleton
• ·         Function of Extracellular Vesicles and Exosomes in Cell-Cell Communication in Bone Cells
• ·         Mechanosensitive Osteocytes: Insights into How the Osteocytes Control the Bone Response to Bone Loading and Unloading
• ·         miRNAs and Bone
• ·         Nutrition and Fragility
• ·         Reversal Phase in Bone Remodeling

September 30, 2018, 11:00 AM-12:00 PM

Topics include:

• ·         Intravital Imaging of Osteoclast Dynamics
• ·         Mineral Balance and Tracer Methodologies in Clinical Research on Nutrition in Bone Health
• ·         Osteocyte Perilacunar-Canalicular Remodeling
• ·         Risk Prediction Models
• ·         Skeletal Regeneration: Stem Cell Therapy
• ·         The Spectrum of Fundamental Basic Discoveries Contributing to Organismal Aging

3. Guided Poster Tour

To help guide you through all of the exciting research being presented, there will be expert volunteers leading poster tours on Saturday, September 29 and Sunday, September 30. If you are interested in joining a poster tour, go to the ASBMR Networking Center (located in the Discovery Hall, Exhibit Hall 220 B-E) at either of the tour start times listed below. There is no need sign up prior the tour:

Poster Session I: Saturday, September 29, Tour Time 1:00 PM

Poster Session II: Sunday, September 30, Tour Time 1:00 PM

4. Other events

Early Career Investigator Networking Happy Hour

September 28, 2018, 07:15 PM
Viger Room/Le Westin

Early Stage Investigators who wish to continue building connections with peers in a fun and informal setting are invited to attend this event. Participants are encouraged to participate in Networking Bingo and will get a chance to win drink tickets and be entered in a raffle drawing for a free ASBMR In-Training Membership.

Publications Workshop

September 29, 2018, 11:00 AM
Room 510/Palais des congrès de Montréal

New this year! The 2018 Publications Workshop will feature new interactive roundtable sessions with the JBMR® and JBMR® PlusEditors. Meet with JBMR® Editor-in-Chief Dr. Roberto Civitelli, M.D. and JBMR® Plus Editor-in-Chief Dr. Peter Ebeling, AO, as well as Deputy and Associate Editors from both journals to discuss topics such as title optimization, figure preparation, improving manuscript quality, getting selected as a new reviewer, and many other subjects.

Cutting Edge Technologies: Using 3-D Cell Culture for In vitro/Ex vivo Approaches to Study Communication Among Bone/Bone Marrow Cells

September 30, 2018, 11:00 AM
Room 510/Palais des congrès de Montréal

• Liyun Wang PhD, University of Delaware, United States, Chair
  Teresita Bellido PhD, Indiana University School of Medicine, United States, Chair

Dear ICMRS Members:

As you may know, the ASBMR established a mentorship program (http://www.asbmr.org/about/detail.aspx?cid=a386c383-dd5b-4579-8aa5-8a436a36ded6)  where ASMBR members are willing to share significant scientific experiences and professional expertise with other members.  As suggested by the Education Committee, the ICMRS leadership highly encourages the senior members of ICMRS to sign up to serve as mentors, and the junior members of our society to register to take advantage of the expertise the more senior members may offer.  This will significantly increase the impact and visibility of our society and contribute to the education of future young scientists in the society and the field.

ICMRS Education Committee  

Call for Abstracts

On behalf of the Chinese Society of Osteoporosis and Bone Mineral Research (CSOBMR) of the Chinese Medical Association (CMA) and the International Chinese Musculoskeletal Research Society (ICMRS), we are honored to invite you to the 9^th International Conference on Osteoporosis and Bone Research 2018 (ICOBR2018) to be held Oct 17-20, 2018 in Suzhou, China. We welcome world renowned scientists and researchers to share their most up-to-date findings at this conference. IOCBR2018 program will include both educational and scientific programs, and an extensive review and update of cutting edge research in this promising field. The organizers of ICOBR2018 welcome the submission of abstracts. Abstracts will be accepted for oral presentation, poster or for publication only.

Abstract Topic

• Skeletal metabolism and genetics

• Bone, muscle, fat and body composition

• Cross talk of osteocyte, osteoclast, osteoblast

• Advanced Imaging and diagnosis of musculoskeletal disease

• OA and joint

• Aging and degeneration

• Stem cell and regeneration medicine, connective tissues

• Rare bone diseases

• Bone and brain

• Management of osteoporosis

• Management of sarcopenia

• Vitamin D, calcium and nutrition for bone health

• Emerging therapeutics for skeletal diseases

• Osteoporotic fracture, non-union and management

• Osteosarcoma and bone tumors

• Bone and kidney

• Biomaterials and biomechanics for osteoporosis treatment

Means of Submission

All abstracts must be submitted online (www.csobmr.org.cn). The deadline for the submission is July 31, 2018.

Acknowledgement of Receipt

An Acknowledgement letter will be sent to your registered email address immediately after you successfully submitting your abstract(s).

Reviewing Procedure and Selection for Presentation

Submitted abstracts will be reviewed by the Scientific Committee before they are accepted.

Notification of abstract acceptance will be emailed to the author by Aug. 31, 2018.

High ranked abstracts will be considered for the chance of Best Paper Awards and WJ Young Investigator Awards.

Please click here for the PDF version of this announcement.

Congratulations to Drs. X. Edward Guo, James H-C. Wang, Yi-Xian Qin, and Changsheng Liu 

Dr. James H-C. Wang, past president of the ICMRS, has been named as Vice Chair for Research of the Department of Orthopaedic Surgery at University of Pittsburgh .

Dr. Yi-Xian Qin, Chair of Board of Directors of the ICMRS, has been named as Associate Dean for Academic Affairs and Int'l Programs, College of Engineering and Applied Sciences, at Stony Brook University.

Dr. Changsheng Liu, lifetime member of the ICMRS, has been elected to Chinese Academy of Engineering.