Letter of Invitation

Dear Colleagues:

I am pleased to cordially invite you to participate in the 12th Annual Meeting of the American Society of Gene Therapy that will take place in San Diego, California, USA from May 27 through May 30, 2009.

The ASGT Program Committee in conjunction with many scientific and standing committees have put together an exceptional program that will highlight the many important scientific and clinical advances in the field of gene and cell therapy. The Annual Meeting will begin earlier in 2009, with a full day of programs on Wednesday. The day will begin at 8:30 am with symposia dedicated to Gene & Cell Therapy Clinical Trials from around the Globe, the Biologic License Application Validation Process, and many other cutting edge symposia. In the early evening, we will once again feature the popular education sessions; I encourage experienced scientists who are interested in adding a new dimension to their research portfolio to attend the various Emerging Field Reviews and all post-doctoral fellows and students to attend the various Topical Reviews to gain broader knowledge of our vast field.

Beginning on Thursday, the popular oral abstract presentations and poster sessions will be featured every day of the meeting. The highly attended Meet-the-Investigator lunch sessions will again be held on Thursday and Saturday afternoons. We also plan to hold an Industry Supported symposium and Foundation Supported symposium in the evenings on Thursday and Friday.

This year, the plenary lectures will all highlight Cancer Cell Therapy. The George Stamatoyannopoulos Lecture will be given by Brian J. Druker, MD, Director of the Oregon Health and Science University Knight Cancer Institute on Thursday, May 28. The Presidential Symposium on Saturday, May 30 will feature presentations by John Carpten, PhD on Interrogation of Cancer Genomes for the Discovery of Novel Therapeutic Targets, John J. Nemunaitis, MD on Personalized Cancer Gene Therapy, Helen E. Heslop, MD on Immunotherapy of Viral Infections and Malignancy, and Chiara Bonini, MD on T-cell Based Gene Therapy to Improve Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplantation.

The program will also include a plenary session of the Top Abstracts submitted to the Annual Meeting and a plenary session of the Outstanding New Investigator Awardees. Nominations for the Outstanding New Investigator Awards are open through early March via the ASGT website. In addition, I am honored to announce that a plenary lecture will be given by Dr. Inder Verma, the 2009 Outstanding Achievement Award Winner, entitled 25 Years of Gene Therapy: Ups and Downs.

San Diego is the perfect location for ASGT’s 12th Annual Meeting. The city is renowned for its idyllic climate, beaches and tourist attractions, the world-famous San Diego Zoo and Wild Animal Park, Sea World San Diego and LEGOLAND California. I hope you will come for the meeting and stay for the sites!

My gratitude to all of you who have helped to develop and organize this outstanding program. I look forward to seeing you in San Diego.

Sincerely,

David M. Bodine, PhD
President, ASGT