7:30 am Check In & Registration
8:20 am Program Director’s Opening Remarks
8:25 am Chair’s Opening Remarks
8:29 am
Leveraging Advances in Omics Technologies to Dive Deeper into Disease Pathomechanisms & Uncover Novel Efficacious Targets
8:30 am Expanding the Cellular Atlas of Fibrosis by Illuminating Pathogenic Cell Types & States
Synopsis
- Harnessing single-cell and spatial transcriptomics to profile rare and transitional cell populations driving fibrogenesis
- Characterizing epithelial-to-mesenchymal plasticity and fibroblast subtypes across tissues and disease stages
- Identifying druggable targets in cell types previously overlooked due to limitations in resolution or sampling
9:00 am Rewiring Vascular Remodeling Pathways in Pulmonary Hypertension & Fibrotic Vascular Disease
Synopsis
- Explore the role of integrins and key proliferative signalling pathways in driving vascular remodelling and smooth muscle hyperplasia in pulmonary hypertension
- Highlight emerging preclinical insights from transcriptomic and in vivo studies identifying actionable targets for reversing vascular stiffness and dysfunction
- Assess how vascular-targeted antifibrotic approaches could translate to broader fibrotic conditions involving vascular remodelling, including systemic sclerosis
Examining Additional Fibrotic Indications to Expand Mechanistic Insight & Inform Cross-Tissue Strategy
9:30 am Understanding & Targeting Renal Fibrosis to Advance Antifibrotic Innovation
Synopsis
- Explore the key signalling pathways and cellular players including myofibroblasts, epithelial cells, macrophages driving CKD progression and fibrogenesis
- Explore omics-driven insights into spatial and cellular heterogeneity within nephron structures to inform more precise therapeutic approaches
- Examine the promise of ROCK2 inhibition, including preclinical and early clinical findings from GRV-101, and how biomarker-driven strategies are guiding antifibrotic drug development in renal disease
10:00 am Speed Networking
Synopsis
This informal session provides the perfect opportunity to connect with the industry
frontrunners and key opinion leaders focusing on fibrosis across the lung, liver, kidney, cardiac, gastrointestinal and scleroderma landscapes.
Establish meaningful connections to build upon for the rest of the conference and gain exclusive first-hand insights into the latest research and developments driving progression across the cross-fibrosis disease field.
10:45 am Morning Break
11:00 am Reducing Multi-Organ Fibrosis Through Adiponectin Signaling to Restore Metabolic Homeostasis & Systemic Health
Synopsis
- Explore the role of adiponectin receptor signalling in modulating inflammation and fibrosis in preclinical models of fibrotic disease
- Discuss therapeutic strategies aimed at reversing adipose, hepatic, and cardiac tissue fibrosis to reduce multi-organ fibrotic burden
11:30 am Building Confidence with Translational Tools to Predict Efficacy Before the Clinic
Synopsis
- Explore how advanced preclinical tools, including immune-fibrotic feedback loops, and disease-relevant models, can derisk antifibrotic opportunities ahead of clinical trials
- Discuss how to move beyond molecular engagement and albuminuria to demonstrate functional and structural changes predictive of long-term efficacy in fibrosis
- Examine how applying clinical insights from the renal space are informing better antifibrotic strategies for Phase 2 readiness
Designing a Preclinical Package to Provide Confidence in Candidate Selection & Streamline Clinical Development
12:00 pm Enhancing Confidence in Candidates Through Human Precision-Cut Tissue Slices as a Preclinical Platform for Development & Testing of Anti- Fibrotic Therapeutics
Synopsis
- Human precision-cut lung slices retain the cellular complexity and architecture of the native tissue in culture
- Established, dynamic models of tissue inflammation and fibrogenesis in precision-cut lung slices
- Application of PCLS for drug testing, target engagement and fibrogenesis in PCLS
12:30 pm Leveraging Common Cross-Tissue Fibrotic Mechanisms to Validate Drug Candidates
Synopsis
- Identifying common fibrotic mechanisms across liver, lung and kidney fibrosis to enable a unified approach to anti-fibrotic discovery and accelerate drug development
- Using precision cut lung slices, multi omics to provide a highly physiologically relevant model enhances predictive accuracy of physiologically relevant models
- Leveraging reverse translation to ensure alignment between preclinical studies and human disease biology to increase likelihood of clinical success
1:00 pm Lunch Break
2:00 pm Panel Discussion: What Does Good Look Like for Investors & Pharma? Defining Value & De-Risking Strategies to Attract Investment in Antifibrotics
Synopsis
As competition and innovation grow across fibrosis indications, clarity on what makes a compelling therapeutic story is more essential than ever. This panel brings together experts to explore how to shape preclinical packages that spark commercial interest and secure partnerships.
Key Discussion Points:
- What types of efficacy, durability, mechanism, safety, and translatability data do investors and pharma want to see at early stages to build confidence?
- Which companies, modalities, and strategies are resonating in the market today, and what differentiates them from the noise?
- How important is timing (first-in-class vs best-in-class), and what role do management teams, clinical strategies, and disease area focus play in the decision to invest or partner?
Advancing Imaging & Biomarker Discovery & Development to Quantify Fibrosis, Demonstrate Efficacy & Determine Patient Populations
2:30 pm Using Biomarkers to Support a Precision Medicine Approach to Antifibrotic Drug Development
Synopsis
- Demonstrating target engagement early in your program
- Exploring the impact of engaging your target in downstream biomarkers
- Applying the observed effect of downstream biomarkers to select the patient population for late-stage clinical development
3:00 pm Exploring Molecular Imaging with Collagen-Targeted PET to Measure Real-Time Collagen Reversal
Synopsis
- Explore a novel case study of a 12‑week, placebo-controlled clinical trial utilizing 68Ga‑CBP8 collagen‑targeted PET to directly visualize and quantify collagen turnover in the lungs of patients with fibrotic disease
- Examine how non-invasive imaging data aligned with changes in clinical endpoints including lung function, symptom severity, and circulating biomarkers, providing a multi-dimensional view of therapeutic response
- Uncover insights on how this approach offers a translational bridge between preclinical engagement and clinical efficacy, supporting smarter, faster decision-making in antifibrotic drug development
3:30 pm Afternoon Break & Poster Session
Synopsis
Immerse yourself in an engaging session in a relaxed atmosphere that encourages
meaningful conversations and discussions. Explore a range of exciting poster
presentations and showcase your own research and developments in the antifibrotics
therapeutics space. Don’t miss out on the chance to connect, learn, and present. Get
ready to be impressed!
4:30 pm Leveraging Proteomics to Identify Treatment-Responsive Biomarkers in a Rare Genetic Fibrotic Liver Disease (AATD-LD)
Synopsis
- Explore how high-throughput Olink proteomics and single-nucleus RNA sequencing (Snucseq) can be combined to map dynamic changes in protein expression across liver cell types in response to therapy
- Highlight treatment responsive individual proteins and pathways involved in cell stress, inflammation, and ECM remodeling
- Discuss the translational relevance of circulating biomarkers as indicators of therapeutic response in hepatocyte damage and subsequent information and fibrosis in AATD-LD with implications for broader fibrotic liver disease contexts
Examining the Clinical Landscape: Where do Antifibrotics Fit into an Evolving Landscape
5:00 pm Panel Discussion: Clinical Perspectives on Positioning Antifibrotics in a Post-GLP-1 World
Synopsis
As GLP-1 receptor agonists continue to redefine the treatment landscape for metabolic diseases, antifibrotic developers face mounting pressure to demonstrate clinical value beyond metabolic control. This panel explores the evolving expectations for antifibrotic therapies in MASH and beyond, as well as the implications of real-world GLP-1 usage.
Key Questions for Discussion:
- Who are the patients not responding that would benefit from additional therapeutic?
- How do we position these therapeutics to help the most people in the context of the new approvals?
- What does combination therapy look like in the post-GLP-1 world? How must antifibrotics differentiate themselves and prove additive value?
- Do GLP-1s sufficiently address fibrotic burden in MASH patients with moderate-to severe disease (F2–F4), or is there still a clear need for targeted antifibrotics?
- What happens to fibrosis progression in patients who discontinue GLP-1s? Are we underestimating the risk of rebound pathology?
- How can clinical trials be designed to account for the variability in GLP-1 exposure, adherence, and metabolic response in real-world populations?