News Release

Thursday, April 2, 2009

NIH Nanotechnology Task Force and the NIH Nanomedicine Roadmap Initiative Host NanoWeek 2009

The NIH Nanotechnology Task Force and the NIH Nanomedicine Roadmap Initiative will host NanoWeek 2009 from Tuesday, April 7 through Friday, April 10 at the Natcher Conference Center on the NIH campus in Bethesda, Md. NIH's first-of-a-kind series of events focusing on science at the nanoscale, NanoWeek 2009 will include symposia with experts in the field, demonstrations, talks, and posters from NIH scientists.

NanoWeek 2009's first day will include seminars explaining the basic concepts of nanotechnology, followed by summaries of current research being conducted and medical applications of nanotechnology. Speakers include:

  • Dr. Mark Ratner, Northwestern University
  • Dr. Shuming Nie, Emory University
  • Dr. Xiaowei Zhuang, Harvard University
  • Dr. Milan Mrksich, The University of Chicago
  • Dr. Carlos Bustamante, University of California, Berkeley
  • Dr. Mauro Ferrari, The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston
  • Dr. Gang Bao, Georgia Institute of Technology
  • Dr. Ralph Weissleder, Harvard Medical School
  • Dr. Wah Chiu, Baylor College of Medicine
  • Dr. Martin Philbert, University of Michigan

On Wednesday, NIH scientists will discuss ongoing nanotechnology research being performed at the NIH, along with more than 30 posters presenting work from NIH's labs. There will be afternoon tours of nanotechnology labs at the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute, the National Cancer Institute, the National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases, the National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering, and the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke.

In coordination with IEEE, a leading professional association for the advancement of technology, NIH will conduct a workshop on Nanomedicine on Thursday and Friday. This will provide an opportunity for engineers and physical scientists to exhibit their cutting-edge technology, as well as to learn about possible biological applications for these technologies. Regulatory and intellectual property aspects of nanoresearch will also be addressed, in combination with presentations from some of the major industry efforts in the field.

Events on Tuesday and Wednesday are open to the public and free of charge. Registration for the lab tours will open on April 1. The nanomedicine workshop on Thursday and Friday requires registration, which is located at https://roan2.wustl.edu/. The full week's agenda, as well as further information on NanoWeek 2009, can be found at http://www.capconcorp.com/nanoweek2009/. For more information on nanotechnology at the National Institutes of Health, see the Web sitehttp://www.nibib.nih.gov/Research/NIHNano.

The National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering (NIBIB), a component of the National Institutes of Health, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, is dedicated to improving human health through the integration of the physical and biological sciences. The research agenda of the NIBIB will dramatically advance the Nation's health by improving the detection, management, understanding, and ultimately, the prevention of disease. Additional information and publications are available atwww.nibib.nih.gov.

About the National Institutes of Health (NIH): NIH, the nation's medical research agency, includes 27 Institutes and Centers and is a component of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. NIH is the primary federal agency conducting and supporting basic, clinical, and translational medical research, and is investigating the causes, treatments, and cures for both common and rare diseases. For more information about NIH and its programs, visit www.nih.gov.

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