Featured Speakers
Meet the invited and featured speakers contributing to the scientific programme in Split — from vascular ageing and arterial haemodynamics to AI, clinical translation, and emerging technologies.
Headline Lectures
Programme highlights spanning translational vascular ageing research and arterial wave phenomena.
Douglas R. Seals
USA
Opening Lecture
Translational research approaches to study vascular ageing: the case of aerobic exercise
CU Distinguished Professor at the Department of Integrative Physiology, the University of Colorado Boulder. His primary research focus is cardiovascular aging, where he investigates the physiological and molecular mechanisms behind arterial dysfunction and stiffening. Through his work, he explores innovative lifestyle and therapeutic interventions—such as aerobic exercise, breathing training, and targeted supplements—aimed at improving vascular health and extending human healthspan. Over a highly prolific career, he has authored more than 400 peer-reviewed scientific publications in top-tier medical journals In addition to his scientific discoveries, Dr. Seals is widely recognized as a dedicated academic mentor who frequently publishes guides to help early-career investigators master essential skills like grant writing, peer review, and laboratory management.
Nikolaos Stergiopoulos
Switzerland
McDonald Lecture · Honorary Lecture
Modeling and analysis of wave phenomena in the arterial system: from pure science to inverse modeling and AI-driven applications
Full Professor at EPFL and Director of the Laboratory of Hemodynamics and Cardiovascular Technology. His research focuses on hemodynamics, cardiovascular mechanics, arterial wave propagation, ventricular–arterial coupling, and the noninvasive estimation of central cardiovascular parameters using mathematical models and AI-driven approaches. He has published more than 250 peer-reviewed papers, holds over 25 medical technology patents, and has co-founded several successful medtech companies, including EndoArt SA, a pioneer in telemetrically powered implants, and Comphya SA, developing implantable electrostimulation devices. He is also the founder and CEO of Rheon Medical SA, which develops innovative glaucoma drainage implants for the surgical treatment of glaucoma.
AI & Digital Vascular Health
Featured speakers exploring photoplethysmography, cardiac MRI and AI-driven approaches to cardiovascular and cerebrovascular health.
Peter Charlton
UK
Session 1 · AI Applications in Vascular Ageing
AI applications in PPG signal analysis
British Heart Foundation Research Fellow at the University of Cambridge. He develops biomedical signal-processing methods for wearable and clinical devices, with a particular interest in photoplethysmography, digital health and cardiovascular screening.
Vivek Muthurangu
UK
Session 1 · AI Applications in Vascular Ageing
Fully automated measurement of PWV from routine cardiac MRI studies
Professor of Cardiovascular Imaging and Physics at UCL, Deputy Director of the Institute of Cardiovascular Science and Head of the Research Department of Children’s Cardiovascular Disease. His multidisciplinary team develops advanced cardiovascular imaging methods with direct clinical applications.
Sandra Ortega-Martorell
UK
SESSION 1 · AI APPLICATIONS IN VASCULAR AGEING
AI-driven virtual twins in stroke prevention and management: multimodal approaches
Professor of Data Science at Liverpool John Moores University. Her work applies machine learning and AI to complex healthcare problems, including cardiovascular disease and stroke, and she leads research on explainable, causal and digital-twin approaches.
Clinical Translation & Vascular
Invited and featured contributions connecting vascular biology, clinical evidence, prevention and treatment.
Gorana Čapkun
Switzerland
INVITED LECTURE · SESSION 4 · REAL-WORLD EVIDENCE
Real world evidence: from real patients to better care
Global Head of Patient Focused Real World Evidence at Merck Healthcare. Her work centres on real-world data, integrated evidence planning and the use of evidence to support healthcare and drug-development decision making.
Rosa Maria Bruno
France
INVITED LECTURE · SESSION 6 · TARGETING ARTERIAL STIFFNESS AND INTEGRATING IT INTO CLINICAL DECISION PATHWAYS
Arterial stiffness: marker or target?
Professor of Clinical Pharmacology at Université Paris Cité and clinician at Hôpital Européen Georges-Pompidou. Her research focuses on vascular ageing, its non-invasive assessment and therapeutic strategies to counteract it. She has a strong commitment for cardiovascular prevention in women and gender issues in medicine. She is Nucleus Member in the ESC Council of Hypertension, vice-president of the Artery Society, past chair of ESH Working Group on large arteries.
Luca Faconti
UK
SESSION 6 · TARGETING ARTERIAL STIFFNESS AND INTEGRATING IT INTO CLINICAL DECISION PATHWAYS
Aldosterone in vascular ageing: the next target for prevention?
Clinical Lecturer at King’s College London and Honorary Consultant in Cardiovascular Clinical Pharmacology at Guy’s and St Thomas’. His research focuses on hypertension-mediated organ damage including arterial stiffness and cardiac remodelling. He has extensive expertise in non-invasive assessment of cardiovascular structure and function using multi-modality imaging.
Amani Norling
USA
SESSION 6 · TARGETING ARTERIAL STIFFNESS AND INTEGRATING IT INTO CLINICAL DECISION PATHWAYS
Arterial stiffness in cerebrovascular ageing: from neuroaxonal injury and cognition to cardiovascular reserve
John Petrie
UK
INVITED LECTURE · SESSION 8 · VASCULAR AGEING IN DIABETES
Vascular ageing in diabetes
John Petrie is Professor of Diabetes at the University of Glasgow and Director of the Robertson Centre for Biostatistics and Glasgow Clinical Trials Unit, leading a 70-strong team running over 40 clinical trials. His research centres on cardiovascular and metabolic disease, spanning landmark trials such as REMOVAL (metformin in type 1 diabetes), DiRECT (type 2 diabetes remission), ALL-HEART (secondary cardiovascular prevention), and IRONMAN (intravenous iron in heart failure). He sits on several national and international research panels — including NIHR, Diabetes UK, and the UK Commission on Human Medicines — and is an Honorary Consultant in Diabetes with NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde.
Peter M. Nilsson
Sweden
SESSION 8 · VASCULAR AGEING IN DIABETES
The effect of modern anti-diabetes drugs on vascular ageing
Peter M. Nilsson is Professor of Clinical Cardiovascular Research at Lund University, Sweden. His research focuses on cardiovascular and metabolic risk, particularly Early Vascular Aging (EVA), arterial stiffness, glucose metabolism, atherosclerosis, and diabetes. He has extensive experience leading large population-based cardiovascular studies and is Director of the EpiHealth strategic research programme linking Lund and Uppsala universities. He has published more than 450 original research papers and 120 reviews in peer-reviewed journals.
Debate
Two contrasting perspectives on a central question in cardiovascular physiology.
Eric Stöhr
Germany
The Heart
The heart is the major driver of the circulation
Professor at the Institute of Sports Science, Leibniz University Hannover. His research spans cardiovascular physiology, cardiac function and mechanics, exercise haemodynamics and advanced echocardiographic assessment.
Carmel McEniery
UK
The Vessels
The vessels are the major driver of the circulation
Senior Research Associate in Experimental Medicine at the University of Cambridge. Her research has contributed to the understanding of central blood pressure, arterial function and vascular physiology, and she is principal investigator of the Cambridge POPPY study on pre-eclampsia.
Career Development Lectures
Scientific journeys and translational perspectives from researchers working across vascular science.
Jaime Ibarrola Ulzurrun
Spain
Career Development Lecture
The road to vascular stiffness: mechanistic insights from mineralocorticoid receptor signaling, ageing and obesity
Researcher at Navarrabiomed and head of its Vascular Pathophysiology research line. His work focuses on the molecular mechanisms of arterial stiffness and atherosclerosis. As an independent investigator, his current research examines how obesity and metabolic dysfunction accelerate vascular aging and arterial stiffness to identify new therapeutic targets and precision medicine approaches. He previously completed postdoctoral research at Tufts University in Boston.
Andrea Grillo
Italy
Career Development Lecture
Vascular ageing and cardiac perfusion: clinical translation of a revised subendocardial viability ratio
Associate Professor of Internal Medicine at the University of Trieste. His clinical and research activities focus on cardiovascular risk stratification, arterial stiffness, pulse wave analysis, and non-invasive vascular diagnostics. An active ARTERY Society member since 2017, he has also contributed to international vascular ageing initiatives, including the VascAgeNet COST Action.
Matthew K. Armstrong
USA
Career Development Lecture
Circulating the globe for cardiovascular research: from physiology to epidemiology
Dr. Matthew K. Armstrong is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Human Performance at Syracuse University, where he directs the Applied Cardiovascular Physiology Lab. His research spans three continents and focuses on uncovering the mechanisms of cardiovascular dysfunction and identifying novel biomarkers to improve the assessment of cardiovascular health. He has published 28 peer-reviewed papers, received the 2022 Journal of Human Hypertension Young Investigator Award, and serves on the Young Investigator Committee of the North American Artery Association.