Dr. Epstein is the Executive Vice Dean and Chief Scientific Officer at the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, where he holds the William Wikoff Smith Professorship in Medicine. He received his BA and MD degrees from Harvard University and completed his internship and residency and cardiology fellowship at Brigham and Women’s Hospital. His work has focused on the genetics and developmental biology of the cardiovascular system, including the genetics of congenital heart disease and the use of stem cells for cardiovascular repair. In particular, his lab has elucidated the role of neural crest cells, and the molecular pathways that regulate their migration and differentiation, during vascular formation. These studies have led to the identification of novel pathways regulating angiogenesis and cardiac hypertrophy, demonstrating the implications of developmental studies to the understanding of adult disease. He has been a strong advocate for the physician-scientist and he directed the Clinical Investigator Pathway within the medicine residency program at Penn for many years. He received the Outstanding Investigator Award from the American Federation for Medical Research in 2006 and is a member of the ASCI and AAP. He is an Established Investigator of the American Heart Association and directs multiple NIH and Department of Defense research projects.

University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine (Primary) Ben Z. Stanger, MD, PhD is the representative at this institution.