2015 URBAN ARCH Annual Meeting Highlights

URBAN ARCH Annual Meeting

Tuesday, April 28 – Wednesday, April 29, 2015
801 Massachusetts Ave, Crosstown Building, Boston, MA

Annual Meeting 1

The fourth URBAN ARCH Annual Meeting held April 28-29, 2015 brought together approximately 55 investigators, staff, Scientific Advisory Panel members, and other collaborators to discuss the progress and future direction of the URBAN ARCH Consortium. The meeting began with internal meetings for the cores and cohorts to discuss grant renewal ideas and cross-cohort papers. The day also featured a presentation by Dr. Peter Hunt, Associate Professor of Medicine at the University of California San Francisco, entitled “Immunity and Inflammation in HIV and Alcohol’s Potential Role.” On Wednesday morning, the meeting began with a welcome and introduction by Dr. Jeffrey Samet, PI of the URBAN ARCH Consortium. Dr. Kendall Bryant, the Consortium’s NIAAA Scientific Collaborator, spoke to attendees about the importance of HIV/alcohol research and the future of the NIAAA CHAART initiative. Presentations by the cores and cohorts followed, with a focus on progress, challenges, results, and next steps.

The meeting continued Wednesday afternoon with a closed session involving URBAN ARCH and the Scientific Advisory Panel. Dr. Debbie Cheng of the BDM Core presented on statistical approaches utilized in the Consortium, followed by presentations by each cohort on grant renewal and analyses ideas. The Scientific Advisory Panel offered feedback and advice. This annual meeting once again provided important face-to-face time for the multi-institutional URBAN ARCH investigators and staff to discuss projects together as a consortium. If you would like access to meeting presentations or related materials, please contact Carly Bridden.

Annual Meeting 2

Pictures clockwise from the top and l-r: Peter Hunt, Christine Chaisson, and Kaku So-Armah; Cake to celebrate the cohorts meeting their recruitment goals; Carly Bridden, Kendall Bryant, and Matt Freiberg; Winnie Muyindike and Meg Sullivan; Laura Vercammen, Margo Godersky, Kate Haworth, and Lucero Leon-Chi; Judy Hahn, David Bangsberg, and Jeffrey Samet