Lindsey A. Criswell, MD, MPH, DSc, Director of National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases (NIAMS) at the National Institutes of Health (NIH), Kicks Off the Ninth Annual Vail Scientific Summit with Keynote Address
VAIL, Colo. – The ninth annual Vail Scientific Summit (VSS)— “Advancing Healthy Aging Science on a Global Scale”—began its three-day run on Sunday, Aug. 18, 2024, at The Hythe Resort in Vail with a keynote address from one of the directors of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), Dr. Lindsey Criswell. The VSS is presented each August by Steadman Philippon Research Institute (SPRI).
With the Summit’s primary focus on regenerative and translational medicine and healthy aging since the inaugural event in 2015, founder Dr. Johnny Huard, chief scientific officer at SPRI, has always sought to invite speakers from the NIH, as Dr. Criswell describes it, “the largest biomedical research program in the world.”
Dr. Criswell has served as the director of the National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases (NIAMS) since February 2021. The mission and focus of her institute at the NIH include musculoskeletal diseases and disorders of the bones, joints, muscles, and skin.
“We also support research from the very basic laboratory-based research all the way through to translational and clinical research and research at the population level,” said Dr. Criswell.
Directing the studies and research in all those areas made Dr. Criswell an excellent candidate for the keynote address at the VSS. She came to Vail both to contribute to the discussion and participate in the learning that takes place at this event, which has become one of the most influential scientific meetings in North America each year. The topic of regenerative medicine particularly intrigued Dr. Criswell.
“Work in this field has been underway for at least 20 years, but there's been very rapid progress in the last five years or so,” noted Dr. Criswell. “That's why it is such a privilege to be attending this summit here in Vail to hear about all the very exciting developments in the area of regenerative medicine.”
Dr. Criswell expressed the relevance of regenerative medicine and aging to her role as director of NIAMS.
“Many of the diseases and disorders within NIAMS’ mission areas are ripe for regenerative medicine approaches,” continued Dr. Criswell. “In addition to regenerative medicine, increasingly there's also recognition that we have greater ability to analyze very complex data sets. To derive the most benefit from the data that can be generated with our new technologies, we need to understand how to generate the data in a rigorous and reproducible way, analyze it and then disseminate that data to researchers around the world for maximum benefit.”
The focus on new discoveries in the field of aging also was a draw for Dr. Criswell.
“There is a tremendous intersection between the concept and science of aging and NIAMS, and that's part of the reason why we have such a strong collaboration with the National Institute on Aging,” Dr. Criswell said. “We think it's critically important for us to understand those underlying processes of aging so that we can understand its impact on musculoskeletal and skin diseases. I'm really delighted to see aging, as well as musculoskeletal disease, as major focuses of this meeting.”
Collaboration has been consistently mentioned by speakers each summer at the VSS. Collaboration and the concept of team science were also attractions for Dr. Criswell to speak at this year’s event.
“I was so pleased to see that team science would be a focus of this meeting,” said Dr. Criswell. “It's a very high priority for NIAMS and for the NIH, and it really takes a village to tackle the complex problems related to health and disease.
“Team science requires individuals with different types of training, backgrounds and perspectives, from researchers in the laboratory to clinicians who are deeply familiar with the diseases and conditions,” added Dr. Criswell. “It also must include people who can analyze the data and those who can bring these discoveries to the bedside. It is very apparent that the professionals attending this summit in Vail really strive to do that.”
Dr. Criswell summed up the goals of her work at NIAMS and the NIH.
“The ultimate goal is to improve health and quality of life,” said Dr. Criswell. “And to do that, we not only have to support very basic discovery research, but we also have to make sure that our basic discoveries are being translated into improvements that will advance and improve the health of all people.”
For further information, contact Lynda Sampson, vice president of external affairs at The Steadman Clinic and SPRI (lsampson@sprivail.org).