Conclave Gallery

The event was inaugurated by Prof. (Dr.) Madhabananda Kar, Executive Director of AIIMS Jodhpur and Prof (Dr.) MK Garg, Medical Supdt of AIIMS Jodhpur. Message from Prof (Dr) VM Katoch, former DG ICMR was presented. Prof (Dr.) NK Mehra former Dean AIIMS Delhi and chair ICMR working group on stem cells virtually addressed the gathering.

Day 1 was largely dedicated to Presentations and Panel Discussions on Stem Cells, Cellular Therapy & Gene Therapy Clinical Applications, Guidelines and Policies.

Dr. Gaurav Kharya, Apollo Delhi presented Bone Marrow Transplant and Gene Therapy comparison. Dr. Debajyoti Chakraborty, IGIB Delhi delved into reading and writing the genome with CRISPR. Dr. Rahul Purwar, IIT Mumbai shared experience of CAR-T cell therapy, and Dr. Geeta Jotwani, ICMR elucidated the guidelines and regulations of cell and gene therapy in India. Prof. (Dr.) R.R. Sharma, PGI Chandigarh provided insights into stem cell therapy and Clinical Trials. Dr. Asawari Bapat, AABB cellular Therapy Committee discussed cGMP processes and product development. Dr. Sumathi Hiregoudar, ACTREC shared experience of initiating a CAR-T cellular therapy program. Dr. Sandeep Kumar Kailey, Drug Control Officer detailed the legal provisions under the Drugs and Cosmetic Act and Rules.

Day 1 panel discussions centered around key challenges for starting HSCT and cellular therapy programs in India, aspects like regulatory, quality standards, and accreditation. It was moderated by Prof. Uday Kulkarni, CMC Vellore, and included experts such as Prof. (Dr.) Suresh K. Sharma, AIIMS Jodhpur (Nursing Aspects), Prof. (Dr.) Tanuj Kanchan, AIIMS Jodhpur (Medico-Legal Aspects), Dr. Asawari Bapat, (Accreditation and GMP), Dr. Geeta Jotwani, ICMR (ICMR & Regulatory Guidelines), Dr. Gaurav Kharya, (Corporate Aspects), Dr. Ruchi Garg, AIIMS Jodhpur (Hospital Management), Dr. Siyaram Didel, AIIMS Jodhpur (Haematology Aspects), Dr. Gopal Patidar, AIIMS New Delhi (Blood Bank), Dr. Romesh Jain, AIIMS Bhopal (Blood Bank), and Dr. Sandeep Kailey, Drug Control Officer, Jhalawar (Licensing).

Day 3 was focussed on Basic and Translational research related to Stem cells and Tissue Engineering. The Day three opening remarks were from Prof Anurag Agarwal former Director IGIB, Prof Subrata Sinha former Dean AIIMS New Delhi and Prof SS Chauhan Head of Biochemistry and Biotechnology AIIMS New Delhi. Dr. Sandeep Eswarappa, IISc Bangalore showed exciting new evidence of protein synthesis in human erythrocytes and its therapeutic potential, Prof. (Dr.) Shaji Kumar, Mayo Clinic, USA presented advances in CAR-T Cell therapy for Multiple Myeloma. Dr. Saptarshi Mandal, AIIMS Jodhpur discussed  the hazards associated with cellular and gene therapy. Prof. (Dr.) Rajiv Garg, Director LHMC & Former DG of Health Services of India reviewed ophthalmologic applications of stem cells and gene therapy. Dr. Prasenjit Sarkar, IIT Jodhpur shared his research on generating better kidney organoids from embryonic stem cells, and Dr. Indranil Banerjee, IIT Jodhpur highlighted the significant advancements of tissue engineering. Dr Raviraj, IIT Jodhpur explained phototheranostic applications of RBC mimicking nanoparticles. Dr Vianni Chopra, Mexico elucidated applications of carbon ceramic nanocomposites for orchestration of angiogenesis and osteogenesis by stem cells.

The panel discussion highlighted challenges in the field, encompassing experimental therapy, IND license for cell or tissue products, and applications in oncology and regenerative medicine. Moderated by Prof. (Dr.) Rajiv Garg, the panel discussion included eminent experts like Prof Amit Dinda, AIIMS New Delhi, Dr Geeta Jotwani, Dr Debojyoti Chakraborty, Dr Sandeep Kailey, Drug Control Officer, and Dr Biplabendu Talukdar, regenerative medicine researcher, Kolkata, and Dr Ravi Gaur, Dr KK Shukla and Dr Pramod Pal from AIIMS Jodhpur.

Each presentation was moderated by eminent experts from the field like Prof (Dr) Kuldeep Singh, Dean Acad AIIMS Jodhpur, Prof (Dr) Neelam Marwaha, former Head Tranfusion PGIMER Chandigarh, Dr. Debasish Gupta, President ISTM

Prof G. S. Toteja, Former Director DMRC, CEO JCKIF, addressed and expressed his support for the conclave as a concluding remark.