• dates: August 25, 26 and 27, 2021
• four internationally leading keynote speakers: Matthias Lutolf (Switzerland), Yoon-Kyoung Cho (South Korea), Claudia dos Santos (Canada) and Jason Burdick (USA)
• +40 on-demand presentations about leading-edge research in biofabrication approaches, organ-chips, microfluidic-powered diagnostic devices
• fireside chat with Daniela Marino, CEO and co-founder of Cutiss AG (Switzerland)
• selected research presentations from the National Research Council’s Pandemic Response Challenge program
• a trainee networking event with symposium keynote speakers and VIP guests from industry and NRC
• an industry exhibit hall for microfluidics companies and vendors
• TOeP Business Pitch Competition and TOeP trainee presentations
• the CRAFT Microfluidics Art Competition
• held on virtual symposium platform, where recordings of sessions will be available for on-demand viewing for 2 weeks
• hosted by the National Research Council of Canada (NRC) and the Training Program in Organ-on-a-Chip Engineering and Entrepreneurship (TOeP)

REGISTRATION IS CLOSED.

Registration Fee: $35(+HST) per person (from academia, government or industry).

Registration fees will be waived for the following individuals:

• CRAFT Fellows and other trainees presenting their CRAFT projects
• Current TOeP trainees and Principal Investigators
• Early career researchers who have been an independent investigator at a university or research hospital for 3 years or less AND anyone who is part of their research team.

If you are eligible for free registration and would like to attend the Symposium, please email the CRAFT Research Program Manager to be added to the registration list.

Abstracts are now being accepted for poster and oral presentations related to organ-on-chips, microfluidic-powered diagnostic devices, biofabrication/bioprinting approaches, and microfluidic device fabrication and scale up. All abstracts must meet the specifications listed below otherwise they will be rejected.

ABSTRACTS ARE NO LONGER BEING ACCEPTED.

Abstract specifications:

• Overall length limit: ~325 words
• Language requirements: all abstracts should be written in a language that is easy to understand by multiple scientific audiences (e.g., engineers, clinicians, biologists) and include little to no field-specific jargon or highly technical terms.
• Required sections of abstract and character limits:
• Title: Limit:140 characters with spaces (~18 words)
• Author List and Affiliations: no limit
• Rationale & Objective: Briefly describe the problem that you’re trying to solve through your project and the overall objective of your project. Limit: 550 characters with spaces (~75 words)
• Methods: Briefly describe how you are going to achieve your objective and the methods you will use. Limit: 720 characters with spaces (~100 words)
• Results: Briefly describe the progress you’ve made towards your objective, including notable data and results and/or significant challenges. Limit: 720 characters with spaces (~100 words)
• Conclusions & Significance: Summarize your major findings and why they are important/significant and/or your next steps. Limit: 370 characters with spaces (~50 words)

CRAFT Facility users, fellows and researchers are invited to submit images showcasing their cutting-edge research undertaken at the CRAFT facilities in Toronto and in Boucherville. The winners of the Microfluidics Art Competition will receive prizes and be announced during the 2021 CRAFT Virtual Symposium.

SUBMISSION DEADLINE: JUNE 1, 2021

Last updated on August 10, 2021.

The 1.5-hour networking event will be hosted on the gather.town desktop app and will geared towards graduate students and postdoctoral fellows. Participants will be able to select an avatar that they can move around a custom-designed space, including several rooms for networking. Each room will contain a different group of VIP guests (e.g., NRC researchers, science/engineering alumni working in industry, keynote speakers) who will be happy to chat with trainees. There will also be a room for trainees who want to socialize with other trainees.

Only trainees registered for the 2021 CRAFT Virtual Symposium will be eligible to register for and participate in the networking session. Registration for the networking will be free and done separately from the Symposium registration.

Industry

Ana Ramos PhD, R&D Scientist, BenchSci – Toronto

Lorenzo Gutierrez PhD, Site Director, StarFish Medical – Toronto

May Tsai PhD, Director of Regulatory Affairs, Baylis Medical – Mississauga

Mehdi Shahini PhD, Senior Project Manager, Abbott – Ottawa

Entrepreneurship

Leanna Levine PhD, President & CEO, ALine Inc – Los Angeles

Farnoud Kazemzadeh PhD, Co-Founder and VP Engineering, Vital Bio – Waterloo, Canada

National Research Council Canada (NRC)

Byeong-Ui Moon PhD, Research Officer, NRC – Boucherville

Jimin Guo PhD, Research Officer, NRC – Boucherville

Caroline Miville-Godin MASc, Technical Officer, Microfabrication Specialist, NRC – Boucherville

Jason Davis MSc, IP Advisor, NRC

Priyum Koonjul PhD, Client Relationship Leader, Medical Devices Research Center, NRC

Keynotes and Academia

Jason Burdick PhD, Organ-on-Chip Keynote Speaker; Robert D. Bent Professor, University of Pennsylvania, USA

Yoon-Kyoung Cho PhD, Diagnostics Keynote Speaker; Full Professor, Biomedical Engineering, Ulsan National Institute for Science and Technology (UNIST)

Matthias Lütolf PhD, Organ-on-a-Chip Keynote Speaker; Professor, Institute of Bioengineering,École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EFPL), Switzerland

The online symposium platform will include an ‘exhibit hall’ where microfluidics-related companies and vendors can showcase their products and services or recruit new talent. Registrants will be able to access the exhibit and view the booths a week before the symposium, during the symposium and up to a few weeks after the symposium. Booths will consist of a webpage where company representatives can post their contact information, their company’s promotional material (e.g., text, video and/or downloadable PDF) and a link to a Zoom meeting. Each booth also includes a public chat tool and a private video tool for representatives to interact with symposium registrants. Please see below for a screenshot of industry booth from the 2020 CRAFT Virtual Symposium. One hour in the symposium schedule will be dedicated to the exhibit hall. During this hour, registrants will be encouraged to visit the hall and ‘mingle’ with company representatives who should be logged into the virtual platform and ready to chat with registrants.

Any companies interested in hosting a booth at the 2021 CRAFT Virtual Symposium should contact the CRAFT Research Program Manager as soon as possible to register for a booth. Booth fees will include registration for up to 4 company employees, giving them access to all of the Symposium content.