ARVO 2023: Celebrating the beauty of diversity in science and nature

The Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology (ARVO) 2023 annual meeting is convening in New Orleans from April 23 to 27 at the Ernest N. Morial Convention Center. (Image Credit: Adobe Stock/Kevin Rusk)

The Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology (ARVO) 2023 annual meeting is convening in New Orleans from April 23 to 27 at the Ernest N. Morial Convention Center.

Diversity is the key word for 2023. According to the conference organizers, the theme of the Annual Meeting speaks both to the mechanistic diversity in ocular disease in addition to the diversity of vision scientists who are from multiple backgrounds and perspectives.

Attendees have the opportunity to listen to paper presentations, symposia, and lectures, and participate in discussions with poster presenters as well as industry representations by the leading ophthalmic manufacturers in the exhibit hall. This extensive meeting showcases new research and provides the opportunity to network with colleagues and industry thought-leaders.

The organizers invite attendees to embrace and celebrate this diversity at the 2023 ARVO Annual Meeting as we share our research and pursue our common goals of improving people's vision and lives.”

Meeting registration is available at https://www.arvo.org/annual-meeting/registration2/registration/

All times listed are central daylight time.

However, it’s not all work. ARVO provides numerous opportunities for downtime and fun (see sidebar).

Scientific program

The program is exhaustive and includes thousands of poster and paper presentations by up-and-coming scientists and world leaders in their respective fields. However, the events start even before the official conference kick-off on April 23. Use this link for topics, dates, and times of the presentations: https://www.arvo.org/annual-meeting/meeting-info/meeting-info/

Pre-meeting events

The Bench to Bedside (B2B) Meeting, scheduled for Friday, April 21, educates eye and vision scientists on advancing translational ideas to clinically applied products and provides the opportunity to interact with venture capitalists and learn how to take a new discovery to market. Guidance is provided on turning translational ideas into medical products, obtaining funding, clinical trial phases, technology transfer, patents, and regulatory concerns among others.

The year’s keynote speaker is Adrienne Graves, PhD. Registration is available at https://www.arvo.org/meetings/bench-to-bedside-meeting/register/

At the Imaging in the Eye Conference, Friday, April 21, and Saturday, April 22, members of the basic science, clinical, engineering and industrial communities gather to discuss new techniques and methods for ocular imaging and applications to clinical ophthalmology, fundamental vision research and biomedicine.

Richard Spaide, MD, is the invited speaker. Registration is available at https://www.arvo.org/meetings/imaging-in-the-eye-conference/registration/

Full- and half-day Education courses are scheduled for Saturday, April 22. The topics include artificial intelligence, diabetic retinopathy, electrophysiologic research, electronic health records, power/sample size calculations, randomized clinical trials, registry of ophthalmic diseases, and genetic testing. For more information, visit: https://www.arvo.org/annual-meeting/program/education-courses/

Main ARVO events

Lectures

The opening keynote of the ARVO/Alcon Keynote Series is scheduled for Sunday, April 23, 10:15 -11:45 AM. Jennifer Lippincott-Schwartz, PhD, Howard Hughes Medical Institute,
Janelia Research Campus, Ashburn, VA, will deliver the address entitled “Emerging imaging technologies to study subcellular architecture, dynamics, and function.”

The Closing Keynote address is slated for Thursday, April 27, 4 - 5:15 PM. Ivan R. Schwab, MD, FACS, Professor Emeritus of Ophthalmology, University of California, Davis, will speak on “The beauty of sensory diversity.”

Award Lectures

Four award lectures are planned:

The Proctor Medal Lecture: Monday, April 24, 8:45 - 9:30 AM. The award recipient, Eric A. Pierce, MD, PhD, FARVO, will deliver the address entitled, “Ophthalmology at the forefront of precision medicine: From genes to therapies for inherited retinal degenerations.”
Friedenwald Award Lecture: Monday,April 24, 9:30-10:15 AM. The recipient is Tien Y. Wong, MBBS, PhD, FARVO, who will speak on “The diabetic retinopathy “pandemic” and evolving global strategies.”

The Weisenfeld Award Lecture: Wednesday, April 26, 8:45-9:30 AM CT. The recipient Leonard Levin, MD, PhD, FARVO, will deliver the address entitled “Iliad and Odyssey: A journey weaving and unweaving the axon.”

The Cogan Award Lecture: Wednesday, April 26, 9:30-10:15 AM. Recipient Budd Tucker, PhD, will speak on “Treating inherited retinal degenerative blindness.”

The Champalimaud Vision Award Lecture: Tuesday, April 25, 6:30 - 7:30 PM. Claes Dohlman, MD, PhD, and Gerrit Melles, MD, PhD, will discuss their revolutionary research and treatment of corneal diseases.

Special programs

Symposia

On Sunday, April 23, 8 – 10 AM, attendees can hear experts discuss “Functional retinal imaging: Optoretinography and beyond,” “Cell death in ocular health and disease: Mechanisms and emerging therapeutics,” and “Mechanisms behind myopia control treatments.”

Symposia on Thursday, April 27, 8 – 10 AM will feature discussions on “Advanced molecular and bioinformatics methods define a new horizon for eye disease” and “Aging and sex as risk factors across multiple eye diseases – understanding the biological roles they play.”

Breakfast with an Expert

The novel event on Tuesday, April 25, from 7 - 8:30 AM gives attendees the chance to be face-to-face with key leaders in dozens of areas. TheErnest N. Morial Convention Center is the venue. Those interested can register at the same time as registration for the ARVO meeting: https://www.arvo.org/annual-meeting/registration2/registration/

2023 Special Sessions Guidelines

These 90-minute sessions are sprinkled throughout the conference dates. The topics are determined by the presenters and are as yet to be determined. See the ARVO website for more details.

In the event that scientists are unable to attend ARVO 2023, the dates for ARVO 2024 are May 5-9 in Seattle.