Reno Rudiman is a Digestive Surgeon at the Hasan Sadikin Hospital in Bandung, Indonesia. Rudiman completed his Master’s degree at the University of Aberdeen, UK, and he was awarded his PhD from the Universitas Padjadjaran, Indonesia. He also finished his training in general surgery and digestive surgery in the Universitas Padjadjaran. Up till now, he has published numerous national as well as international publications on surgery. Rudiman has a special interest in minimal invasive surgery. Rudiman is a national faculty member of the Indonesian Society of Endolaparoscopic Surgery, and regularly teaches endolaparoscopy in national courses.

His research interest is Gastroenterology, Laparoscopy and Minimal Invasive Surgery.

Michael T Fawzy, MD, MSc, MRCP(UK), MRCP(Neph), is a graduate of Minia University Medical School(Egypt). He is dually trained in internal medicine and nephrology . He has fulfilled his training program in 3 countries ie; The UK, Egypt and Saudi Arabia. Fawzy has been practicing since 2001, the last 3 years in London, UK, at Guy’s hospital (selected as one of the top 5 hospitals in the UK). Fawzy’s practice specializes in the care of renal failure in critically ill patients , Chronic kidney disease , Hypertension and Vasculitis. His special interests also include end-of-life issues, advanced directives, and furthering organ procurement. Fawzy is also a clinical associate lecturer of medicine at University Medical School in Egypt and is a member of Royal College of Physicians in London. He used to be lecturer and examiner at King’s college medical school in London. Fawzy has recently appointed as renal and general medicine consultant at Basildon university hospital in the UK. He is leading chronic kidney disease in MSB(Mid Essex, Southend and Basildon hospitals Trusts. He has received Distinguished Award from the Kuwaiti Society of Hypertension (an international society comprised of nephrologists and internists) for his research in recent advances of resistant hypertension treatment . He has received best quality improvement program award in Gulf area from international joint commission(JCI) .

Special interests are CKD, solid organ Transplantation and Cardiorenal syndrome.

Head of Urology , Nephrology and Dialysis Departments in Ajman Speciality General Hospital UAE

Urology , Nephrology and Dialysis

Urologic Oncologist with 13 years of academic and clinical experience in Urologic Oncology and Minimally Invasive Surgery. I am currently heading the Center for Advanced Robotic Surgery at Augusta University Medical Center in Augusta, Georgia. I am also the Director of Urologic Oncology at the Department of Surgery. Before moving to Georgia, I was heading the Center of Robotic Surgery at the prestigious Case Western Reserve University Hospital in Cleveland Ohio. My area of expertise is Urologic Oncology and Robotic Surgery. I have pioneered some of innovative techniques in robotic surgery over the last years. I strongly believe in a multi- disciplinary approach to urological cancer and in integration of clinical and translational research into clinical practice.

Urological cancer and Integration of clinical and Translational research into clinical practice.

The head of Institute for the Nuclear Medicine, Military Medical Academy, Belgrade. Prof. Dr Sc. Med of Nuclear Medicine. Born in Vrginmost, Croatia, February 1st, 1954. Graduated from the University of Belgrade in 1978, Nuclear Medicine specialization in 1984, and in London in 1987. He defends his doctoral thesis in the field of nuclear medicine in 1996. Instructor of Nuclear Medicine for Students Specializing in Internal Medicine and Surgery from 1985. Since 2004. the head of The Institute for the Nuclear Medicine, Military Medical Academy; since 2011. the head of The Group of Diagnostic Institutes at the Military Medical Academy; since 2012. professor in The Medical School of the Military Medical Academy for the course Nuclear Medicine; 2013. tenured professor for the course Nuclear Medicine. Has over 250 specialized and scientific published articles, in domestic and foreign journals, chapters in books: “The Lung Tumors,” 2000, and “Tc Generators,” 2003; author of the chapter in the textbook for the Medical School in the University of Thessaloniki, 2014; Ajdinović, B. at al., “Normal and pathological parathyroid glands,” Medical College, Belgrade, 2004; Ajdinović, B. at al, “Child with an urinary tract infection,” Belgrade, 2008; Ajdinović, B. at al, “Nuclear medicine - Textbook for students in The Medical School of the Military Medical Academy,” Belgrade, 2015. In charge of the nuclear medical research on kidneys in 1987, and, in 2006, of the research about the urinary tract infection in children; participates in the international project “Variability in DMS scintigraphy findings,” in 2007. From 2011 to 2014, participates in the project “Cellular and molecular pathogenetic mechanisms in disorders of reproduction and genital organs - prevention, diagnostics, and therapy” - subproject: “Treatment of antenatal hydronephrosis” of the Ministry of Science and Technological development; from 2011 to 2015, in charge of the project: Nuclear medical research of urinary tract in children: antenatal hydronephrosis, infection of urinary tract in children, and vesicoureteral reflux as causes of renal parenchymal disease. In 2001, awarded The Medal of White Angel from the president of the SR Yugoslavia; in 2008, “Author of the year” by the Military Sanitation Examination magazine; in 2011, awarded third prize at the first Medicinal Olympics in Thessaloniki, and in 2015, the first prize at the third Medicinal Olympics in Thessaloniki. Member of the World Association of Radiopharmacological and Molecular Therapy of the European Society of Nuclear Medicine, Serbian Medical Society, and the Society of Nuclear Medicine of Serbia.

Nuclear medicine

Professor Elisa Mieko Suemitsu Higa has graduated from Medical School in São Paulo, Brazil. After obtaining the Master and PhD degree at the Nephrology Division of Universidade Federal de São Paulo (UNIFESP), she has been at University of Colorado Health Sciences Center, in Denver, Colorado, USA, for a Post Doctoral Program, under Dr Robert W. Schrier supervision, for 2 ½ years . She obtained a specialization title for Nephrology and Intensive Care Medicine. Currently she is a Full Professor of Medicine Department at Universidade Federal de Sao Paulo, UNIFESP. She is the Chief of Nitric Oxide and Oxidative Stress Laboratory and she is involved in the Translational Medicine and Nephrology Post graduation Programs. In the Laboratory, she has currently 12 students under her supervision, including Research Initiation students (2), Master (7), PhD (2) and Post- doctoral (1) applicants. Prof Elisa is an elected Member of Physiology/ Physiopathology Department of Brazilian Society of Nephrology. She is a peer reviewer for Scientific Journals like PLOS ONE, Nitric oxide, ETAP, BMC Research Notes and Medical Principles and Practice. Research Lines: - Studies on pathophysiology of acute renal failure, diabetic nephropathy, aging and metabolic syndrome, targeting mainly on the role of nitric oxide, oxidative stress and inflammatory mediators. - Studies on alternative approaches for the treatment of chronic kidney diseases: exercises, probiotics and antioxidants. Abstract

nephrotoxicity

Dr.Abdelrahman Nimeri is head of the Division of General, Thoracic, & Vascular Surgery.He is the Director of Bariatric & Metabolic Institute (BMI) Abu Dhabi and Quality Review Officer of the department of Surgery Institute of Surgery

Surgery

Dr. K.L Gupta is the Chief of Nephrology in the premier Medical Institute i.e. Postgraduate Institute of Medical Education & Research, Chandigarh, India. After having done MBBS in 1976, he had passed MD(Medicine) in 1980 and then Doctorate of Nephrology (DM) in 1983. He is serving as the faculty member in the department of Nephrology at PGI, Chandigarh since 1983 and has over the years has made an excellent contribution different areas including the Clinical, Academics and Research. He has published more than 200 papers in reputed journals and written 10 chapters in different books. He has also been honored with various fellowships of National Academic of Nephrology in India, Royal College of Physicians, UK, and American Society of Nephrology etc.

He has interest in the area of fungal infections of the native kidney and following post-transplant lymphoproliferative disorders and Lupus Nephritis. He is President-Elect of Indian Society of Organ Transplantation, Vice President of Urology and Transplantation Society of SAARC Countries, past Indian Society of Nephrology, and an active member of International Society of Nephrology and the American Society of Nephrology.

R.G. Singh after doing his MD in Medicine and DM in Nephrology in 1982 from prestigious central university of Asia i.e. Banaras Hindu University joined as faculty at the institute of medical science where he has served as a Assist Prof., Asso Prof., Prof., Dean of faculty and Director of institute and finally he is serving as a lifelong Distinguished Prof. of nephrology at BHU and also Prof & Head of Nephrology in one of the upcoming institute of medical science, HIMS. Prof. Singh has published more than 350 papers in national and international journals, more than 3 dozen orations and has been conferred one dozen fellowships of different scientific bodies and organisations. He has conducted one and half dozen research projects and guided more than 3 dozen postgraduate students in medicine and nephrology. For last 20 years he has been involved in Tribal and Herbal medicine research.

NEPHROLOGY

Mianzhi Zhang has completed hisMD from Hebei MedicalUniversity. He has published more than 90 papers in reputed journals.He got the first prize of the provincescience and technology progress award in Tianjin; the fifteenth China youth five four medalandthe specialist of the special government allowances.Heisalsothe jury ofNational Natural Science Foundation.He participated in editing publications such as The Basic Theory of Zhang Daning's Traditional Chinese Medicine,The Research on Zhang Daning's Academic Thoughts,The Study on Zhang Daning's Methods Of The Kidney Invigorating And Blood Activating,The Progress Academic Thought on Zhang Daning,TheBasis And Clinical Treatment of Diabetic Nephropathy

Kidney

Donald Silverberg Graduated from Medical School University of Manitoba in 1962. He did his Residency in Internal Medicine and Nephrology at the Mayo Clinic Rochester Minnesota in 1962-1966 and Residency in Nephrology, University of Lund, Sweden in 1966-1967. He worked as Nephrologist University Hospital, Edmonton Canada during l968-1976. Has been living in Israel and practicing nephrology since 1976 in Tel Hashomer and Beilinson and Tel Aviv Medical Center. National Director of Hypertension Control Division, Kupat Holim Sick Fund 1978-1986 (Organizing the detection and treatment of hypertension for the Israeli population)

Sleep apnea and hypertension

Dr Pearl Pai qualified from the University of Aberdeen, UK, and received her MD from the University of Liverpool. She is the Chief of Service (Department of Medicine) and Chief of Nephrologist at University of Hong Kong – Shenzhen Hospital, Guangdong, China. She is also the Honorary Clinical Associate Professor at the Department of Medicine, the University of Hong Kong. She was a NHS Consultant Physician and Nephrologist in Sunderland Royal Hospital and then Royal Liverpool University Hospital before she returned to Hong Kong in 2012

Dialysis

Phuong-Thu Pham is Associate Clinical Professor of Medicine, Nephrology Division, David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA and Director of Outpatient Services, Kidney Transplant Program. Her special areas of interest include new onset diabetes mellitus after transplantation, pretransplant cardiovascular screening, post-transplant cardiovascular disease, glomerular disease recurrence following transplantation, BK virus screening and management following kidney transplantation, and acute and chronic kidney injury following liver transplantation. Her interests in these topics have resulted in publications in well-known Nephrology textbooks and journals as well as invitations to speak at both national and international meetings. She has also served as a reviewer for over twenty major journals and an editorial board member for the Case Reports in Nephrology and Transplantation Technologies and Research journals.

Renal transplantation

Levent Yucetin is the director of Antalya Medicalpark Transplant Center Coordination. He studied and trained in Oxford, Cambridge, Harefield transplant centers, Barcelona University and TPM organisation between 1999-2001. He was the president of Turkish Transplant Coordinator\'s Society between 2005-2009, National Key Member of ETCO between 2002-2012. Turkey\'s leader at European Union projects ETPOD,ELIPSY,LIDOPS and ODEQUS. Member of Turkish Health Ministery\'s Transplant Coordinators and Organ Donation board. Trainer of Transplant coordinators at Helath Ministery Certification organisation. He has published more than 29 papers in reputed journals and 10 chapters at 4 repute books

kidney transplantation

Květa Bláhová is an Associate Professor in Dpt of Pediatrics at Charler University and University Hospital Motol in Prague. She received many awards. She has membership in prestigious European societies. She has published numerous papers in reputed Journals

Chronic peritoneal dialysis, End-stage renal disease

Mordecai Popovtzer has been graduated from Cedars-Sinai and UCLA Nephrology and Metabolism Fellowship Program at age 32. Served as Director of Hemodialysis and Associate Professor of Medicine and Surgery (Transplant) at the University of Colorado at age 35. Appointed as chief of Nephrology and Professor of Medicine at Temple University, Philadelphia, Pa.at age 38.He was elected to American Society of Clinical Investigation (“Young Turks”) at age 37 and Served as Editor of the European Journal of Physiology ( Pflugers Archives). Appointed as Chief of Nephrology and Hypertension and Professor of Medicine at the Hadassah-Hebrew University School of medicine at age 41. Served on Editorial board of Kidney International, Kidney, Mineral Metab, Served as reviewer for: J Clin Invest, J lab and Clin Med. Served as president of Israeli Society of Nephrology and Secretary of Calcified Tissues Society. Published over 200 papers in peer-reviewed journal and more than 10 book chapters. Currently serving as a Cheif of Nephrology at South AZ VA Health Care System, and Professor in department of medicine, University of Arizona, Arizona.

Nephrology

Pedro A. Jose received his M.D. degree, magna cum laude, from the University of Santo Tomas, Philippines and received his Ph.D. degree in Physiology from Georgetown University. He has published more than 330 articles; 4 as covers of scientific journals and 5 as subject of editorial commentaries. His research has been recognized (2007 Ernest H. Starling Lecture, 2003 Lewis K. Dahl Memorial Lecture, and NIH MERIT Award). Deciphering the role of variations of the GRK4 in the causation of human essential hypertension was cited by the Director of the NHLBI for its FY 2004 Budget Justification to the US Congress.

Pediatrics and nephrology

Thomas Ryzlewicz at 66 years, born in West-Berlin (Germany). Nephrologist since 40 years with regular clinical work with RRT Patients. In 1974 he used several of the first Dialysis Set-Up’s (Travenol 120 Batch System, Milton Roy B II, Gambro AK 3). 1978 Bag-Hemofiltration done (with the Equipment of 3 Blood Pumps, one Bed Scale and a Cup to measure the Filtration Rate (with a Stop-Watch)

Nephrology

Samy L Habib has completed his Ph.D. at Roswell Park Cancer Center, Buffalo, NY and was trained at University of California, Irvine, University of Texas, Austin, TX and University of Texas Health Science Center, San Antonio, TX. He has published more than 45 papers in reputed journals and serving as an editorial board member and Editor of 14 Journals. He is associate professor at UTHSCSA and holds Research Scientist position at the South Texas Veterans Health Care System at Audie Murphy VA Hospital. He is a recipient of several research grant awards from American Diabetes Association, American Heart Association, National Kidney Foundation, New Investigator Award and Merit Review Award from Veterans Affairs, and Pilot Research Award from NIH/NIDDK. He has been a regular member of several study sections for Department of Defense.

Nephrology

Lois J Arend is Associate Professor of Renal Pathology at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine. She received a PhD in Physiology and her MD at Michigan State University, then completed residency and a fellowship in renal pathology at The University of Michigan. She has studied renal function and disease in areas such as the role of adenosine in normal kidney function, development of the kidney, and cystic kidney disease, and the pathology of vascular access and transplantation for 30 years, publishing over 65 peer-reviewed articles, reviews, and chapters in major textbooks such as Heptinstall’s Pathology of the Kidney. She is Director of Clinical Fellowship training for the Department of Pathology at Johns Hopkins University.

Nephrology

Vassilios Vargemezis was Professor and Head of Department at University General Hospital of Alexandroupolis,Greece

clinical nephrology, peritoneal dialysis, anemia.

Anil K. Mandal is a native of India and a naturalized citizen of the United States. He is board certified in Internal Medicine and Nephrology (kidney disease and hypertension). He is an author of a dozen books and more than 100 published articles on research in diabetes and kidney disease. He is a two-time Fulbright Scholar and a visiting professor in 23 countries that invited him to lecture on diabetes, high blood pressure, and kidney diseases.

Diabetes, ESRD, non-dialysis treatment, kidney disease

Phuong-Thu Pham is Associate Clinical Professor of Medicine, Nephrology Division, David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA and Director of Outpatient Services, Kidney Transplant Program. Her special areas of interest include new onset diabetes mellitus after transplantation, pretransplant cardiovascular screening, post-transplant cardiovascular disease, glomerular disease recurrence following transplantation, BK virus screening and management following kidney transplantation, and acute and chronic kidney injury following liver transplantation. Her interests in these topics have resulted in publications in well-known Nephrology textbooks and journals as well as invitations to speak at both national and international meetings. She has also served as a reviewer for over twenty major journals and an editorial board member for the Case Reports in Nephrology and Transplantation Technologies and Research journals.

Renal transplantation

Dmytro Ivanov, 1964, MD, PhD, Prof in Nephrology, Chief of Nephrology and RRT Shupyk National Medical Academy of Postgraduate Education, Kiev, Ukraine. Has 26 years’ experience in nephrology and pediatric nephrology. He has published more than 400 papers, 15 text- books, ERA-EDTA member since 1997.

Pediatric nephrology

Manuela Stoicescu is a consultant internal medicine physician, Ph.D., assistant professor of University of Oradea, Faculty of Medicine and Pharmacy, Medical Disciplines Department, Romania. She also works at Emergency Hospital Internal Medicine Department and Internal Medicine Office. She has published two books, one monograph and papers in reputed journals. She was invited as a speaker at 9 national and 20 International Conferences. She is Member of Romanian Society of Internal Medicine, Cardiology, Medical Chemistry, Biochemistry and Member of the Balkan Society of Medicine.

Nephrology

Alberto António Caldas Afonso has completed his Ph.D at the age of 39 years from Faculty of Medicine of Porto. He is the director of Pediatrics Integrated Hospital from Hospital Centre of S. João, Associated Professor of Pediatrics, Council Member of Portuguese Growth Hormone Commission, President of European Society for Pediatric Nephrology, Council Member of Maternal, Children and adolescent Heatlh Commission, President of Portuguese Pediatric Nephrology Society, Council Member of Portuguese Nephrology Society, Nacional Council Member of medical College, Vice-President Post-Graduate Committee of Medical College, President of Scientific Committee of Portuguese Guidelines, National Treasurer of the order of Doctors. He has published more than 100 papers in reputed repute Pediatrics and Nephrology journals.

Pediatrics and Nephrology

Anil K. Mandal is a native of India and a naturalized citizen of the United States. He is board certified in Internal Medicine and Nephrology (kidney disease and hypertension). He is an author of a dozen books and more than 100 published articles on research in diabetes and kidney disease. He is a two-time Fulbright Scholar and a visiting professor in 23 countries that invited him to lecture on diabetes, high blood pressure, and kidney diseases.

Diabetes, ESRD, non-dialysis treatment, kidney disease

Francisco J. Lopez-Hernandez earned his Ph.D. in 1997. He is the director of the Theranostics for Renal and Cardiovascular Diseases Group at the Instituto de Investigacion Biosanitaria and Associate Professor at the Universidad de Salamanca (Salamanca, Spain). He has published over 40 articles in international journals, and 7 patents. He is an expert/reviewer for several national and international research agencies and over 30 scientific journals. He is appointed to the Editorial Board of 2 international journals. He is also involved in transfer activities and co-founded a bio-spin-off company in 2009, where he presently serves as scientific advisor.

Nephrology

Lavjay Butani Professor of Pediatric and Chief of Pediatric Nephrology has board certification from the American Board of Pediatrics in pediatric nephrology. He is a member of the American Society of Nephrology, American Society of Transplantation, International Pediatric Transplantation Association, Western Society of Pediatric Research, American Federation for Medical Research and the Sacramento Pediatric Society. Dr Butani is passionate about medical education and is the Co-Director of the 3rd Pediatrics Clerkship.

Dr. Butani research interests are focused on improving the outcomes after kidney transplantation by optimally using newer immunosuppressive medications and regimens for children and also studying the implications of calcium excretion in the urine on the risk of stones and osteoporosis in children of different ethnic backgrounds.

Samy L. Habib has completed his Ph.D. at Roswell Park Cancer Center, Buffalo, NY and was trained at University of California, Irvine, University of Texas, Austin, TX and University of Texas Health Science Center, San Antonio (UTHSCSA), TX. He has published more than 35 papers in reputed journals and serving as an editorial board member and Editor of 7 journals. He is associate professor at UTHSCSA and holds Research Scientist position at the South Texas Veterans Health Care System at Audie Murphy VA Hospital. He was a recipient of several research grant awards from American Diabetes Association, American Heart Association, National Kidney Foundation, New Investigator Award and Merit Review Award from Veterans Affairs, and Pilot Research Award from NIH/NIDDK. He has recently received the Excellent of Performance Award from the VA. He has been a regular member of the Kidney Cancer Study Section of the Medical Research Program, and Tuberous Sclerosis Complex Research Program (TSCRP) study section, Department of Defense.

Diabetes. renal cell injury

Prabhakar Sharma is a distinguished nephrologist currently at Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center, where he is a tenured professor in the Departments of Medicine and Cell Physiology and Molecular Biophysics, and the Chief of Nephrology Division and Vice Chairman, Department of Medicine. He is an established researcher examining pathophysiologic mechanisms of diabetic nephropathy and of insulin resistance in vitro and animal models. Dr. Prabhakar has over 100 publications including original articles, reviews, book chapters and published abstracts in prestigious journals, such as the American Journal of Physiology, Journal of American Society of Nephrology, and Kidney International. In recognition of his excellence in practice of medicine, Dr. Prabhakar was awarded an endowed chair by the University Medical Center. He is active in several professional societies and organizations and is the past President of American Federation for Medical Research

Diabetic Nephropathy, Metabolic Syndrome, Animal models of human disease.

Pedro A. Jose received his M.D. degree, magna cum laude, from the University of Santo Tomas, Philippines and received his Ph.D. degree in Physiology from Georgetown University. He has published more than 330 articles; 4 as covers of scientific journals and 5 as subject of editorial commentaries. His research has been recognized (2007 Ernest H. Starling Lecture, 2003 Lewis K. Dahl Memorial Lecture, and NIH MERIT Award). Deciphering the role of variations of the GRK4 in the causation of human essential hypertension was cited by the Director of the NHLBI for its FY 2004 Budget Justification to the US Congress.

Pediatrics and nephrology

clinical nephrology, peritoneal dialysis, anemia.

Geoffrey Burnstock is President of the Autonomic Neuroscience Centre, University College Medical School, UK. Completed his PhD at UCL, became Professor and Chairman of Zoology, Melbourne University (1964), Head of Department of Anatomy and Developmental Biology at UCL (1975) and Director of the Autonomic Neuroscience Institute (1997). Elected to the Australian Academy of Sciences (1971), Royal Society (1986), Academy of Medical Sciences (1998) and Honorary Fellow of the Royal College of Surgeons (1999) and Physicians (2000) and awarded the Royal Society Gold Medal (2000), the Copernicus Gold Medal (Ferrara) in 2009, the 2010 Gaddum Memorial Award and most recently the Academia Europaea Erasmus Medal 2012 and the IUPS Paton Lecture 2013. He has been given Honorary Degrees in the Universities of Antwerp, Frankfurt and Leipzig. He is Editor-in-Chief of Autonomic Neuroscience (Elsevier), Purinergic Signalling (Springer) and Open Neuroscience and Open Pharmacology Journals (Bentham). His major research interest stems from his seminal discovery of purinergic signalling. He has supervised over 100 PhD and MD students and has published over 1,400 papers, reviews and books. He was the most cited scientist in Pharmacology and Toxicology 1994-2006. His papers have been cited over 83,000 times with a Hirsch (h)-index of 128.

Nephrology

Manuela Stoicescu is a consultant internal medicine physician, Ph.D., assistant professor of University of Oradea, Faculty of Medicine and Pharmacy, Medical Disciplines Department, Romania. She also works at Emergency Hospital Internal Medicine Department and Internal Medicine Office. She has published two books, one monograph and papers in reputed journals. She was invited as a speaker at 9 national and 20 International Conferences. She is Member of Romanian Society of Internal Medicine, Cardiology, Medical Chemistry, Biochemistry and Member of the Balkan Society of Medicine.

Dr. Segal’s research focuses on the mechanisms of the increased cardiovascular disease in patients with diabetes, chronic kidney disease, systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), and women who have preeclampsia or preterm delivery.   His hypothesis is that a key determinate of whether an individual will develop chronic kidney disease or atherosclerosis is the ability of the individual’s endothelium to tolerate their level of blood pressure, glycemia, or other stressors to the endothelium. 

Kenneth graduated from the University of Pennsylvania Suma Cum Laude with Distinction, was a Teagle and Grupe Scholar at Weill Medical College of Cornell University, and trained as a physician-scientist at Cornell and NIH. Dr. Maiese has been elected to America\\\'s Top Physicians and The Best of U.S. Physicians.

Kumar Sharma is the Director of Translational Research in Kidney Disease and a Professor of Medicine at the University of California, San Diego. Dr. Sharma is a leading translational researcher whose major area of interest is diabetic complications and kidney disease. His studies have identified several key mediators of early and progressive kidney disease associated with diabetes and obesity. His landmark studies demonstrating the role of the growth factor, TGF-b, have led to the development of clinical applications using approaches to block TGF-b for human diabetic nephropathy. In addition, Dr. Sharma has been involved in his own anti-fibrotic approaches for patients with advanced diabetic nephropathy and recently completed an NIH-funded randomized clinical trial. Most recently, Dr. Sharma’s group has identified a key role for the hormone adiponectin to play a role in early proteinuria associated with obesity. His studies have been published in the JCI, PNAS, JBC, PlOS-Medicine, JCB, AJP-Renal, JASN and Kidney International. Dr. Sharma has recently joined UCSD to lead translational research in kidney disease. He was recently appointed as Chair of the ISN Nexus Symposiums. He has continuous NIH funding since 1996 and presently has several NIH grants, ADA and JDRF support for his research.

Dr. Sharma's research efforts have focused on the pathogenesis of diabetic kidney disease (DN). His laboratory helped define the central role of the cytokine Transforming Growth Factor-b (TGF-b) in DN using cell culture and animal models and translated these findings to the human condition. These studies contributed to the development of the highly innovative anti-fibrotic approaches that are currently being tested in clinical research trials under Dr. Sharma’s guidance. Recently, Dr. Sharma has focused his attention on the contribution of the kidney to cardiovascular disease in diabetes and obesity. His group was the first to describe the role of adiponectin on podocyte function. His group has also used novel proteomic methods for clinical applications and for kidney disease. The goal of his research efforts is to develop new diagnostic and therapeutic approaches for personalized medicine in diabetes complications and kidney disease.

Grande Joseph has worked as a renal pathologist at the Mayo Clinic for more than 20 years. His PhD work in pathology from the University of Chicago\'s Medical Scientist Training Program focused on the effects of hyperlipidemia and mechanical force on collagen production by aortic smooth muscle cells. After receiving post-doctoral training in pathology at the University of Michigan in 1991, he established an NIH-funded experimental renal research program at Mayo. Dr. Grande\'s research interests have focused on signaling mechanisms leading to chronic renal disease, with emphasis on inflammation, TGF-beta signaling, and a role of phosphodiesterase inhibitors in abrogating this process. He has collaborated with clinical nephrologists in basic, translational, and clinical studies related to a potential role of fish oil in preventing chronic renal disease, IgA nephropathy in particular. He has served as the study pathologist for DeKAF, an NIH-funded study to define histopathologic features of chronic renal allograft dysfunction. For this project, a number of quantitative histopathologic approaches to assess chronic renal disease, inflammation, and innate immune system activation were developed. More recently, his work has focused on critical signaling pathways responsible for chronic renal injury in renovascular hypertension.

Renal pathology, Understanding of basic mechanisms of fibrogenesis

Hypertension and kidney disease in pregnancy, Genetics of essential hypertension and preeclampsia, Coagulation abnormalities in preeclampsia, Prostaglandin metabolism in pregnancy-induced hypertension

Samy Habib joined the Department of Cellular & Structural Biology in April 2011. He also holds the position as Research Scientist in the South Texas Veterans Health Care System at Audie Murphy VA Hospital since 2005. He was a recipient of several research grant awards from American Diabetes Association, American Heart Association, National Kidney Foundation, New Investigator Award and Merit Review Award from Veterans Affairs, and Pilot Reserach Award from NIH/NIDDK. He has recently received the Excellent of Performance Award from the VA. Dr. Habib has been a regular member of the Kidney Cancer Study Section of the Medical Research Program, Department of Defense. He is also an editorial board member of 5 journals.

The major emphasis of the work in Dr. Habib's laboratory is on identifying the molecular mechanisms mediating fibrosis, hypertrophy and apoptosis in diabetic nephropathy, as well as defining the role of diabetes in the development of renal tumors. Novel finding from his lab confirmed that tuberin, a tumor suppressor protein, regulates the DNA repair enzyme OGG1 pathway. Dysregulation of this pathway leads to accumulation of oxidative DNA damage and predisposes tissue to cancer. Studies at his laboratory are carried out in cultured cells, animal models, and in kidney tumors of patient with Tuberous Sclerosis Complex(TSC) disease.

Anil Mandal is a native of India and a naturalized citizen of the United States of America. He is board certified in Internal Medicine and Nephrology (Kidney disease and hypertension). Sugar diabetes is the most common cause of kidney failure in the USA and world wide. This strong association between diabetes and kidney failure has inspired Dr Mandal to develop the frame work of Mandal Diabetes Research foundation to assist diabetic patients to live a good life with medical treatment, and not go to dialysis. Sugar diabetes is the most common cause of kidney failure in the USA and world wide. This strong association between diabetes and kidney failure has inspired Dr Mandal to develop the frame work of Mandal Diabetes Research foundation to assist diabetic patients to live a good life with medical treatment, and not go to dialysis.

Anil Madal's passion for diabetes care led him to found the Mandal Diabetes Research Foundation with a goal of reducing end stage renal disease and the need for dialysis. His efforts are tireless in research and writing to develop a paradigm of therapy that will enable diabetics to live a full, happy life.

Sharma S. Prabhakar is a distinguished nephrologist currently at Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center, where he is a tenured professor in the Departments of Medicine and Cell Physiology and Molecular Biophysics, and the Chief of Nephrology Division and Vice Chairman, Department of Medicine. He is an established researcher examining pathophysiologic mechanisms of diabetic nephropathy and of insulin resistance in vitro and animal models.Dr. Prabhakar has over 100 publications including original articles, reviews, book chapters and published abstracts in prestigious journals, such as the American Journal of Physiology, Journal of American Society of Nephrology, and Kidney International. In recognition of his excellence in practice of medicine, Dr. Prabhakar was awarded an endowed chair by the University Medical Center. He is active in several professional societies and organizations and is the current President of American Federation for Medical Research.

Professional interests include research and also educating physicians and general community in hypertension, diabetes and kidney disease.

John Maesaka is a graduate of Harvard College and Boston University School of Medicine with medical residencies in internal medicine at Barnes Hospital in St. Louis, MO and Mt. Sinai Medical Center in New York City, and nephrology fellowship at Mt. Sinai Medical Center. He spent 5 years in the micropuncture laboratory at Mt. Sinai, studying uric acid and phosphate transport. Dr. Maesaka was chief of the renal section at the E. Orange VA Medical Center in New Jersey, chief of nephrology and hypertension at the Long Island Jewish Medical Center and presently at Winthrop-University Hospital, which is the clinical center of SUNY Stony Brook Medical School where he is professor of medicine. His publications presently focus on urate metabolism, most importantly the determination of fractional urate excretion rates in hyponatremic conditions.

His current interest is in contributing to a better understanding of hyponatremia, focusing mainly on renal salt wasting, SIADH and reset osmostat resulting in a paradigm shift in classification of hyponatremia.

Kamyar Kalantar-Zadeh studied medicine in Germany at the University of Bonn (M.D., 1991). He also received a Master’s degree in Public Health (M.P.H.) and an additional doctorate degree in Epidemiology (Ph.D.) from University of California Berkeley, School of Public Health.
Dr. Kalantar’s postgraduate training includes an internship in Medicine/Nephrology in Nuremberg, Germany, residency in Internal Medicine and also in Pediatrics in State University of New York (SUNY) in Brooklyn and Staten Island (SUNY, 1993-97), and a nephrology fellowship at University of California, San Francisco (UCSF, 1997-2000).
During 2000-2012 Dr. Kalantar was a faculty at Harbor-UCLA, Professor of Medicine, Pedaitrics and Public Health at UCLA, and medical director of DaVita dialysis clinic in Long Beach, CA. Since mid-2012 he has promoted to the Chief of the Division of Nephrology and Hypertension at University of California Irvine (UC Irvine) School of Medicine, in Orange. In addition to serving as Professor of Medicine, Public Health and Pediatrics at UC Irvine, He is also an adjunct Professor of Epidemiology at UCLA Fielding School of Public Health in Los Angeles, CA.
Dr. Kalantar-Zadeh is triple board certified in Internal Medicine, Pediatrics and Nephrology by the American boards of specialties in the USA and has been named by several prestigious top-physician directories in the US including TOP DOCTORS, BEST DOCTORS, and TOP PHYSICIANS.
Dr Kalantar is also a standing member of a National Institutes of Health (NIH) study section KNOD, Kidney, Nutrition, Obesity and Diabetes). He has had several grants including from the NIH (R01’s, K24 mid-career award, R21’s, R13, etc.), National Kidney Foundation, American Heart Association, etc. His research group is also supported by a generous philanthropic grant from Mr. Harold Simmons, and Dr Kalantar is the director and founder of Harold Simmons Center for Kidney Disease Research & Epidemiology.
Prof. Kalantar-Zadeh has published over 300 scientific articles, authored 15 chapters, and presented over 300 abstracts and numerous grand rounds lectures in national and international conferences. He is currently editor of 2 nephrology and nutrition textbooks that will be published in 2013.

Kidney disease outcome & epidemiology, cardiovascular risks in CKD, malnutrition & wasting in chronic diseases, inflammation & cachexia, diabetes & obesity, renal osteodystrophy & mineral disorders, sodium & potassium disarrays, anemia & iron deficiency

Pedro A. Jose received his MD degree, magna cum laude, from the University of Santo Tomas, Philippines and received his PhD degree in Physiology from Georgetown University. He has published more than 330 articles; 4 as covers of scientific journals and 5 as subject of editorial commentaries. His research has been recognized (2007 Ernest H. Starling Lecture, 2003 Lewis K. Dahl Memorial Lecture, and NIH MERIT Award). Deciphering the role of variations of the GRK4 in the causation of human essential hypertension was cited by the Director of the NHLBI for its FY 2004 Budget Justification to the US Congress.

His specialities are in the areas of pediatrics and nephrology (kidney care) and his interests are in hypertension and cardiovascular research.

Kambiz Kalantarinia received an MD degree from Shiraz University of Medical Sciences in Iran. He completed his Internal Medicien residency at Prince George\'s Hospital Center in Maryland where he was the chief resident as well. He completed Nephrology Fellowship at the University of Virginia and has been a faculty member at UVA since 2002. Dr. Kalantarinia\'s main research focus is on the utility of contrast enhanced ultrasound (CEU) in monitoring changes in renal blood flow in different clinical settings, including AKI and CKD and in response to other phsyiologic and pharmacologic interventions. He is supported by an NIH k23 grant (2007 - 2012) to study the role Adenosine A2a agonist in diabetic nephropahty. In that study CEU is used to monitor changes in renal blood flow.

Ultrasound imaging of the kidney and the use of novel techniques of contrast enhanced ultrasound (CEU) in monitoring the changes in total and regional renal blood flow,hemodialysis vascular access, specifically factors leading to failure to mature among the arteriovenous fistulae (AVF), and study of potential predictors of AVF maturation, pathways involved in the development and progression of diabetic kidney disease, especially the role of inflammatory molecules

Volker Nickeleit is an internationally recognized expert in kidney pathology with a special interest in transplant kidney diseases. He is subspecialty trained in nephropathology and transplant pathology at the Massachussetts General Hospital (MGH)/Harvard Medical School in Boston and the University of Basel, Switzerland and has over 15 years of experience. Dr. Nickeleit joined UNC in 2001. He currently serves as an elected councilor of the Renal Pathology Society and will be the society President in 2013.

Volker Nickeleit's laboratory specializes in the diagnostic and scientific evaluation of kidney diseases .His major interest centers around different aspects of renal allograft pathology and he closely collaborates with other investigators in Switzerland and Italy. One area of Dr. Volker’s investigation focuses on adjunct markers for the diagnosis of graft rejection in order to better define rejection and minimal threshold levels for the diagnosis of rejection. Over the last few years, he has established a non-human primate model of vascular kidney transplant rejection (i.e. transplant endarteritis). This is an important step since rejection in primates closely mimics changes seen in humans, and vascular rejection is the number one graft killer of kidney and heart transplants. His next goal is to systematically define cellular responses leading from early intimal inflammation to late intimal scarring. These studies require various immunhistochemical and molecular biological techniques including FISH analyses with primate specific probes. In the past, he has defined a new disease entity affecting renal allografts, BK-Virus nephropathy, and introduced surrogate markers into clinical pratice for improved patient management. His future studies will focus on better identifying risk factors for developing BK-virus nephropathy.

Pradeep Kadambi completed his MBBS training at Bangalore Medical College and then trained at the Hospital of Saint Raphael, a Yale affiliate, in Internal Medicine and Nephrology. Due to his passion for kidney transplantation, he pursued a Transplant Nephrology fellowship at the University of Chicago, where he was the first fellow to undergo this training under the guidance of Dr. Michelle Josephson. He subsequently stayed on as faculty at the University of Chicago till UTMB was able to recruit him. He held leadership positions including the Director of the Nephrology Outpatient Practice, and the Director of the Medicine Inpatient Bed Flow Control. Currently, Dr. Kadambi is the Medical Director of the Kidney and Pancreas Transplant Program at UTMB, and is also an active member of the Clinical Enterprise Marketing Committee.

Dr. Pradeep's interests include management of kidney and kidney-pancreas transplant recipients, optimization of immunosuppression, infectious complications in transplantation, performing kidney biopsies, and educating students, residents and fellows.

As transplant nephrologist at the UC Davis Transplant Center, Dr. Gallay evaluates prospective kidney and pancreas transplant patients and conducts pre- and post-transplant medical evaluations and follow-up. Gallay has published studies on aldosteronism, glomerulonephritis and hepatitis C.