We are pleased to announce that “Aorta: Structure to Rupture 2026” will take place once again in Liverpool on Wednesday 3rd June 2026. This is always an exciting inter-disciplinary meeting bringing together engineers, biologists, and clinicians to discuss state-of-the-art research in aortic disease.
We encourage early career researchers to take part and there will be prizes for the best oral and poster presentation from ECRs.
Abstract Submission opens: 5th January 2026
Abstract submission deadline: 30th March 2026
Submit your abstract for oral or poster presenter – https://cmt3.research.microsoft.com/SR2026.
Please select ‘Structure to Rupture’ and the ‘Academic’, ‘Clinician’ or ‘Student’ rate when checking out via Eventbrite:
https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/liverpool-aortic-surgery-symposium-xi-tickets-1963221534458
Thanks to generous support from The Aortic Dissection Charitable Trust the conference fees are subsidised:
£25 Student Rate
£50 Standard Delegate Rate
Aorta: Structure to Rupture 2026 will be held in The Spine. The Spine is also the Royal College of Physicians’ (RCP) northern home. The Spine is located in Paddington Village at the heart of the Knowledge Quarter in Liverpool’s City Centre, 5 mins walk away from the University of Liverpool campus and Lime Street Station a 15 minutes walk away.
The Spine takes its name from its striking geometric staircase, which offers panoramic views across Liverpool, as far as Snowdonia (Eryri) and the Pennines.
Prof. Bart Loeys (Cardiogenomics Research Group, Center of Medical Genetics, University of Antwerp and Antwerp University Hospital, Antwerp, Belgium)
Dr Harry (Hal) C Dietz (Victor A. McKusick Professor of Paediatrics, Medicine, and Molecular Biology & Genetics in the Department of Genetic Medicine, The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine)
Professor Gerhard A. Holzapfel (Professor of Biomechanics – Head of the Institute, Graz University of Technology, Austria)
A historic Loeys–Dietz reunion in LiverpoolWe are privileged to welcome three of the most influential figures in modern aortic and connective-tissue research whose work has shaped how the world understands, diagnoses, and treats inherited aortic disease.
This meeting brings together in Liverpool the two scientists whose discoveries defined Loeys–Dietz syndrome:
Prof. Bart Loeys and Dr. Hal Dietz, the original co-discoverers of the condition, will reunite on the same stage, offering a rare and historic moment in cardiovascular genetics. Their 2005 discovery fundamentally changed clinical practice by revealing that aggressive, life-threatening aortic disease could arise from mutations in the TGF-β signalling pathway, even in patients who did not meet classical criteria for Marfan syndrome. This led directly to earlier diagnosis, tailored surveillance, and life-saving preventive surgery for thousands of patients worldwide.
Their reunion at S2R26 is more than symbolic; it reflects how far the field has come, from gene discovery to precision medicine, and highlights the continuing importance of international collaboration in rare disease research.
(Cardiogenomics Research Group, University of Antwerp & Antwerp University Hospital)
Prof. Loeys is a global leader in aortic genetics and inherited vascular disorders. His work has been pivotal in defining the clinical spectrum of Loeys–Dietz syndrome and related connective-tissue disorders, enabling earlier diagnosis, improved family screening, and more personalised management strategies. His research continues to uncover new disease-causing genes and genotype–phenotype relationships that directly inform patient care.
(Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, USA)
Dr. Dietz is one of the world’s most influential physician-scientists in human genetics and cardiovascular medicine. Beyond co-discovering Loeys–Dietz syndrome, his work has transformed understanding of Marfan syndrome, TGF-β signalling, and the molecular drivers of aortic aneurysm and dissection. His translational research has reshaped how inherited aortic disease is treated. from surgical thresholds to drug therapy.
(Graz University of Technology, Austria)
Prof. Holzapfel is the world’s leading authority on the biomechanics of soft tissues, particularly the aortic wall. His constitutive models of arterial tissue, used globally in both academia and industry, provide the mechanical framework that allows genetic and histological findings to be translated into predictions of rupture risk, wall stress, and surgical decision-making.
His presence at this meeting completes the bridge from genes → tissue → mechanics → clinical outcomes.
The Philosophy of S2RThe convergence of Loeys (genomics), Dietz (molecular medicine), and Holzapfel (biomechanics) represents something uniquely powerful:
a full, multi-scale understanding of aortic disease — from DNA mutations, to tissue microstructure, to wall mechanics, to clinical risk.
This is exactly the philosophy of Aorta: Structure to Rupture and why this Loeys–Dietz reunion is such a defining moment.
It brings together the scientists who discovered LDS , explained its biology, and links in with experts who built the mechanical framework that now underpins how we predict and prevent catastrophic aortic failure.
Drs Loeys and Dietz will give the inaugural Kennedy Cruickshank lecture. Professor Cruickshank has pioneered aortic function and stiffness research and will be present at the meeting.
For patients, clinicians, and early-career researchers alike, this is a once-in-a-generation scientific gathering.
The Microsoft CMT service was used for managing the peer-reviewing process for this conference. This service was provided for free by Microsoft and they bore all expenses, including costs for Azure cloud services as well as for software development and support.
