The LABB Group took part in a highly successful multi-disciplinary workshop on aortic diseases with Fudan University and Zhongshan Hospital, Shanghai from 20th – 24th September 2023. Drs Riaz Akhtar (Liverpool) and Baolei Guo were successful in obtaining a Royal Society International Exchange grant to setup the workshop and attendees including researchers from Imperial College London. The Liverpool team who took part were Professor Mark Field (Cardiothoracic Surgeon, Liverpool Heart and Chest Hospital), Dr Jill Madine (Dept of Biochemistry), and PhD students Sarah Shirley and Bojin Marinov. At the workshop, the Liverpool team were joined by senior clinicians and academics including Professor Weiguo Fu, Director of Vascular Surgery and Zhihui Dong, Executive Deputy Director of Vascular Surgery at Zhongshan Hospital.

The workshop covered bioegineering, clinical and basic science topics focussed around aortic diseases. Key differences in clinical treatment and aortic disease manifestation were discussed in terms of East and West. The workshop will be followed up with specific research projects that were identified as areas of strategic importance during the workshop.