The Society of Italian Researchers & Professionals in Western Canada (ARPICO) sent (via a March 18, 2025 email) an announcement of an April 9, 2025 event,
Dear Friends of ARPICO,
A few weeks have passed since our last vibrant event Celebrating Women in STEM, and we’re excited to invite you to ARPICO’s next public event on Wednesday, April 9, 2025, organized in collaboration with the Consulate General of Italy in Vancouver. Don’t miss this opportunity to learn about cutting-edge advancements that could ultimately transform the way we treat heart disease!
We are privileged to welcome Dr. Vincenzo Macrì, Senior Scientist and Team Lead at STEMCELL Technologies, as our guest speaker. Dr Macrì will present a talk titled Built to “Beat” – Lab-Grown Heart Cells Revolutionizing Cardiac Health! in which he will discuss the exciting potential of using lab-grown heart cells to improve heart disease research and treatment.
This event celebrates Italian Research in the World Day, established in 2018 to recognize the quality and expertise of Italian researchers abroad. It aims to promote actions and investments that support Italian researchers in pursuing their careers both at home and abroad, while making Italy an attractive destination for international researchers.
YOU ARE INVITED
- Date: Wednesday, April 9th, 2025
- Location: Museum of Vancouver, History Room, 1100 Chestnut Street, Vancouver, BC
- Check-in: 6:30 PM, to get your seat and have a cup of coffee
- Lecture Start Time: 6:50 PM
We look forward to seeing everyone there.
Evening Details
ADMISSION TICKETS ARE MANDATORY
Admission Tickets for this event are MANDATORY, but FREE; all wishing to attend are requested to obtain “free-admission” tickets on EventBrite. Click the “Reserve a Spot” button on the Eventbrite page. Tickets are necessary to help organizers plan for room capacity, fire regulations, and catering needs. Please be sure to supply the first name, surname and email of each person in your order.
- Admission Cost? – We don’t charge for admission to the event. A special thank you to the Consulate General of Italy in Vancouver for sponsoring this specific event and to the ARPICO members who generously cover the venue and equipment rentals, speaker travel, and thank-you costs for regular events throughout the year. Their support allows us to offer free admission to all attendees.
- Donations for ARPICO’s Scholarship Fund – Your donation helps ensure the continuation of our educational initiatives. If you enjoy attending ARPICO public lectures and appreciate the opportunity to engage with the speaker and fellow attendees, please consider donating to support our Scholarship Fund. Not ready? That’s alright. Decide after you have experienced the evening’s full offering. ARPICO is pleased to accept donations at the venue as well.
Further details are also available at arpico.ca, arpico facebook, and EventBrite.
Main Event Details
Built to “Beat” – Lab-Grown Heart Cells Revolutionizing Cardiac Health!
In this talk, Dr. Macrì will discuss the exciting potential of using lab-grown heart cells to improve heart disease research and treatment. These heart cells, called human adult pluripotent stem cell-derived cardiomyocytes (hPSC-CMs), are created by turning stem cells into heart muscle cells that behave similarly to real human heart cells especially in their ability to contract and respond to electrical signals. This makes them a powerful tool for studying how the heart works, understanding heart diseases, and testing new treatments. What’s even more exciting is that these lab-grown heart cells could be used in therapies to repair damaged heart tissue, offering hope for better treatments for cardiovascular diseases, which are the leading cause of death worldwide.
About Our Speaker
Dr. Vincenzo Macrì, PhD, is a Senior Scientist and Team Lead of the Myogenic R&D group at STEMCELL Technologies, where he oversees the development of advanced cell culture products to support cardiac and skeletal muscle research.
Dr. Macri earned his PhD in Physiology from the University of British Columbia and completed postdoctoral training at Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) and Harvard Medical School.His research focuses on stem cell and cardiomyocyte biology, human genetics, cardiovascular disease, ion channels, and cellular electrophysiology. He has received prestigious research awards from the Michael Smith Foundation for Health Research, Canadian Institutes of Health Research, Heart Rhythm Society, and the Fund for Medical Discovery at MGH.
You can find the ARPICO website here.