Cure JM’s June Virtual Summit on JIIM Research & Care convened an international panel of clinicians and researchers to cover the latest findings in JM clinical outcomes, risk factors, and early‑life influences, along with new research models and tools that are shaping the next generation of myositis discovery.
Session Agenda
3:00pm-3:10 | Introduction
Introduction Andrew Heaton, PhD, Chief Scientific Officer, Cure JM Foundation
Session 1: Clinical Outcomes Updates
Chair Person: Brian Feldman, MD, Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, CN (Chair, Cure JM Medical Advisory Board)
3:10-3:35 | Toward a Treat-to-Target Strategy in Juvenile Dermatomyositis: What Are the Suitable Targets and Optimal Timing of Their Achievement?
Jayne MacMahon, MD, Consultant Pediatric Rheumatologist; Addenbrooke’s Hospital, Cambridge, England
3:35-4:00 | Prenatal and Early-Life Environmental Exposures in Systemic Autoimmune Rheumatic Diseases including Juvenile Myositis
Takuma Ohnishi, MD, PhD, Department of Pediatrics, National Hospital Organization Saitama Hospital, Saitama, Japan
4:00-4:25 | Risk Factors for Calcinosis in JM
Adam Huber, MD, Division Head of Pediatric Rheumatology, Dalhousie University, CanadaSession 2: New Tools for JM Research

Chair Person: Andrew Mammen, MD, PhD (NIH, Johns Hopkins, Cure JM Medical Advisory Board member)
4:25-4:50 | A Human 3D Skeletal Muscle Model for Juvenile Dermatomyositis
Lauren Covert, MD, Assistant Professor, Duke University School of Medicine
4:50-5:15 | T-cell differentiation and T-reg/Th17 balance in a myosin-induced mouse model of experimental autoimmune myositis
Sara Sabbagh, DO, Assoc. Prof Medical College of Wisconsin
5:15-5:40 | Targeting immune and non-immune mechanisms in a mouse model of myositis
Melissa Morales, PhD, Assistant Professor, Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Binghamton University
Presentation Summaries:


