Welcome

Program

Registration

Speakers

Organizers

Venue

BIOSTROKE Meeting 2026

We cordially invite you to join the 2nd BIOSTROKE Meeting,
taking place at the historic Hohenkammer Castle near Munich from February 23 to 25, 2026.

BIOSTROKE offers a unique platform to advance biomarker science in stroke care and foster interdisciplinary collaboration between experts in stroke biomarker research, cardiovascular medicine, and neuroscience. Bringing together 120 participants, the meeting will facilitate in-depth scientific exchange on the most pressing, unsolved challenges in clinical decision-making with sessions across the stroke care continuum – from prehospital management to secondary prevention and long-term recovery. The program features talks by internationally recognized leaders, alongside presentations selected from submitted abstracts. The format prioritizes open discussion and informal interactions among scientists of all career levels.

BIOSTROKE is endorsed by the European Stroke Organization (ESO) and the European Society of Minimally Invasive Neurological Therapy (ESMINT). CME/CPD accreditation is currently in process. Participation requires registration via this website and is on a first-come, first-served basis.

We look forward to welcoming you in Munich in February 2025!
John McCabe, Johanna Ospel, Steffen Tiedt

Timeline: 
• Registration deadline: Nov 24, 2025 #
• Abstract submission opens: Sep 1, 2025
• Abstract submission deadline: Nov 24, 2025 
• Notification of abstract acceptance: Jan 6, 2026

PROGRAM

Day 1: Monday, Feb 23

Each scientific session will consist of 3 invited talks (each 25-30 minutes including discussion) and 2 oral presentations selected from abstracts (each 15 min including questions). Each session will be chaired by two experts (one female, one male).

11.30 – 12.30

Registration and light lunch in the lobby

12.30 – 12.35

Welcome note

12.35 – 14.30

Session I: ICH

Karin Klijn: Perspectives on the high burden of ICH – what do we know?

Neshika Samarasekera: ICH progression: pathophysiological concepts and biomarkers

Marieke Wermer: Diagnostic and prognostic biomarkers for CAA

Short talk I selected from abstracts

Short talk II selected from abstracts

14.30 – 15.00

Coffee break

15.00 – 17.00

Session II: Novel technologies and concepts

Corinne Benakis: The gut microbiome in stroke: Biomarker and Treatment target?

Lauren Hablitz: The Glymphatic system in stroke: biomarker and treat-ment target?

Taylor Kimberly: Portable MRI: Can serial MRI imaging with portable de-vices guide clinical management?

Short talk I selected from abstracts

Short talk II selected from abstracts

17.00 – 18.00

Keynote lecture: 

Tony Wyss-Coray: Blood testing to track organ health and ageing

18.00 – 19.00

Welcome reception

19.00

Dinner

Day 2: Tuesday, Feb 24

8.30 – 10.30

Session III: Prehospital care

Natalia Perez de la Ossa: Prehospital detection of LVO and ICH – when & where does it matter?

Niels van Royen: Troponin to guide hospital admission – a cardiologist’s perspective on prehospital biomarkers

Chris Price: Clinical scales and molecular biomarkers for prehospital stroke triage

Short talk I selected from abstracts

Short talk II selected from abstracts

10.30 – 11.00

Coffee break

11.00 – 13.00

Session IV: Stroke progression and recovery

Bruce Campbell: Imaging-based selection of patients for acute stroke tri-als: challenges and perspectives

Michael Hill: Surrogate markers of treatment effects in acute stroke trials

Cathy Stinear: Biomarkers for Motor Recovery: Predicting Outcomes and Guiding Rehabilitation in Stroke

Short talk I selected from abstracts

Short talk II selected from abstracts

13.00 – 14.00

Lunch

14.00 – 17.30

BIOSTROKE session

Tanja Zeller: How to build a successful biomarker consortium – Insights from BiomarCaRE

Consortium meeting

Working groups breakout-time

17.30 – 19.00

Poster session (with wine and snacks) (poster prize)

19.00

Dinner

Day 3: Wednesday, Feb 25

8.30 – 10.30

Session V: Atrial cardiopathy

Hooman Kamel: Biomarker-Guided Patient Selection for Anticoagulation Trials

Märit Jensen: AF burden revisited: biomarker and treatment target

Christian Ruff: Factor XI Inhibition: Biology, Biomarkers for Patient Selection, and Bridging the Gap to Personalized Clinical Care

Short talk I selected from abstracts

Short talk II selected from abstracts

10.30 – 11.00

Coffee break

11.00 – 13.00

Session VI: Vascular disease

Anna Kopczak: Imaging-based selection of patients for intervention and secondary prevention trials

John McCabe: Inflammatory mediators of stroke risk

Closing lecture: 

Pradeep Natarajan: From Bench-to-Bedside: Genetics for Precision Medicine in Vascular Disease

Short talk I selected from abstracts

Short talk II selected from abstracts

13.00 – 14.00

Farewell & Lunch

REGISTRATION

Participation in the conference is limited to 120 attendees, with seats allocated on a first-come, first-served basis. We strongly encourage participation from PhD students, postdoctoral researchers, and scientists from underrepresented backgrounds. To support the next generation of researchers, 20 seats are reserved for early career investigators – including students, postdocs, and residents – at a reduced registration rate. Once these spots are filled, early career participants are welcome to register at the regular rate.

Registration includes:
• Access to all talks and poster sessions
• Accommodation (single room, 2 nights from February 23-25 2026 at Castle Hohenkammer, Munich)
• All meals and coffee breaks (not including extra alcoholic beverages)

This registration link is intended for academic participants and clinicians. Industry representatives who are interested in attending are kindly asked to contact the organizers directly.

BIOSTROKE Registration

SPEAKERS

Michael D. Hill

University of Calgary, Canada

Cathy Stinear

University of Auckland, New Zealand

Tony Wyss Coray

 Stanford University, United States

Marieke Wermer

University Medical
Center Groningen, The Netherlands

Hooman Kamel

Weill Cornell Medicine, New York, United States

Christian T. Ruff

Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Harvard Medical School, United States

Bruce Campbell

Royal Melbourne Hospital, Australia

Natalia Perez de la Ossa

Hospital Germans Trias
i Pujol, Spain

Pradeep Natarajan

Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School, United States

Neshika Samarasekera

University
of Edinburgh, UK

W. Taylor Kimberly

Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School, United States

Lauren Hablitz 

 University of Rochester Medical Center, United States

Tanja Zeller

UKSH Lübeck, Germany

Niels van Royen

Radboud University
Medical Center,
The Netherlands

Karin Klijn

Radboud University Medical Center, The Netherlands

Christopher Price

 Newcastle University, UK

Märit Jensen

UKE Hamburg, Germany

John McCabe

University College
Dublin, Ireland

Anna Kopczak

Institute for Stroke &
Dementia Research, LMU Hospital Munich, Germany

Corinne Benakis

Institute for Stroke &
Dementia Research, LMU Hospital Munich, Germany

ABSTRACT SUBMISSION

Abstract submission will open September 1, 2025. Abstracts on recent and unpublished research will be chosen for short talks or poster sessions by the abstract selection committee. 

ORGANIZING TEAM

John McCabe

University College
Dublin, Ireland

Johanna Ospel

University of Calgary, Canada

Steffen Tiedt

Institute for Stroke &
Dementia Research, LMU Hospital Munich, Germany

VENUE

Hohenkammer Castle
(Schloss Hohenkammer, 40 km from Munich city center)
Schlossstrasse 18 – 25

85411 Hohenkammer, Germany

Map

Accommodation

You will be accomodated in a Single room. The hotel is at the same location as the conference venue. Map of the venue can be downloaded here. Rooms will be attributed upon arrival, there is no reservation number at this point. Please announce yourself to the hotel desk upon your arrival. Check-in is available from 3pm. If you need early check-in, please ask the hotel front desk. A locked room will be available to store your luggage if needed. Check-out is at 11am.

Transport

By car – arriving from North and South:

From the South take the A9 in the direction of Ingolstadt/Nürnberg/Berlin; from the North take the A9 in the direction of Munich. Exit the A9 at junction Allershausen (67) and follow the signs to the left in the direction of Hohenkammer. Leave the round­about at the second exit and follow the road, via Eglhausen, to Hohenkammer. At the end of the road, at Hohenkammer, turn right onto the B13 in the direction of Ingol­stadt. Follow the main road past the church and then turn left onto Petershaser Strasse. You will reach Schlossstrasse on the right after 100 meters. Parking spaces are located directly after the bridge on your left.

By car – arriving from the Munich Airport:

Leave the airport and get onto the A92 in the direction of Eching/Munich. Change over to the A9 in the direction of Ingolstadt/Nürnberg/­Berlin at the motorway inter­section Neufahrn. Exit the A9 at junction Allershausen and follow the above directions.

By taxi:

The taxi ride from Munich Airport or Munich’s Central Station to the Hohenkammer Castle takes 30 and 50 min, respectively and costs 85-100 Euros. Visitors should take into consideration the transportation cost and traffic jam when planning their journey.

By train:

Take the suburban rail, S2, from Munich’s Central Station in the direction of Ingol­stadt and get off at Petershausen. The Hohenkammer Castle is just a few kilometers from Petershausen and easy to reach by taxi.

About the Area

Munich is characterized by centuries-old buildings and numerous museums. The Bavarian capital is known for the annual Oktoberfest and its beer halls, including the Hofbräuhaus, which opened in 1589. The Oktoberfest typically attracts over six million visitors over its three-week run starting this year on Sept. 16. In the old town, the city center at the well-known Marienplatz there are landmarks such as the Neo-Gothic New Town Hall, whose popular carillon plays melodies and stories from the 16th century.

The conference venue “Schloss Hohenkammer”, about 40km away from the city center, is literally sit­u­ated in the middle of a cul­tural land­scape. An excursion to Scheyern, home of the im­pres­sive Benedictine monastery and former seat of the Bavarian royal family, is an apparent possibility as one to Freising or the cultural and brewery site of Weihenstephan.

BIOSTROKE

Contact:

PD Dr. Dr. Steffen Tiedt

Feodor-Lynen-Straße 17, 81377 Munich, Germany

Phone: +49 (0)89 4400 46046

Email: info@biostroke.org

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