Dr. Elena Aikawa is Professor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School. She is also Co-director of the Center for Interdisciplinary Sciences (CICS), Founding Director of the Heart Valve Translational Research Program (HVTRP) and Associate Head of Section of Cardiovascular Life Sciences at Brigham and Women’s Hospital (BWH) in Boston, Massachusetts, USA. Dr. Aikawa holds editorial positions at the Circulation Research, Journal of Extracellular Vesicles, PLoS ONE and Arteriosclerosis Thrombosis and Vascular Biology. She has delivered more than 150 keynote lectures, invited talks and cardiovascular grand rounds, and has authored more than 200 articles on cardiovascular pathobiology. Her research program has been continuously supported by NIH funding. Throughout her career, she has trained a number of research fellows, medical students and PhD candidates. Dr. Aikawa remains committed to advancing the careers of women in science and medicine.