Basic Cardiovascular Sciences Scientific Sessions 2026

Jonathan Epstein, MD, was named Executive Vice President of the University of Pennsylvania for the Health System and Dean of the Raymond and Ruth Perelman School of Medicine on March 1, 2025. Together these two entities make up Penn Medicine, an $11.9B enterprise dedicated to excellence in the related missions of medical education, biomedical research, and patient care.

As the Robert G. Dunlop Professor and, most recently, as the Executive Vice Dean and Chief Scientific Officer, Dr. Epstein has played a pivotal role in shaping the Penn Medicine’s trajectory as a national and international leader in discovery science and clinical research. He has also served as Senior Vice President and Chief Scientific Officer for the health system since February 2021. From 2006 to 2015, he served as chair of the Department of Cell and Developmental Biology and Scientific Director of the Penn Cardiovascular Institute. He played an instrumental role as a founding co-director of the Penn Institute for Regenerative Medicine in 2007.

Dr. Epstein has served as a respected member of distinguished organizations, including the Philadelphia College of Physicians, the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, the American Association of Physicians, and the National Academy of Medicine. He also served as President of both the Interurban Clinical Club and the American Society for Clinical Investigation.

Dr. Epstein has directed a highly impactful research program throughout his 27-year tenure at Penn and he is widely recognized for contributions to the understanding of congenital heart disease, heart failure, stem cell biology and epigenetics. His most recent advances involve utilizing modified mRNA delivered with targeted lipid nanoparticles to engineer immune cells within the body to fight heart disease, cancer and other disorders.