Dr. Nara Higano is a researcher at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center, affiliated with the Division of Pulmonary Medicine, the Department of Radiology, and the Cincinnati Bronchopulmonary Dysplasia Center. Her research lies at the translational interface between pulmonary medicine, radiology, and pediatrics, with a focus on how innovative and sensitive imaging techniques for lung structure and function can contribute to quantifying and redefining pediatric pulmonary conditions. She investigates the use of advanced imaging to predict outcomes in early disease and to elucidate precise responses to various clinical treatments. Techniques of interest include cutting-edge ultrashort echo time (UTE) MRI, quantitative and automated approaches for measuring structural lung parenchymal abnormalities, dynamic image reconstruction for lung and central airway function, and inhaled xenon-129 gas MRI strategies in very young patients. Her overarching goal is to impactfully improve our understanding and characterization of respiratory disease in young patients born prematurely or with congenital disorders, who are most likely to be burdened by lifelong respiratory impairment. Dr. Higano is a member of the American Thoracic Society and the International Society for Magnetic Resonance in Medicine.

Mark Oliver Wielpütz, Germany Prof. Dr. med. Mark Oliver Wielpütz, MHBA is Chair and Medical Director of the Department of Radiology, Neuroradiology, and Nuclear Medicine at University Medicine Greifswald. He is a board-certified radiologist in Germany with subspecialty certification in pediatric radiology and a strong academic and clinical background in thoracic imaging, interventional radiology, and lung cancer screening. Prof. Wielpütz received his medical degree with distinction from the University of Erlangen-Nuremberg and completed part of his training in Sydney, Australia. He earned his doctorate summa cum laude in 2009, followed by board certification in radiology in 2014. He holds several prestigious European diplomas, including the European Diploma in Radiology (EDIR), the European Diploma in Thoracic Imaging (ESTI), the European Board of Interventional Radiology (EBIR), and certifications in lung cancer screening. Additionally, he completed a Master of Health Business Administration (MHBA) at the University of Erlangen-Nuremberg. Before his current appointment in Greifswald, he served as Deputy Medical Director and Head of Pulmonary Imaging at the Department of Diagnostic and Interventional Radiology at University Hospital Heidelberg. He was also affiliated with the German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ) and the Translational Lung Research Center (TLRC), part of the German Center for Lung Research (DZL), where he led a junior research group on structural and functional airway imaging from 2012 to 2020. His international experience includes research fellowships in Japan and Australia. Prof. Wielpütz was appointed Associate Professor (Apl. Prof.) at the University of Heidelberg in 2019, following his habilitation in 2016. His research focuses on advanced imaging techniques for pulmonary diseases, particularly cystic fibrosis, COPD, and lung cancer. He has been awarded multiple national and international honors, including the Christiane Herzog Research Award, Marie Curie Ring, Vertex Innovation Award, and several best paper and presentation awards from societies such as the ESR, ESTI, and international CF conferences. He has authored numerous high-impact publications in leading journals such as American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine and Annals of the American Thoracic Society, and is co-editor of the textbook MRI of the Lung (2nd Edition, Springer). His work has helped to establish MRI as a reliable tool for non-invasive lung imaging in both research and clinical practice.

Robert Paul Guillerman is a Professor of Radiology in the Department of Radiology at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center. The imaging of childhood lung disease has been a focus of his 25-year career as a pediatric radiologist. He has presented over 120 international invited lectures, published over 100 medical journal articles, and co-edited the latest edition of the Springer textbook Pediatric Chest Imaging. He is the recipient of the Master Clinician Award for Excellence in Patient Care from Baylor College of Medicine, the Thomas L. Slovis Award for Best Basic Science Paper in Pediatric Radiology, and Caffey Awards for Best Basic Science Paper and Best Clinical Paper by the Society for Pediatric Radiology (SPR). He served as co-director of the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation Therapeutic Development Network Imaging Core from 2011-2020, and as a member of the Children’s Interstitial Lung Disease (ChILD) Research Network, Image Gently Steering Committee, SPR Board of Directors, and SPR CT and Thoracic Imaging Committees. Dr. Guillerman directed the postgraduate radiology course for the annual International Congress of Pediatric Pulmonology from 2019-2022 and is continuing in this role for the International Society of Pediatric Respiratory Diseases (INSPiRED).

Aki Tanimoto, MD, is an Assistant Professor of Radiology in the General and Cardiac imaging sections at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center. She completed her residency at Northwestern Memorial Hospital, her Cardiac and Pulmonary imaging fellowship at the University of California San Francisco, and Pediatric Radiology fellowship at Seattle Children’s Hospital.

David M. Biko, MD, MBA, FACR, FAHA, FSCMR is an Associate Professor of Radiology at the University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine and Chief of the Body Division and Soroosh Mahboubi Endowed Chair of Pediatric Body Imaging at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP). He is also the Chief of the Pediatric Section at the American College of Radiology Institute of Radiologic Pathology. Dr. Biko has an undergraduate degree in Chemical Engineering. He went on to receive his MD from Georgetown University School of Medicine and an MBA from Penn State University. Dr. Biko is the Cardiac Section Editor of Pediatric Radiology and has published greater than 70 original research publications along with many educational reviews, many of which relate to lymphatic imaging. He is a fellow of the American College of Radiology, American Heart Association, and Society of Cardiovascular Magnetic Resonance.