 President's Message
Thomas Barker, ASMB President
February 2026
Fellow Matrix Biology Enthusiasts,
It is with great honor that I step into the role of President of the American Society for Matrix Biology in 2026 and 2027. I have fond memories of my first ASMB meeting in Houston in 2002, as a recent PhD graduate and newly minted Postdoc. Since then, ASMB has been my home society, and I’ve valued the support and camaraderie of my fellow ASMB members over that 2+ decade period. I am continually inspired by your tremendous works and your dedication to moving the field of ECM research forward and would like to extend a personal thank you to those that attended and shared their works with the community at the 25th Anniversary meeting in Baltimore in 2025. It was a wonderful experience to organize the meeting, and I could not have accomplished the feat without the talents of the Program Committee and, of course, our wonderful Executive Director, Ms. Kendra LaDuca.
As we look to the future and our next 25 years, we certainly see the obvious adversity on the immediate horizon, but I hope we all also see the tremendous potential for discovery and growth. Our efforts need to center on supporting and encouraging the next generation of matrix biologists and welcoming them into our society with open arms and open minds. Fresh ideas and fresh minds that see problems with different lenses afford us the opportunity to adapt and leverage challenges as opportunities. I am most hopeful that our community will expand/grow as young scientists see the value of our community and the critical support it provides as they venture into their beginnings of their careers.
In 2026 we welcome our new President-elect, Doug Gould (UCSF), returning Secretary-Treasurer, Shea Posey (McGovern Med School), and new Council members Carmen Halabi (Wash U) and Roy Zent (Vanderbilt). We also look forward to the ASMB Workshop on Basement Membranes in December, organized by Dave Sherwood, Doug Gould, Brian Stramer, and Rachel Lennon at the University of Manchester (UK) and in early 2027 the ASMB Workshop on Fibroblasts co-organized by Anne Karina-Perl and Davy Vanhoutte at the Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center (USA). Our new President-Elect, Doug Gould, will be busy laying the foundation for our next Biennial Meeting in 2027, so be prepared to lend a hand on the Program Committee if he knocks on your door.
Finally, I would like to offer my sincerest thanks to current Past-President, Ambra Pozzi, and outgoing Past-President, Jeff Miner, for their steadfast leadership and to our outgoing Council members, Ryan Petrie and Jessica Wagenseil, for the dedicated service to the society.
Until we all meet again in person, I wish everyone a wonderful and fruitful 2026!
Tom Barker, PhD
University of Virginia
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