Bryan A. Whitson, MD, PhD is a Professor of Surgery at Ohio State University specializing in thoracic transplant, mechanical circulatory support, and adult cardiac surgery. He directs the Section of Thoracic Transplantation and Mechanical Circulatory Support. Additionally, he serves as the Interim Co-Director of The Ohio State University Heart and Vascular Center, Vice-Chair for Innovation and Translational Research, and the Jewel and Frank Benson Family Research Professor. Dr. Whitson has an active extramurally funded research lab and interacts with clinical house staff on the wards, in the OR, and on research projects regularly.  

Dr. Whitson completed his general surgery, surgical infectious diseases, and cardiothoracic surgery training at the University of Minnesota. His clinical and research interests include lung and heart transplantation, ex vivo organ perfusion, ECLS/ECMO, and mechanical circulatory support. He initiated the lung transplantation program at The Ohio State University in close collaboration with his pulmonary colleagues. He has spearheaded the development of the Organ Assessment and Repair Center (ARC) at OSU.

Additionally, Dr. Whitson co-directs The Collaboration for Organ Perfusion, Protection, Engineering, and Regeneration (COPPER) Laboratory at Ohio State, which brings together transplant surgery, endothelial cell biology, and biomedical engineering experts to further organ perfusion and recovery research. Dr. Whitson has 30 United States and international patents, numerous grants, and over 250 publications. He has three times been awarded the Thomas E Williams, Jr., MD, PhD Award for Excellence in Teaching from the OSU house staff and seven times received the Outstanding Achievement in Patient Service recognition from the OSU medical center.

Steve Julian, MD, MBA, CTBS is currently an Associate Medical Director with LifeNet Health in Virginia Beach, VA, and a participant in the AATB Physicians Council. He was previously a district director with the Virginia Department of Health, a physician administrator with Sentara Healthcare of Norfolk, VA, and a cardiothoracic and vascular surgeon with CV Surgical Associates in Salisbury, MD. Residency training occurred at Wake Forest University Medical Center in North Carolina, and during that time, he was involved with LifeNet in the development of techniques for heart valve recovery. He is a graduate of the Virginia Commonwealth University School of Medicine and Virginia Tech. He enjoys golf, bicycling, and being with family in his time away.