Jerry W. Shay is the Vice Chairman of the Department of Cell Biology at The University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas, the Associate Director of the Harold Simmon's Comprehensive Cancer Center, and holds the Southland Corporation Distinguished Chair in Aging and Cancer Research. Throughout his career, Dr. Shay has been interested in the relationships between aging and cancer. His seminal work on the relationships of telomerase to aging and cancer has received much international recognition. In 1995, he received the AlliedSignal Award for Research on Aging, the 2001 American Association of Aging Hayflick Award, from 1999 to 2003 was named an Ellison Medical Foundation Senior Scholar in Aging Research, and in 2004 the Ted Nash Foundation Award. In 2003, Dr. Shay was placed in the Institute for Scientific Investigations as one of the most highly cited scientists in the field of Molecular Biology and Genetics. In 2006, Science Watch placed Dr. Shay into the Doctors of the Decade (1995–2005) list and he was ranked as the 6th most cited author in the area of General Biomedicine (Science Watch 17:1 2–3, 2006). He has 35 papers that are each cited over 200 times and 60 additional research articles that are cited over 100 times each. In addition to 19 issued patents, Dr. Shay has published over 300 scientific articles, written 50 book chapters, and edited 10 books. Dr. Shay is on the editorial board of several scientific journals and is also a member of biotechnology scientific advisory boards that focus on research in cancer and aging. Finally, Dr. Shay serves as the Chairman of the Scientific Review Committee for the Mary Kay Ash Charitable Foundation and is the Program Director of the Cancer Biology Track for graduate students at UT Southwestern.

W. Nicol Keith obtained his undergraduate training in genetics at Edinburgh University before undertaking his Ph.D. studies at the CRUK Beatson Institute for Cancer Research in Glasgow. After post-doctoral research in areas related to cancer drug resistance, he established his research program in the Department of Medical Oncology at Glasgow University. In 2004, he became Professor of Molecular Oncology at the Centre for Oncology and Applied Pharmacology of Glasgow University. Professor Keith's program brings together the key strategic areas of cellular immortality and senescence with the regulation of gene expression. The overall objective of his work is to carry out translational research extending the identification of basic mechanisms of gene regulation into validated targets for new therapeutics. Telomerase activity is vital for tumor progression. Through his research program, the group have discovered and characterized the key promoter sequences, which switch on/off telomerase RNA gene expression. This discovery has been used to develop a detailed understanding of the molecular mechanisms influencing telomerase activity and how cancer cells become immortal. Professor Keith's group focuses on exploiting their unique understanding of cancer cell immortality to develop novel cancer therapeutics, including small molecule drugs. His research is currently supported by grants from Cancer Research UK, European Community, and Glasgow University. Nicol is a member of several national and international scientific committees and is particularly active within the International Union Against Cancer (UICC), including chairing the UICC International Cancer Technology Transfer Fellowships (ICRETT) grants committee, which facilitates rapid international transfer of cancer research techniques and technology and clinical management skills across the globe.