Breakout Session Leaders: Deanne Taylor & Rui Chen

This session will focus on the integration of pediatric, developmental, and aging atlases with existing HCA v1 atlases to create a more comprehensive view of human biology across the lifespan. Participants will discuss the need for analytical frameworks that enable integration across individual studies, institutions, and age groups, while also considering how future study designs can more intentionally incorporate lifespan diversity from the outset. The session will examine key data gaps within current atlases and explore opportunities to incorporate complementary consortium datasets that could expand demographic, developmental, and longitudinal representation. In addition, the discussion will address the technical, computational, and social barriers that currently limit these efforts, including challenges related to interoperability, metadata harmonization, coordination across communities, and infrastructure. Participants will also consider whether the current HCA Biological Network structure adequately supports lifespan-focused integration and identify potential organizational or collaborative changes needed to advance this area of research.