The Signal Transduction in the Immune System Conference

Federation Of Amer Soc For Exper Biology, Bethesda MD

Investigators

Abstract

PROJECT SUMMARY/ABSTRACT This application seeks partial funding for a FASEB Summer Research Conference (SRC) on "Signal Transduction in the Immune System", to be held June 11-15, 2023 in Palm Springs, CA. The overall goal of this conference is to provide a comprehensive survey of recent advances regarding the signaling mechanisms involved in the response of immune cells in both health and disease. The meeting in 2023 will be the 11th occurrence of this FASEB conference. It was originally scheduled in June 2021 but has been postponed multiple times due to the COVID pandemic. This particular FASEB conference has historically attracted widespread interest from both academia and industry because of the outstanding speaker rosters, the cutting edge nature of the work presented, and the relevance of many presentations to immunologic diseases. Additionally, since most mainstream immunology meetings do not provide an in-depth focus on signal transduction mechanisms, this dedicated FASEB conference has attracted leaders in immune signal transduction worldwide, as well as new investigators and students. Topics for the 2023 conference include innate immune cell sensing, leukocyte adhesion and migration, lymphocyte signaling, signaling and effector function, and immune signaling in health and disease. We anticipate that these topics will appeal to a broad swath of researchers in both basic and translational areas. Although the conference has a backbone of regular attendees and speakers, we have ensured that new ideas and research areas will be addressed in 2021 by featuring 12 new invited speakers (out of 35). We have also prioritized representation of women (45% of speakers) and underrepresented minorities (among the invited speakers. In addition, all sessions will have space for short talks (which will be selected from abstracts). New to the 2023 conference are two Lightning Sessions with a total of twenty 1-minute talks from trainees to highlight their poster session presentations (selected from abstracts). Priority for short talks will be given to new investigators, post-doctoral fellows, and students from groups in which PIs are not presenting. This will ensure a diversity of topics and speakers at the meeting. The overall objectives of the meeting are: 1) To provide a critical and intensive overview of the recent advances in signaling pathways controlling the innate and adaptive immune systems; 2) To bring together a diverse group of scientists across all career stages (including postdoctoral fellows and students) of both genders, in a stimulating and supportive atmosphere involving formal presentations and informal discussions; 3) To provide opportunities for trainees and early-career scientists to present their research to a broader scientific community; and 4) To advance research on molecular mechanisms in the immune system by broadly disseminating information and recent breakthroughs. We anticipate that this conference will build upon the success of past conferences in influencing the direction of signaling research in the immune system.