Mechanisms of Immune Cell Development and Function

Conference Summary

This meeting is about mechanisms, focusing on how gene regulation, gene networks, epigenetic mechanisms, and the molecular cascades that control these processes, explain the complex biology of the immune system. The public health impact of immunology research is difficult to overestimate, ranging from prevention of infection (exemplified by the consequences of HIV and more recently illustrated during the Covid pandemic) to the cancer immunotherapy revolution, from auto-immune and inflammatory diseases to an ever-growing spectrum of pathologies connected to the immune response. Such approaches are expected to revolutionize our understanding of immune responses not only in lymphoid organs, but in barrier tissues and internal organs. These technologies, broadly applicable to experimental animal models and human tissues, will provide unprecedented insight into pathophysiological mechanisms and the development of new vaccination or treatment strategies.