focused meetings

each year the society runs a series of focused meetings in the uk and ireland that have been submitted by our members. these meetings are a fantastic way to learn from, network with and present to the leaders working in each specific field of microbiology.

irish division host–pathogen interactions

the first in our series of focused meetings took place at the end of june in trinity college, dublin. invited speakers from local and international institutes presented their research on host–pathogen interactions.

the meeting took place over two half-days and included plenty of networking opportunities and poster presentations, along with offered papers during the programmed talks.

molecular biology of archaea 5

the second in our series has just taken place at the london school of hygiene and tropical medicine. it attracted a large number of international delegates and over 65 abstract submissions were added to the programme as posters and offered papers. the event also included an evening at the charles darwin centre in the natural history museum, where the delegates enjoyed a supper, to round off an excellent meeting.

thanks to all of those who helped make the meetings a success, and please continue to submit ideas for future meetings.

still to come in the series...

irish division exploring the microbe–immune system interface #misinterface

1–2 september 2016 – rochestown park hotel, cork, ireland

in this meeting, we will explore our current understanding of how commensal and pathogenic bacteria interact with the host immune system during infection, and the consequences of these interactions in health and disease.

topics will include:

• host colonisation
• host–microbiome interactions
• infection and immunity
• immune regulation

speakers will include:

• jose bengoechea (queen’s university belfast, uk)
• lydia lynch (harvard medical school, usa)
• john o’shea (national institutes of health, usa)
• vincent young (university of michigan, usa)

the dynamic fungus #dynamicfungus

5–7 september 2016 – mercure exeter rougemont hotel, exeter, uk

this meeting aims to celebrate the dynamic nature of fungi and provide an overview of some of the most cutting-edge current research in fungal biology.

topics will include:                                                                                      

• dynamics of the fungal cell
• mathematical modelling in fungal science
• dynamics of cellular differentiation
• dynamics in fungal pathogenicity
• dynamic evolution and adaptation of fungi

speakers will include:

• geoff gadd (university of dundee, uk)
• jeff gore (massachusetts institute of technology, usa)
• balázs papp (biological research centre, hungary)
• han woesten (university of utrecht, netherlands)

molecular biology and pathogenesis of avian viruses #avian16

27–29 september 2016 – charles darwin house, london, uk

this timely meeting focusing on avian viruses will bring together the international scientific community to assess the extent of the problem and help find solutions.

topics will include:                                             

• molecular biology and genetics of avian virus replication
• tropism and host range restriction
• pathogenesis of avian viruses
• host antiviral responses and virus immunomodulation                                   
• new and improved approaches to the control of avian viruses

speakers will include:

• wendy barclay (imperial college london, uk)
• laura delgui (national university of cuyo, argentina)
• paul britton (the pirbright institute, uk)
• roy duncan (dalhousie university, canada)

you can view each of the programmes, along with a list of invited speakers, on our website where registration remains open for each meeting. visit the website today to secure your spot.

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image: archaea on a rock. thorsten allers.