Dr. Lanier

Dr. Roncarolo

Dr. Liu

Presentation of the AAI Lifetime Achievement Award
Monday, May 21: 2:30 PM; Jackie Gleason Theater
Chair: Lewis L. Lanier, Univ. of California – San Francisco; AAI President
Award recipient: Ellen S. Vitetta, Cancer Immunobiology Center, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center
The AAI Lifetime Achievement Award is the highest honor bestowed by the AAI Council upon an AAI member.  This award recognizes a deserving member for a career of scientific achievement and for contributions to The AAI and fellow immunologists.  The award will be presented prior to the start of the AAI Presidential Symposium.

Presidential Symposium
Supported through an educational grant from eBioscience
From Academics to Biotech and Back
Monday, May 21: 2:30 PM; Jackie Gleason Theater
Chair: Lewis L. Lanier, Univ. of California – San Francisco; AAI President
Speakers
Maria Grazia Roncarolo, San Raffaele Telethon Inst. for Gene Therapy, T regulatory cell therapy: preclinical and clinical approaches
Yong-Jun Liu, MD Anderson Cancer Center, Univ. of Texas, Dendritic cell subsets and plasticity
Giorgio Trinchieri, Center for Cancer Research, NCI, NIH, Toll-like receptors, inflammation, and cancer
Steven F. Ziegler, Benaroya Research Inst.,Virginia Mason Medical Center, TSLP: a critical player in allergic inflammation

Dr. Trinchieri

Dr. Ziegler

Dr. Rao
 

Dr. Nussenzweig

Saturday, May 19: 5:00 PM
Jackie Gleason Theater

Dan R. Littman, HHMI, New York Univ. School of Medicine

Lineage choices in the thymus and periphery: from epigenetics to inflammation 

Sunday, May 20: 5:00 PM
Jackie Gleason Theater

Anjana Rao, Harvard Medical School

Signaling to transcription: the calcium/calcineurin/NFAT signaling pathway

Monday, May 21: 5:00 PM
Jackie Gleason Theater

Michel C. Nussenzweig, HHMI, Rockefeller Univ.

Antibodies and chromosome translocation

Saturday, May 19: 8:00 AM

Major Symposium A: Molecular Sensors in Innate Immunity
Miami Beach Convention Center, Room B214/218
Chairs: Jenny P. Ting, Univ. of North Carolina at Chapel Hill; Stefanie N. Vogel, Univ. of Maryland Baltimore
Speakers
Stefanie N. Vogel, Univ. of Maryland Baltimore, New insights into TLR-mediated signaling and disease 
Christopher L. Karp, Cincinnati Children’s Hosp. Research Foundation, Innate immune counter-regulation: restraining TLR signaling
Jenny P. Ting, Univ. of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, The CATERPILLER/NOD/NLR gene family: new family values in immunology
Gabriel Nuñez, Univ. of Michigan Cancer Center, Innate immunity mediated by NOD-like receptors
Zhijian James Chen, HHMI, Univ. of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, MAVS: a mitochondrial anti-viral signaling protein

Major Symposium B: DNA Repair: Immune Diversity vs. Death
Jackie Gleason Theater
Chairs: David B. Roth, New York Univ. School of Medicine; Barry P. Sleckman, Washington Univ. School of Medicine
Speakers
Frederick W. Alt, HHMI, Children’s Hosp. of Boston, Evolution of the class switch recombination mechanism
Craig H. Bassing, Children’s Hosp. of Philadelphia, Histone H2AX: keeping everything together at DNA breaks
Nancy Maizels, Univ. of Washington Medical School, Paradoxical pathways: molecular mechanisms of Ig gene diversification
Dale A. Ramsden, Univ. of North Carolina, V(D)J recombination-associated transposition: how much is too much?
David B. Roth, New York Univ. School of Medicine, The recombinase as gatekeeper: linking V(D)J recombination to DNA repair
Chengming Zhu, MD Anderson Cancer Center, Univ. of Texas, Critical role of DNA damage induced, p53-dependent cell cycle arrest in suppressing lymphomagenesis

Sunday, May 20: 8:00 AM

Major Symposium C: Parasitic Infections: Informing Immunology
Miami Beach Convention Center, Room B214/218
Chairs: Christopher A. Hunter, Univ. of Pennsylvania Veterinary School; Lynn Soong, Univ. of Texas Medical Branch
Speakers
David Artis, Univ. of Pennsylvania, Novel regulatory pathways in the regulation of type 2 responses and mucosal immunity
William C. Gause, UMDNJ, New Jersey Medical School, Characterizing effector cells at the host-parasite interface
Lynn Soong, Univ. of Texas Medical Branch, Immune modulation by Leishmania parasites
Yasmine Belkaid, NIAID, NIH, Antigen specificity and origin of regulatory T cells during parasitic infection
Fidel P. Zavala, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Induction of effector CD8+ T cells against liver stages of malaria parasites
Rick L. Tarleton, Univ. of Georgia, Generation, maintenance and specificity of CD8+ T cell responses to the intracellular pathogen Trypanosoma cruzi

Major Symposium D: Lineage Decisions
Jackie Gleason Theater
Chairs: Barbara L. Kee, Univ. of Chicago; Juan Carlos Zúñiga-Pflücker, Univ. of Toronto
Speakers
Katia Georgopoulos, Massachusetts General Hosp., Harvard Univ., Hematopoietic stemness and the Mi-2 code
David M. Allman, Univ. of Pennsylvania Medical School, Ontogeny of plasmacytoid dendritic cells
Barbara L. Kee, Univ. of Chicago, Transcriptional control of natural killer cell development
Juan Carlos Zúñiga-Pflücker, Univ. of Toronto, Early T cell differentiation, in vitro models of thymus function
Rémy Bosselut, NCI, NIH, Transcriptional control of CD4-CD8 differentiation: in the thymus and beyond
Steven L. Reiner, Univ. of Pennsylvania, Abramson Cancer Inst., Specifying T lymphocyte fates required for immunity

Monday, May 21: 8:00 AM 

Major Symposium F: Inflammation in the Immune Response: IL-17/IL-23
Miami Beach Convention Center, Room B214/218
Chairs: John J. O’Shea, NIAMS, NIH; Casey T. Weaver, Univ. of Alabama at Birmingham
Speakers
Chairs Introduction (John J. O’Shea and Casey T. Weaver)
Daniel J. Cua, DNAX Research Inst., Regulation of the IL-23/IL-17 immune axis
Christopher A. Hunter, Univ. of Pennsylvania Veterinary School, Turning off Th17 cells
Nico Ghilardi, Genentech, Inc., The role of IL-27 in regulating Th-17 development
Jay K. Kolls, Children’s Hosp. of Pittsburgh, Role of IL-23/IL-17 in lung host defense
Brigitta Stockinger, National Inst. for Medical Research, London, Th17- a missing link in the immune system

Tuesday, May 22: 8:00 AM 

Major Symposium G: Memory Cells and Responses
Miami Beach Convention Center, Room B214/218
Chairs: Susan M. Kaech, Yale Univ.; Michael G. McHeyzer-Williams, Scripps Research Inst.
Speakers
Susan M. Kaech, Yale Univ., Regulation of memory CD8 T cell precursors by T-bet and inflammatory signals
Susan L. Swain, Trudeau Inst., CD4 T cells: how effector and memory cells combat influenza 
Philippa Marrack, HHMI, National Jewish Medical and Research Center, CD4 memory T cells may not exist
Federica Sallusto, Inst. for Research in Biomedicine, Subsets of memory T cells in mouse and man
Michael G. McHeyzer-Williams, Scripps Research Inst., Regulating antigen-specific B cell immunity
Mark K. Slifka, Oregon Health and Science Univ., Immunological memory following smallpox or smallpox vaccination: how long can it last?

Major Symposium H: Immune System Imaging
Jackie Gleason Theater
Chairs: Ellen A. Robey, Univ. of California Berkeley; Ulrich H. Von Andrian, Harvard Medical School
Speakers
Ellen A. Robey, Univ. of California Berkeley, Real-time analysis of T cell development in situ
Ulrich H. von Andrian, Harvard Medical School, Cellular dynamics in the bone marrow
Philippe Bousso, Pasteur Inst., Cellular orchestration of T cell priming in vivo
Antonella Viola, Univ. of Padova, European Molecular Biology Organization (EMBO) Young Investigator, Chemokine receptors at the immunological synapse
Peter Friedl, Univ. of Würzburg, Migration dynamics and signaling during T cell-APC interactions
Michael Dustin, Skirball Inst. of Molecular Medicine, A dynamic view of the immunological synapse

The AAI award programs honor members across the spectrum of their careers.  AAI awards are presented throughout the meeting in special sessions. For description, eligibility, nomination, instructions, and application please go to http://www.aai.org/Awards/

Awards being presented at IMMUNOLOGY 2007:

          ·        AAI Lifetime Achievement Award
          ·        AAI Distinguished Service Award
          ·        AAI Excellence in Mentoring Award
          ·        AAI-Huang Foundation Meritorious Career Award
          ·        AAI-BD Biosciences Investigator Award
          ·        AAI-Dana Foundation Award in Human Immunology Research
          ·        Pfizer-Showell Travel Award
          ·        AAI-Huang Foundation Trainee Achievement Awards
          ·        AAI Junior Faculty Travel Awards
          ·        AAI Minority Scientist Travel Awards
          ·        Cynthia Chambers Memorial-eBioscience Junior Faculty Award

Details on awards presentations appear in the following two sections.

Dr. Martinez

	New this year for student registrants!
Young Investigators Party (YIP) Friday, May 18, 2007 6:30 - 8:30 PM Miami Beach Convention Center Room B118/122 Hors de oeuvres, drinks, music and dancing! Admission tickets will be printed on student name badges.
This event is sponsored by the AAI and BD Biosciences, Inc.

AAI Business Meeting & Awards Presentation
Monday, May 21: 12:45 PM; Miami Beach Convention Center, Room B210/211
This session will include the annual report to AAI members on AAI and The Journal of Immunology business affairs, and will feature the following 2007 AAI awards presentations.

Dr. Sercarz

Dr. Waldmann





Dr. von Andrian




Dr. Alt

Dr. Hodes

AAI-Dana Foundation Award in Human Immunology Research
Supported through an unrestricted grant from the Dana Foundation
Saturday, May 19: 3:15 PM; Jackie Gleason Theater
Chair: Lewis L. Lanier, Univ. of California – San Francisco; AAI President
Award recipient: Thomas A. Waldmann, Center for Cancer Research, National Cancer Institute, National Institutes of Health, IL-15 in the life and death of lymphocytes: implications for cancer therapy and vaccine design
 

AAI-Huang Foundation Meritorious Career Award and Lecture
Supported by an unrestricted educational grant from the Huang Foundation
Sunday, May 20: 3:30 PM; Jackie Gleason Theater
Chairs: Lewis L. Lanier, Univ. of California – San Francisco; AAI President;
Ernest C-M Huang, President, Huang Foundation
Award recipient: Frederick W. Alt, HHMI, CBR Institute for Biomedical Research, Harvard Medical School; Children's Hospital Boston, Synapsis and joining pathways in IgH class switching and lymphomagenic translocations

AAI 2007 Public Service Award Presentation and Reception
Monday, May 21: 10:00 AM; Miami Beach Convention Center, Room A201/202
(Immediately following the NIA Symposium: "How Aging Impacts Immunity")
Chairs: Lewis L. Lanier, Univ. of California – San Francisco; AAI President;
Ellen Kraig, Univ. of Texas Health Science Center, San Antonio; Chair, Committee on Public Affairs
Award recipient: Richard J. Hodes, Director, National Institute on Aging, NIH
In recognition of his outstanding scientific and administrative leadership at the National Institute on Aging and his commitment to advancing immunological research related to aging
 

AAI Clinical Immunology Committee

Symposium: Animal Models of Autoimmune Disease: What They Have Taught and Not Taught
Friday, May 18: 2:45 PM; Miami Beach Convention Center, Room A204/205
Chair: Ralph C. Budd, Univ. of Vermont College of Medicine
David B. Corry, Baylor College of Medicine, Human and experimental asthma - what have we learned?
Chella S. David, Mayo Clinic Foundation, Humanized HLA class II transgenic mice mimic RA and MS
Nora E. Sarvetnick, The Scripps Research Institute, Understanding diabetes in humans and rodents
Edward K. Wakeland, Univ. of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Delineating the genetic pathways mediating susceptibility to systemic autoimmunity

AAI-Cancer Research Institute Special Symposium: Immunity and Regulation in the Tumor Microenvironment
Saturday, May 19: 8:30 AM; Miami Beach Convention Center, Room B212/213
Chairs: Victor H. Engelhard, Univ. of Virginia; Olivera J. Finn, Univ. of Pittsburgh
Speakers
Victor H. Engelhard, Univ. of Virginia, Introduction
Jérôme Galon, Cordeliers Research Center, Paris, France, Adaptive immune reaction in colorectal cancer: clinical implications
Jay A. Berzofsky, NCI, NIH: Cross-regulation between subsets of NKT cells in the immunoregulation of tumor immunity
Hyam I. Levitsky, Johns Hopkins Univ., Overcoming dominant suppression in active immunotherapy of cancer
Dimitry I. Gabrilovich, H. L. Moffit Cancer Research Center, Immune tolerance in cancer induced by myeloid-derived suppressor cells
Hua Yu, Beckman Research Institute, City of Hope Medical Center, Crosstalk between cancer and immune cells: the role of Stat3 in the tumor microenvironment
Sacha Gnjatic, Ludwig Institute for Cancer Research, Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, Immunity to NY-ESO-1 and regulation - from periphery to the local tumor site

AAI Education Committee

John H. Wallace High School Teachers Workshop: Lessons in Immunology
Saturday, May 19: 9:00 AM, Miami Beach Convention Center, Room A106/107
Chair: Arthur Tzianabos, Shire Human Genetic Therapies
The AAI High School Teachers Program brings the excitement of immunology directly to high school students by sending high school science teachers into the laboratories of established immunologists who mentor them in a “hands-on” summer internship.  The teachers develop a science project for the classroom based on their summer experience.  The teachers present their experiences and projects in this session.

Careers Roundtable (Co-sponsored with the Committee on the Status of Women)
Saturday, May 19: 1:00 PM; Miami Beach Convention Center, Room B118-122
Chairs: Mercedes Rincon, Univ. of Vermont; Chair, Committee on the Status of Women; Christel H. Uittenbogaart, UCLA
Experienced scientists will serve as roundtable discussion leaders on specific career issues and options important to men and women in science today.  Attendance is limited to the first 300 registrants (students, postdocs, faculty, and staff).  Men are encouraged to participate. 

Registration required as there is limited seating. $10 fee required when registering; coffee and dessert included.

Scientists at Undergraduate Institutions: Meeting the Challenges
Sunday, May 20: 12:30 PM; Miami Beach Convention Center, Room B118-119

Chairs: Laurel A. Eckhardt, Hunter College, CUNY; James M. Sheil, West Virginia Univ. School of Medicine

This workshop will address the challenges of holding a faculty position at an undergraduate institution.  Such institutions range from the small, liberal arts college that may not grant any degrees beyond the BA, to large research universities with graduate programs granting PhD’s in science.  The challenges of integrating research with teaching will be discussed, as will differences in salary and support for faculty in a college department versus faculty at research institutions or medical schools.  

Speakers

Sharon A. Stranford, Mount Holyoke College, Research and teaching at a small liberal arts college

Laurel A. Eckhardt, Hunter College, Research and teaching in a university undergraduate department

James M. Sheil, West Virginia Univ. School of Medicine, Institutional support and commitment for research programs in undergraduate institutions

Brian Rybarczyk, SPIRE Postdoctoral Fellowship Program, Univ. of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Innovative postdoctoral training and interactions with undergraduates at historically minority universities

Panel session with audience Q and A
 

Skills for the Big Chill – How to Survive and Thrive as a Newly Independent Scientist
Monday, May 21: 12:30 PM; Miami Beach Convention Center, Room A204/205
Chair: Christopher A. Pennell, Univ. of Minnesota-Minneapolis
This workshop is for young investigators who want to be, or have recently become, Principal Investigators.  The participants in this workshop will give tips on how to succeed at the next level in your career and will share valuable insights that no one bothers to tell you.
Panelists
Gail A. Bishop, Univ. of Iowa, Paddling your own canoe: navigating a rewarding path as an independent scientist
Andrea A. Itano, Amgen, Inc., From academics to biotech: what changes and what stays the same
David W. Scott, Univ. of Maryland, Words (of wisdom?) from a PI with history
Christopher A. Pennell, Univ. of Minnesota-Minneapolis, Succeeding as a PI: why you need more than science 

AAI Minority Affairs Committee

The AAI 2007 Minority Affairs Committee Activities are funded by a grant from the National Institute of General Medical Sciences, National Institutes of Health.  [FASEB MARC Program: T36-GM08059-24].

AAI Minority Scientist Travel Awards Program
The Minority Affairs Committee supports the participation of under-represented minority scientists at the AAI Annual Meeting through committee activities and offering the Minority Scientist Travel Awards.  For more information and application instructions please visit www.aai.org/Awards.  The awards will be presented at the AAI Business Meeting. 

AAI Minority Affairs Committee Breakfast Workshop: NIH Funding Realities: Implications for Underrepresented Minority Scientists
Sunday, May 20: 8:30 AM; Miami Beach Convention Center, Room B212/213
Chair: Randy R. Brutkiewicz, Indiana Univ. School of Medicine; Chair, Minority Affairs Committee
Guest Speaker: Lawrence J. Prograis, Senior Scientist for Special Programs and Bioethics, DAIT, NIAID, NIH

AAI Committee on Public Affairs

Advocating for Biomedical Research: The Top Ten Things You Should NOT Say While Educating Lawmakers
Saturday, May 19: 11:30 AM; Miami Beach Convention Center, Room A106/107
Chair:  Ellen Kraig, Univ. of Texas Health Science Center, San Antonio; Chair, Committee on Public Affairs
Informing lawmakers about the importance of funding biomedical research is a key function of AAI’s public affairs program.  But we depend on AAI members to help us communicate this crucial message.  If you’ve ever gone to Capitol Hill to advocate for research, or if you would ever like to do so, or if you just want some good political laughs, join us for this informative and potentially irreverent seminar.  A light lunch will be provided.
Speakers
Gail A. Bishop, Univ. of Iowa; Member, Committee on Public Affairs
Bonnie Blomberg, Univ. of Miami; Member, Committee on Public Affairs
William R. Green, Dartmouth Medical School; Member, Committee on Public Affairs
Lauren G. Gross, Director of Public Policy and Government Affairs, AAI
Louis B. Justement, University of Alabama/Birmingham; Member, Committee on Public Affairs
Gary Kline, Legislative Assistant to Rep. Brian P. Bilbray (R-50th, CA)
Jon Retzlaff, Director of Legislative Relations, FASEB

Light lunch to be provided

Meet the Directors:  NIH Priorities, Funding, and You
Sunday, May 20: 12:30 – 2:30 PM; Miami Beach Convention Center, Room A204/205
Chair: Ellen Kraig, Univ. of Texas Health Science Center, San Antonio; Chair, Committee on Public Affairs
Hear from the Directors of these key NIH institutes regarding their plans for advancing immunological research now and in the years to come.  The audience will be invited to ask questions of the Directors on any topic of interest or concern.
Speakers
Anthony S. Fauci, Director, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, NIH, NIAID-sponsored immunology research: challenges and opportunities
Richard J. Hodes, Director, National Institute on Aging, NIH, Authorization, appropriation, and immunology at NIH
Alan M. Krensky, Director, Office of Portfolio Analysis and Strategic Initiatives (designee), Office of the Director, NIH, The new Office of Portfolio Analysis and Strategic Initiatives (OPASI)

AAI Publications Committee

Communication: The Science of Scientific Writing Mini Course (***Fee required)
Friday, May 18: 12:00-4:00 PM; Miami Beach Convention Center, Room A106/107
Instructor: Judith A. Swan, Assistant Director for Scientific and Technical Writing, Princeton Writing Program, Princeton Univ.
Do you ever feel that writing about your research for publication can be more challenging than actually doing the experiments?  Do you wish you could communicate your science more efficiently and effectively?  This workshop will consider writing from the perspective that matters most -- that of the reader. Writers who are aware of readers’ interpretive needs can structure their documents – research articles, reviews, grant applications, etc. – so that the messages their readers take away are the messages the writers intended.  This workshop is appropriate for scientists of all levels: graduate students, postdocs, and junior faculty members will learn specific strategies for communicating clearly, while senior scientists will also gain new perspectives on writing well.  Scientists who speak English as a second language will be made aware of many structural cues that native English speakers have acquired unconsciously.  

Registration required as there is limited seating. $100 fee required when registering.

Writing, Rebuttals, and Angst in Scientific Publishing
Saturday, May 19: 12:30 PM; Miami Beach Convention Center, Room B210/211
Chair: Jeffrey A. Frelinger, Univ. of North Carolina; Deputy Editor, The Journal of Immunology
The audience will learn what editors of The Journal of Immunology look for when deciding which articles get accepted for publication.  Speakers will address how to effectively respond to criticisms and give tips on avoiding the most common mistakes made by authors in preparing and defending manuscripts.  The issue of ethics, that is, what constitutes plagiarism, fraud and falsification, will be also addressed.  After short presentations, audience questions and comments will be addressed by the speakers.
Speakers
Jeffrey A. Frelinger, Univ. of North Carolina; Deputy Editor, The Journal of Immunology, Understanding The JI; what happens after you push the button?
Jeremy M. Boss, Emory Univ. School of Medicine; Deputy Editor, The Journal of Immunology, I can’t believe it didn’t get accepted! Responding to reviewer critiques
Michael J. Zigmond, Univ. of Pittsburgh, High crimes and misdemeanors in publication practices: ethics in publishing

AAI Committee on the Status of Women

Networking & Mentoring: How to Make it Work for You
Friday, May 18: 2:45 PM; Miami Beach Convention Center, Room B210/211
Chair: Laura Haynes, Trudeau Inst.
Many times it is about who you know!  Networking and mentoring skills can significantly enhance your career.  This workshop will present strategies for how to network and mentor at any stage in your career.  Short presentations will precede a question and answer session with the audience.
Panelists
Sherrill Adams, Univ. of Pennsylvania Dental School, Setting up mentoring connections
Laura Haynes, Trudeau Inst., How to get started networking
Jeremy M. Boss, Emory Univ. School of Medicine, Being a mentor and a mentee

AAI Veterinary Immunology Committee

Comparative Models of Disease [co-sponsored by the American Association of Veterinary Immunologists (AAVI)]
Sunday, May 20, 8:00-10:00 AM, Miami Beach Convention Center, Room B210/211
Chairs: Joan K. Lunney, ARS, ANRI, USDA; President, AAVI; William T. Golde, ARS, USDA; Chair, AAI Veterinary Immunology Committee
Speakers
John E. Butler, Univ. of Iowa College of Medicine, The isolator piglet model: PRRS viral infection causes expansion of naïve B cells with hydrophobic HCDR3s
Jaime F. Modiano, Univ. of Colorado Health Science Center, Dogs, cancer, and evolution: a contemporary voyage of discovery with the beagle
Laurel J. Gershwin, Univ. of California, Davis School of Veterinary Medicine, Immunopathogenesis of respiratory syncytial virus infection: lessons from a bovine model
David H. O’Connor, Univ. of Wisconsin-Madison, Advances and new opportunities in nonhuman primate models of HIV/AIDS

National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID)

AAI-NIAID Contemporary Topics in Immunology
Friday, May 18: 2:30 PM; Miami Beach Convention Center, Room A201/202
Chairs: Alison Deckhut Augustine, NIAID, NIH; John G. Monroe, Univ. of Pennsylvania School of Medicine; AAI Program Committee Chair
Speakers
M. Virginia Pascual, Baylor Inst. for Immunology Research, Role of IL-1 in systemic onset juvenile arthritis
Lawrence Stern, Univ. of Massachusetts Medical School, MHC/peptide interactions and antigen presentation
Denise Kirschner, Univ. of Michigan Medical School, Multi-scale approaches towards understanding antigen presentation during the immune response to M. tuberculosis
Adolfo García-Sastre, Mount Sinai School of Medicine, Insights on influenza virus pathogenicity from the pandemic 1918 influenza virus

HIV 65,000,000--Immunology 0: Let’s Get on the Scoreboard! Will B Cells B the Answer? 
Saturday, May 19: 10:15 AM; Miami Beach Convention Center, Room A104/105
Chairs: Tony Conley, DAIDS, NIAID, NIH; Helen R. Quill, DAIT, NIAID, NIH
A panel of distinguished researchers will discuss basic immunology strategies for engineering B cell reactivity in HIV vaccination.
Panelists
John Cambier, National Jewish Medical and Research Center, Denver
Eric Meffre, Hospital for Special Surgery, New York
Ignacio Sanz, University of Rochester

Immunology Ontology 101: Who Cares and Why You Should
Saturday, May 19: 12:30 PM; Miami Beach Convention Center, Room A104/105
Chairs: Alison Deckhut Augustine, NIAID, NIH; Alison Yao, NIAID, NIH
This session is intended to introduce ontology and its applications to immunology to the AAI research community. An ontology is a formal way of representing knowledge by defining the relationships between entities. Ontologies provide a computational framework for the accurate integration of data and knowledge resources. Use of formal ontologies to structure information within a database allows researchers to share information readily and expand data collection and analysis to include multiple data and knowledge sources from within and outside of their laboratories, which may lead to the discovery of novel biological information.
Presenters
Suzanna Lewis, Univ. of California, Berkeley, Ontology 101: an overview
Alexander D. Diehl, The Jackson Laboratory, Gene ontology for immunology: an overview
Presentations of NIAID immune ontology-related projects
Richard Scheuermann, Univ. of Texas Southwest Medical Center, Characterizing signaling responses in B lymphocytes
Lindsay Cowell, Duke Univ., Integrative immunology for adjuvant discovery
Bjoern Peters, La Jolla Inst. for Allergy and Immunology, Ontology development for the immune epitope database
Q and A session with presenters

National Institute on Aging (NIA)

How Aging Impacts Immunity
Monday, May 21: 8:00 AM; Miami Beach Convention Center, Room A201/202
Chairs: Richard Hodes, Director, NIA, NIH; Rebecca A. Fuldner, NIA, NIH
Hans Snoeck, Mount Sinai School of Medicine, Age-related changes in B cell development
Bonnie Blomberg, Univ. of Miami School of Medicine, Decreased class switch in B cells from aged mice and humans
Edouard Vannier, Tufts-New England Medical Center/Tufts University School of Medicine, Genetic analysis of an age-related decline in immune resistance to infection
Wendy Keitel, Baylor College of Medicine, Inactivated influenza vaccines for the elderly

AAI is joined by the following guest societies presenting two-hour symposia in special disciplines. 

International Society for NeuroImmunoModulation (ISNIM) Symposium: Neural and Endocrine Immunoregulation
Friday, May 18, 12:30 PM, Miami Beach Convention Center, Room A208/209
Chair: Hugo O. Besedovsky, Philipps Univ. of Marburg, Germany
Speakers
Hugo O. Besedovsky, Philipps Univ. of Marburg, Germany, Introduction
Keith W. Kelley, Univ. of Illinois-Urbana, Cytokine-induced hormone resistance
Adriana del Rey, Philipps Univ. of Marburg, Germany, Immunoregulatory role of the sympathetic nervous system
Rainer H. Straub, Univ. Hosp., Regensburg, Germany, Immunoregulatory role of neuropeptides during inflammatory autoimmune disease
Wilson Savino, Oswaldo Cruz Foundation, Rio de Janeiro, Immune-neuroendocrine interactions in the thymus

PsychoNeuroImmunology Research Society (PNIRS) Symposium: Inflammation in the Brain