Seung-Yong Seong has completed his degree, M.S, and Ph.D. from Seoul National University College of Medicine in the Department of Microbiology and Immunology. Currently, he is working as a professor at Seoul National University College of Medicine in the Department of Microbiology and Immunology. He authored many publications in esteemed journals. He is an active member of various societies such as Korean Society for Microbiology, Korean Society for Immunology, American Society for Microbiology, and American Society for Immunology. He received many national and international awards for his contribution in the field of microbiology and immunology.

Anti-cancer immunotherapeutics have been developed for last couple of years and showed promising results. Nonetheless, there are many obstacles to overcome. We have tried to enhance antigen delivery into DCs by using nanoparticles and published on Nature Nanotech 2011. In addition, one of main hurdles is to identify tumor-specific target antigens to evoke successful cancer-specific immune responses. We have been trying to identify stem-cell specific antigens by comparing gene expression profiles between induced pluripotent stem cells and parental cells. Among the stem-cell-specific antigens, we identified tumor-associated antigens by analyzing SAGE database and by immunohistochemistry using normal tissue arrays and cancer arrays. We have been investigating their therapeutic potential as target antigens in immunotherapy using dendritic cells (DCs) vaccine and antibody therapeutics-targeting cancer-stem cell antigens in mouse tumor model. In addition, we have been trying to find out new molecular entities that control inflammation based on our novel views published on Nature Rev. Immunol 2004.

Eitan Okun is an Associate Professor in the Mina and Everard Goodman Faculty of Life Sciences, Bar Ilan University, and is affiliated with the Gonda Multidisciplinary Brain Research Center. Prof. Okun’s research is conducted at the Paul Feder Laboratory for research on Alzheimer’s disease. Prof. Okun’s major research lines focus on both basic and translational neurosciences. Prof. Okun studies the roles of innate immune receptors of the Toll-like receptors / Interleukin-1 pathways on spatial learning and memory in rodents, with emphasis on spatial pattern completion and pattern separation. In addition, Prof. Okun’s laboratory studies mechanisms by which physical exercise affects adult hippocampal neurogenesis, the process of formation of new neurons in the adult brain. On the translation branch of his research, Prof. Okun develops DNA vaccination strategies to delay the progression of Alzheimer's disease using mouse models of Alzheimer's disease and Down syndrome. In addition, the laboratory also develops biomarkers for earlier diagnosis of neurodegenerative disorders such as Alzheimer's disease and Parkinson’s disease.

Biology, Immunology, Immunology, Neuroscience

-Associated Researcher “C”. INSP 1998 -Head: Department of Genetics. National Institute of Public Health. Mexico. 1998-2000 - Director of Vector Borne Diseases Section. National Institute of Public Health. Mexico. From February 2001- to present. - 2018 Level 3 SNI 2018- 2022

Immunology, Insect Immunology

He completed Bachelor of Science at Taiwan, received Master degree of science and PhD (Doctor of Agriculture) at Kyushu University, Fukuoka, Japan. He has worked in National Taiwan Ocean University (NTOU), Taiwan and acted as Dean of Life Sciences before. He has received academic award, Ministry of Education, and Distinguished Special Research Fellow Award, Ministry of Science and Technology. He is a life-time distinguished professor at National Taiwan Ocean University (NTOU). His main scientific fields are animal health, environment, immunology, pathology, and physiology. He has published 280 peer-review articles, acted as an Editorial Board for scientific journals, and invited as a reviewer.

In mammals, intracellular molecules or endogenous molecules known as damage-associated molecular patterns (DAMPs) are released by dying cells caused by pathogens or trauma, and convey similar message stimulation. The innate immune system is initiated via the recognition and binding of foreign particles of microbial polysaccharides like β-1,3-glucan, lipopolysaccharide, and peptidoglycan, as well as seaweed polysaccharides like alginate, carrageenan, fucoidan, laminarin, and seaweed extract. These polysaccharides are termed pathogen-associated molecular patterns (PAMPs) and are commonly used as immunostimulants to increase the immune response. Invertebrate like shrimp receiving PAMPs exhibits hemocyte degranulation, changes in cell viability and necrosis, and releases endogenous molecules containing DAMPs. The innate immunity is elicited and enhanced by a mixture of endogenous molecules and exogenous substances or immunostimulants. Examinations of DAMPs, immune paramters, immune-related genes of animals receiving exogenous molecules, or immunostimulants, resistance against pathogen, downstream activation of innate immunity, and synergizing immune response are on the way. .

Dr. Kang is an Assistant Professor of Surgery at the University of Pittsburgh. The major research interest of the Dr. Kang’s laboratory focuses on the Receptor for Advanced Glycation End Products (RAGE), its ligands in cancer biology, and clinical approaches to targeting this pathway. Transgenic animals have become a key tool in functional genomics to generate models for human diseases and validate new drugs. Transgenesis includes the addition of foreign genetic information to animals and specific inhibition of endogenous gene expression. Her efforts utilize knockout and knockin transgenic mice in a major model for studying pancreatic cancer and pancreatitis. Dr. Kang is also interested in applying insights from immunity and metabolism systems to the study of genome instability in pancreatic cancer.

The major research interest of the Dr. Kang’s laboratory focuses on the Receptor for Advanced Glycation End Products (RAGE), its ligands in cancer biology, and clinical approaches to targeting this pathway. Dr. Kang is also interested in applying insights from immunity and metabolism systems to the study of genome instability in pancreatic and liver cancer.

Dr Walter G. Land is the former Head of the Division of Transplantation Surgery at the Klinikum Grosshadern, University of Munich. After graduating he worked at the Institute of Surgical Research, the University of Munich from 1967-1971. At that time, he produced a horse antilymphocyte serum, a powerful immunosuppressant, that he used to treat the first successful heart transplant patient, in cooperation with Chris Barnard, Cape Town, South Africa (in 1968). After specialized as a consultant in Surgery (1971-1975), he was the Head of the Munich Transplant Center from 1975-2004, where ~ 4000 kidney transplants and ~ 400 pancreas transplants were performed under his leadership. In 1979, he and his team performed the first pancreas transplantation in Germany; this was followed by the first unrelated kidney transplantation between a couple in Germany in 1994. Dr Land’s research work included the clinical development of all immunosuppressive drugs that are currently used in transplant patients and patients suffering from autoimmune diseases. His experience in this field is published in a monograph (“Immunsuppressive Therapie”).

His experience in this field is published in a monograph (“Immunsuppressive Therapie”). Based on observations from a clinical trial in kidney transplant patients (“the Munich SOD trial”) in 1994, he proposed the “danger/injury model” in immunology holding that it is the injury that induces immunity. In extension to this work, together with S.Y. Seong, he coined the term "DAMPs" in 2003/2004.

Maria J. Pozo is biologist and a scientific researcher at the Department of Soil Microbiology and Symbiotic Systems, Estación Experimental del Zaidín from the CSIC, the Spanish National Research Council, in Granada, Spain. Maria obtained her PhD in Biology at Granada University. She studied how the beneficial arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi stimulate plant defenses enhancing plant resistance against soil borne pathogens. Then she was a Postdoc at Prof. Kenerley´s lab in Texas A&M University, studying functional genomics of the biocontrol fungus Trichoderma virens. Later she was a Marie Curie Postdoctoral fellow at Porf. Pieterse´s lab at Utrecht University (The Netherlands), studying the signaling pathways regulating defense priming and induced resistance by beneficial soil bacteria in Arabidopsis. Her research contributed to clarify the role of plant oxylipins in defense priming and induced resistance. Currently she is head of the mycorrhiza and biotic stress lab in the department of Soil Microbiology and Symbiotic Systems, Estación Experimental del Zaidin, CSIC, in Granada, Spain. She is involved in several national and international projects aiming to understand the potential of beneficial microbiota to stimulate plant immunity and to improve its biotechnological applications for crop protection.

Maria is interested on how plant associated microorganisms can boost plant immunity inducing systemic resistance against pathogens and pests. She is particularly interested in the molecular mechanisms regulating plant defenses by the symbiosis, their impact in multitrophic interactions, and the context dependency of the symbiosis impact on plant health. Her research explore the role of damage perception and DAMPs in such effects. Please see their webpage for more information: www.eez.csic.es/mycorrhizaandbioticstresslab

Massimo E. Maffei, graduated in Plant Biology in the University of Turin, where he first became assistant professor, then associate professor and, since 2000, professor of plant physiology. He is the Director of the Doctorate School of Natural Sciences and Innovative Technologies, gathering 10 PhD programs in Science. From 2012 to Feb 2014 he was Vice-Director for Research in the Department of Life Sciences and Systems Biology of the University of Turin. Form 2000 to 2006 he was Director of the Department of Plant Biology and Deputy Dean of Faculty of Sciences in the University of Turin. From 2003 to 2006 he was the coordinator of the Ministerial Centre of Excellence for Plant Biosensing. From 1987 to 1988 he moved to Washington State University and worked as a postdoctoral research associate under the direction of Rodney Croteau, studying monoterpene biochemistry in the genus Mentha. His current interest is the study of early DAMPS signals in plant-biotrophs interaction which is accomplished by using confocal microscopy, electrophysiology, metabolomics and molecular biology techniques. He is author of more than 150 JCR papers.

Physiology and molecular biology of secondary plant products, with particular reference to terpenoids and flavonoids. Biochemistry, molecular biology, gas-chromatography and mass spectrometry; LC-MS. Model plants: Menta piperita, Arabidopsis thaliana, Cucumis sativus, and other medicinal plants DAMPS in Tritrophic and multitrophic interactions between plants and pathogens/herbivores, with particular reference to early events. Electrophysiology, confocal laser scanning microscopy, biochemistry, molecular biology. Model system: Phaseolus lunatus – Spodoptera littoralis; Arabidopsis thaliana – Tomato spotted virus/Botrytis cinerea/Pseudomonas syringae/Myzus persicae/Whiteflies/Spodoptera littoralis Supercritical fluids extraction of bioactive compounds from plants Astrobiology, with particular reference to stress responses of plants to closed artificial environments. Effect of magnetic fields on plant growth, Volatile Organic Compounds Analyses. Microarray analyses Model system: Arabidopsis thaliana – Magnetic Field Compensation Chamber

Dr. Fernando Navarro-Garcia is Professor of Cell Biology Department at CINVESTAV-IPN, Mexico. He is member of the Mexican Academy of Science and the National System of Researchers. He is member of editorial boards and reviewer ad hoc of several journals. He is reviewer of scientific proposals from Mexico, Argentina, Colombia, Israel, Uruguay, etc.

Dr. Navarro-Garcia works on the roles of gut epithelial barrier function in bacterial infections (pathogenesis and mucosal immunity), specifically in interaction epithelial cell-enteropathogen: receptors/cytoskeleton/ trafficking/mucosal antibodies/cytokines/immune cells.

Dr. Tang received his medical degree from Norman Bethune University of Medical Sciences in 2000 and his PhD degree from Central South University in 2007. He is currently an Assistant Professor in the Division of Surgical Oncology, Department of Surgery, University of Pittsburgh. Dr. Tang’s major findings on HMGB1 biology have been presented at 33 regional, national, and international meetings and in eight book chapters, as well as in 58 research and review articles published in high impact factor journals such as Gastroenterology, Nature Immunology, Autophagy, Journal of Cell Biology, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, Nature Communications, Cell Metabolism, Cancer Research, Oncogene, Cell Death & Differentiation, and Clinical Cancer Research. Moreover, Dr. Tang is the first and/or corresponding author on 42 papers. He is an editorial board member of six journals, a referee of 53 journals, and an ad hoc reviewer for eight research funding agencies.

Regulation and function of Damage-Associated Molecular Pattern Molecules (DAMPs), e.g., high mobility group box 1 (HMGB1) and histone, in cell injury, cell death (e.g., apoptosis, necrosis, necroptosis, proptosis and ferroptosis), adaptation (e.g., autophagy), and their pathophysiological role in cancer (e.g., pancreatic cancer and leukemia) and inflammatory disease (e.g., pancreatitis and sepsis).

• Wolfgang-Max Faust Award / Media Award of the German AIDS Foundation 1999 for the „7th German AIDS Congress“ 1999 in Essen. • German AIDS Award 2001: “Enhanced Progression to AIDS Associated with the G protein β3 Subunit 825T Allele“ • German AIDS Special Award 2001: „Human herpesvirus 8 derived viral interleukin-6 induces PTX3 expression in Kaposi‘s sarcoma“

• Honorary Citizen of the City Bochum, receipt of the “Ring of Honour” • Award of the Schaudinn-Hoffmann Badge 2013 • Award of the Federal Cross of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany 2015

Dr. U. Theopold received his PhD in mammalian immunology from the University of Freiburg (Germany). Since then he has been working on innate immunity in insects, both at the University of Adelaide (Australia, The Waite Campus) and starting his own group in 2000 at Stockholm University (Sweden, Department of Molecular Biosciences). Focusing on invertebrate immunology he acts as reviewer and editorial member for several journals.

We study the innate immune system, its activation, development and interaction with other aspects of physiology. To understand innate immunity at the organismic level, we use insect models, in particular the vinegar fly Drosophila melanogaster. Presently our research focuses on three major projects:
• The coagulation of insect hemolymph
• The insect response against entomopathogenic nematodes.
• The immune response against early stages of tumor development.

Prof. M. Evangelista Direttore UO Terapia del Dolore Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore\CIC maurizio.evangelista@unicatt.it

• Acute and Chronic Pain Management (drugs, opioids, anticonvulsants, antidepressants, glia modulators, nSAIDs,) • Headaches (and oro-facial pain), Fibromialgia, Failed Back Surgery Syndrome, Chronic Pelvic Pain, Osteoarthritis, Osteoporosis • Mechanisms of Pain (nociceptive, inflammatory, neuropathic) (neuroinflammation, central and peripheral sensitization) • Non-neuronal cells and mechanisms of transition from acute to chronic pain

I have long-standing interests in host-pathogen interactions, especially focusing on the intracellular pathogens. Since my Ph.D. training, I have been focusing on immune responses and immunopahogenesis observed during the infection of Orientia tsutusgamushi, the causative agent of scrub typhus. I also expand my research areas to tumor virology since postdoctoral training at Harvard Medical School. I have a broad background in cellular immunology, molecular biology, proteomics, and genomics. Currently, I am the mentor for 10 Ph.D. students and for 1 postdoctoral fellow. We have established immunological tools/profiles of host cells in vitro and in vivo models for scrub typhus. Working with clinicians at several Korean hospitals, we have also studied immunological pathogenesis scrub typhus in patients. Based on animal model and clinical research on scrub typhus, we are now searching protective antigens for the vaccine development. In addition, my lab is studying the virus-host cell interaction, especially focusing on dendritic cells and T cells, and expanding the knowledge and technology for improving anti-tumor immunity in vivo mice models.

Genetic engineering, Molecular biology, Microbiology, Tumor virology

o Société Française d’Anesthésie et de Réanimation (SFAR) and Comité Urgence o European Society of Intensive Care Medicine (ESICM) o European Respiratory Scociety (ERS) o European Society of Anaesthesiology (ESA)

Trauma, septic shock, traumatic brain injury, mitochondrial function, ischaemia-reperfusion

September 2010—present: Xi’an Ninth Hospital Affiliated to Medical College of Xi’an Jiaotong University, as a Ophthalmologist September 2003—June 2007, Shaanxi Zheng He hospital, as a Physician

Neovascularization, Autophagy, Diabetic Retinopathy

Prof. Du’s group has done a lot of valuable work in the field of Cardio-Cerebral Vascular Pharmacology, especially in the novel neuroprotectants against stroke and aging-dementia. Over the last decade, she was in charge of more than 10 projects, including grants from National Natural Science Foundation and Sichuan province. Prof. Du maintains an active research group. She has successfully supervised more than 50 Ph.D. and master graduate students, and has contributed to chapters of 3 monographs and books. The published academic journal papers are more than 100 pieces, with over 40 of them in SCI journals. And the SCI papers published by Prof. Du as the first or corresponding author have been cited over 1000 times in the last 3 ten years. Five new drugs have been development with her major or lesser contribution. Nine Chinese patents have been applied, of which 4 were granted.

- Pathogenesis and potential therapeutic approaches of Stroke - Pathogenesis and potential therapeutic approaches of Alzheimers’ disease and vascular dementia

My current research focuses on investigating the effect of chronic alcohol exposure on development of liver cirrhosis progressing to liver cancer using novel mouse models of alcohol-mediated liver injury. Specifically, I am investigating the role of immune cells (macrophages, neutrophils and T cells) and their receptors during liver injury due to alcohol consumption using novel knock-out mouse models of liver disease. I am evaluating the signaling mechanisms within immune cells and intracellular proteins and their inhibitors to identify unique therapeutic targets altered by alcohol to enhance liver disease. While working as a research intern at Meharry Medical College, Nashville (TN) for a short time period (2015), I was involved in evaluating anti-carcinogenic effects of endothelins and soy peptides in breast cancer. I received my Ph.D. from Department of Immunopathology at PGIMER (India) in December 2014. Ph.D. research work focused on evaluating the immunomodulatory potential recombinant antigens of L.donovani in specific activation of macrophages. I showed that one of the antigen when used as an adjunct to the currently used drugs helped early parasite clearance at suboptimal doses of highly toxic chemotherapeutic drugs using experimental animal model.

My current research focuses on investigating the effect of chronic alcohol exposure on development of liver cirrhosis progressing to liver cancer using novel mouse models of alcohol-mediated liver injury. Research also includes evaluating heat shock protein inhibitors and their nanoformulations as therapeutic targets. The keywords which describe my research work are immunology, inflammation and organ damage, cancer, immune cells and their receptors, signaling pathways and therapeutic targets.

1. Department of Pediatrics, College of Medicine, The Catholic University of Korea, Seoul, Republic of Korea 2. Department of Pediatrics, Daejeon St. Mary’s Hospital, College of Medicine, The Catholic University of Korea, Daejeon, Republic of Korea

Pediatric Infectious Disease Subspecialist

Oct 1998 – Jun 2001: Medical College, Southeast University Research areas: • Study on the pathogenesis of atherosclerosis • The role of advanced glycation end products in the pathogenesis of atherosclerosis Oct 2002 – May 2005: Medical College, Fudan University Research areas: • Study on the pathogenesis of atherosclerosis • The role of dendritic cells in the pathogenesis of atherosclerosis Jul 2005 –present: Department of Cardiology, the First Affiliated Hospital, Nanjing Medical University

Coronary Heart Diseases (Atherosclerosis, AGEs, Dendritic cells,etc.)