The innate immune system is an essential host defense mechanism designed for early detection and containment of a wide array of pathogens. Multiple cell types and tissues participate in the ensuing inflammatory response that leads to the activation of anti-microbial defenses and the recruitment of circulating inflammatory cells. The inflammatory response is a two-edged sword that must be tightly regulated so as infection becomes chronic. The symposium held at the Salk Institute for Biological Studies (La Jolla, USA) from 18-20 January 2012 brought together leaders "´ among them two Nobel Prize laureates in medicine Jules A. Hoffmann (University of Strasbourg, Strasbourg, France) and Bruce Beutler (UT Southwestern, Dallas and Scripps, La Jolla, USA) "´ who discussed the role of innate immunity and inflammation in normal and diseased tissue.
The meeting was organized by Inder Verma (the Salk Institute for Biological Studies, La Jolla, USA), Melanie Brazil (Nature Publishing Group, New York, USA) and Yves Christen (Fondation Ipsen, Paris, France).The success of the meetings is derived from the combination of excellent diverse speakers. The speakers of this latest meeting were: David Artis (University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, USA), Bruce Beutler (UT Southwestern, Dallas et Scripps, La Jolla, USA), Jean-Laurent Casanova (Rockefeller University, New York, USA), Jeffrey Dangl (University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, USA), Kate Fitzgerald (University of Massachusetts, Worchester, USA), Douglas R. Green (St. Jude Children´s Research, Memphis, USA), Jonathan Hodgkin (University of Oxford, Oxford, UK), Jules A. Hoffmann (University of Strasbourg, Strasbourg, France), Lora Hooper (UT Southwestern, Dallas, USA), Beth Levine (UT Southwestern, Dallas, USA), Diane Mathis (Harvard University, Boston, USA), Shigekazu Nagata (Kyoto University, Kyoto, Japan), Carl Nathan (Cornell, New York, USA), Michael Oldstone (Scripps Research Institute, La Jolla, USA), Manolis Pasparakis (Institute for Genetics, Köln, Germany), Jeffrey Pollard (Albert Einstein, Bronx, USA), Lalita Ramakrishnan (University of Washington, Seattle, USA), Kodi Ravichandran (University of Virginia, Charlottesville, USA), David Ron (University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK), Charles N. Serhan (Harvard University, Boston, USA), Lawrence Steinman (Stanford University, Stanford, USA), Zena Werb (UCSF, San Francisco, USA), Steven F. Ziegler (Benaroya Research Institute, Seattle, USA).
About the Fondation Ipsen
Established in 1983 under the aegis of the Fondation de France, the mission of the Fondation Ipsen is to contribute to the development and dissemination of scientific knowledge. The long-standing action of the Fondation Ipsen aims at fostering the interaction between researchers and clinical practitioners, which is indispensable due to the extreme specialisation of these professions. The ambition of the Fondation Ipsen is to initiate a reflection about the major scientific issues of the forthcoming years. It has developed an important international network of scientific experts who meet regularly at meetings known as Colloques Médecine et Recherche, dedicated to six main themes: Alzheimer´s disease, neurosciences, longevity, endocrinology, the vascular system and cancer science. Moreover the Fondation Ipsen has started since 2007 several meetings in partnership with the Salk Institute, the Karolinska Institutet, the Massachusetts General Hospital, the Days of Molecular Medicine Global Foundation as well as with the science journals Nature, Cell and Science. The Fondation Ipsen produced several hundreds publications; more than 250 scientists and biomedical researchers have been awarded prizes and research grants.
About the Salk Institute for Biological Studies
The Salk Institute for Biological Studies in La Jolla, California, is an independent non-profit organization dedicated to fundamental discoveries in the life sciences, the improvement of human health and the training of future generations of researchers. Consistently ranked as one of the World´s best Research Centers, the Salk Institute for Biological Studies trained 5 Nobel Prize Laureates. The major areas of study are Molecular Biology and Genetics, Neurosciences and Plant Biology. Knowledge acquired in Salk laboratories provides new understanding and potential new therapies and treatments for a range of diseases"”from cancer, AIDS and Alzheimer´s disease, to cardiovascular disorders, anomalies of the brain and birth defects. Studies in plant biology at the Salk may one day help improve the quality and quantity of the world´s food supply. For more information on the Salk Institute for Biological Studies, visit our website at www.salk.edu.
About Nature Publishing Group
Nature Publishing Group (NPG) is a division of Macmillan Publishers Ltd, dedicated to serving the academic, professional scientific and medical communities. NPG´s flagship title, Nature, was first published in 1869. Other publications include Nature research journals, Nature Reviews journals, and a range of prestigious academic journals including society-owned publications. NPG also provides news content through Nature News and scientific career information through Naturejobs. The company has a growing conference series. NPG is a global company with headquarters in London and offices in New York, San Francisco, Washington DC, Boston, Tokyo, Paris, Munich, Hong Kong, Melbourne, Delhi, Mexico City and Basingstoke. For more information, please go to www.nature.com.
