Autophagy, Inflammation and Immunity

Organizer(s): Herbert (Skip) W. Virgin, Beth Levine and Gökhan S. Hotamisligil

Sponsored by AbbVie Inc., Cell Research, EMD Millipore, Shire Human Genetic Therapies and Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated

Summary of Meeting:

Autophagy is a lysosomal degradation pathway by which eukaryotic cells break down their own components to adapt to nutrient deprivation. In multicellular organisms, autophagy and autophagy proteins also play a key role in the orchestration of diverse aspects of cellular and organismal responses to multiple dangerous stimuli, including infection. Thus, autophagy and autophagy proteins represent a key nexus within the cell through which multiple cellular and organismal stresses are integrated. This emerging understanding has led to exciting recent advances that, together, begin to paint a picture of how autophagy and autophagy proteins are involved in multiple diseases. Of particular interest, recent studies reveal a crucial role for autophagy pathways and proteins in immunity and inflammation. They balance the beneficial and detrimental effects of immunity and inflammation, and thereby may protect against infectious, autoimmune, and inflammatory diseases. The time is therefore ripe for a Keystone Symposia meeting that brings together researchers from a variety of fields to focus on emerging themes and concepts in 'Autophagy, Inflammation, and Immunity'. Key advances in this area include the identification of signaling pathways that regulate autophagy, inflammation, and immunity and the finding that inflammation, immunity and autophagy are tightly, and reciprocally, intertwined. The goal of this meeting is to relate the cell biology and signaling pathways that regulate autophagy and autophagy proteins to fundamental aspects of immunity and inflammation, as well as to diseases associated with alterations in these processes such as autoimmunity, infection, cancer, diabetes, the metabolic syndrome, and cardiovascular disease.

Scholarship Deadline: October 16 2012

Discounted Abstract Deadline: October 16 2012

Abstract Deadline: November 15 2012

Discounted Registration Deadline: December 13 2012

Keystone Symposia thanks our Sponsor(s) for generously supporting this meeting:

We gratefully acknowledge additional support for this conference from:

We gratefully acknowledge additional in-kind support for this conference from those foregoing speaker expense reimbursements:

Tokyo Metropolitan Institute of Medical Science

We gratefully acknowledge the generous grant for this conference provided by:

National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK)
Grant No. 5R13DK084688-04
The views expressed in written conference materials or publications and by speakers and moderators do not necessarily reflect the official policies of the Department of Health and Human Services; nor does mention of trade names, commercial practices, or organizations imply endorsement by the U.S. Government.

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