Colon Cancer and “Bug” Impacts: Microbes and Communities

Cynthia L. Sears, MD
Professor of Medicine
Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine
Link to the Sears Laboratory

Colon cancer is a cancer that equally impacts men and women and is rising in incidence in younger individuals and around the globe.  Intense investigations are seeking to identify which microbes and communities may contribute to colon cancer initiation and progression. This talk will summarize aspects of the evidence base, the areas of controversy and provide some insight into experimental data that may provide guidance for development of new prevention and therapeutic strategies for colon cancer.

“Medicines Based on Define Bacterial Consortia“
Bernat Olle, PhD
Chief Executive Officer, Vendanta Biosciences

Dr. Olle is a co-founder and Chief Executive Officer of Vedanta Biosciences. He has been a member of the founding teams of several companies of the PureTech portfolio and served as a member of the Board of Directors of Vedanta Biosciences and Follica Biosciences.

In 2013 Dr. Olle was named “Innovator of the Year” in MIT Technology Review Spain’s “Innovators under 35” awards. He completed his doctoral work at the Chemical Engineering Department at MIT, where he developed a novel method for large-scale bacterial culture. During his graduate work, Dr. Olle was awarded the “la Caixa” fellowship. Dr. Olle received his B.S. in Chemical Engineering from Universitat Rovira i Virgili, in the Republic of Catalonia, his M.S. and PhD. in Chemical Engineering Practice from MIT, and his M.B.A. from the MIT Sloan School of Management. He has published his work in journals including Nature and Nature Biotechnology.

5pm, free reception
6pm, seminar

Thomas Jefferson University
Bluemle Life Sciences Building
233 S. 10th Street (10th an Locust), Philadelphia 19104

Discounted parking at the garage on 11th and Locust (entrance on 11th Street under the Hamilton Bldg)

28th Annual Philadelphia Infection & Immunity Forum
Organized by the Eastern PA Branch ASM and Student Chapter ASM

Monday, December 16, 2019

Hall of Flags, Houston Hall
University of Pennsylvania
3417 Spruce Street, Philadelphia, PA 19104

planned schedule:

7:30 – 8:30 am breakfast
8:30 – 11:00 am presentations
11:00 – 1:30 pm poster sessions and lunch
1:30 – 4:00 pm presentations
4:30 pm awards and close

Keynote Speakers
Dr. Amariliz Rivera-Medina
Rutgers New Jersey Medical School

Dr. Rosemary Rochford
University of Colorado

Dr. Vincent Tam
Lewis Katz School of Medicine, Temple University

Platform presentations from post-doctoral researchers and graduate students
Poster presentations with awards for graduate students and post-doctoral researchers

Abstract submission details and online registration –  look for updates

Important Dates:
Oral presentation abstract deadline: Nov 11, 2019
Poster presentation abstract deadline: December 2, 2019
On time meeting registration deadline: Dec 2, 2019

Registration Now Open: Click Here

Registration Fees:
On time – free for students and postdocs
Faculty – $40.00
At the door – Faculty $60.00, Students/Postdocs $20.00

The Eastern Pennsylvania Branch of the American Society for Microbiology will sponsor the 49th Annual Symposium at Thomas Jefferson University in Philadelphia. This intermediate to advanced level program will provide an update of the prognostic importance of blood cultures and of the optimization of lab workflow with automated blood culture systems. The program will also review the use of rapid multiplex molecular panels from positive BCs and the use of new non-culture molecular tests directly from whole blood. Specific examples of bloodstream infections and molecular diagnostics will be illustrated in case presentations. Additional topics will include pediatric blood cultures, catheter-associated BSI, and the impact of rapid blood culture tests on antimicrobial stewardship. 

Symposium Program Brochure

Registration is now open: Register for the meeting

Friday, November 22, 2019 on the Thomas Jefferson University campus in Philadelphia. Program Co-Chairs: Alan Evangelista PhD, Matthew Pettengill PhD, Laurel Glaser MD, PhD

Manuela Raffatellu, MD
Professor, Department of Pediatrics
University of California San Diego

“Nutritional Immunity in the Inflamed Gut”

In response to infection with enteric pathogens that cause inflammatory diarrhea, such as Salmonella Typhimurium, the host mounts a response termed nutritional immunity, which limits the availability of essential metal ions including iron, zinc, and manganese. This lecture will discuss the host cytokines that regulate nutritional immunity, and will outline the roles of two antimicrobial proteins, lipocalin-2 and calprotectin, in sequestering metal ions during colitis and their effects on gut pathogens and on the gut microbiome. 

5pm, free reception
6pm, seminar

Thomas Jefferson University
Bluemle Life Sciences Building
233 S. 10th Street (10th an Locust), Philadelphia 19104

Discounted parking at the garage on 11th and Locust (entrance on 11th Street under the Hamilton Bldg)