ROTRF Recognition Prize – Recognising Excellence in Organ Transplantation Research

ROTRF Luncheon Satellite Symposium
Pennsylvania Convention Center (Room 111 AB), Philadelphia, USA
Saturday, April 30, 2011, 12:00-14:30

Moderators:
Prof. J. Andrew Bradley

(ROTRF Trustee, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK)
Prof. Philip F. Halloran
(ROTRF Trustee, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Canada)

12:00 Introduction
Philip F. Halloran
12:10 A Molecular Basis for T Cell-mediated Alloreactivity
Jamie Rossjohn, Monash University, Clayton, Australia
12:25 Role of Glycosaminoglycans in Regulation of Chemokine Activity during Transplantation
Simi Ali, Newcastle University, Newcastle-upon-Tyne, UK
12:40 Therapeutic Potential of Heme Oxygenase-1 (HO-1): From Transplantation to Other Immune-mediated Inflammatory Diseases
Miguel Soares, Instituto Gulbenkian de Ciência, Oeiras, Portugal
12:55 C1q- and Mannose Binding Lectin (MBL)-dependent Pathways of Complement Activation Are Modulated by IVIg Glycoforms
Barbara Wasowska, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, USA
13:10 Identification of Stress-regulated Antigens Recognized by Gamma-delta T Cells as Potential Clinical Targets against HCMV Infection and Post-transplant Cancers
Julie Déchanet-Merville, CNRS, Bordeaux, France
13:25 Staphylococcal Infections as Barriers to Tolerance Induction
Anita Chong, The University of Chicago, Chicago, USA
13:40 The Role of FOXP3 in Controlling the Function of Effector and Regulatory T Cells in Humans
Megan Levings, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada
13:55 Origin and TCR Repertoire of Allospecific CD4+Foxp3+ Regulatory T Cells
Dr Leszek Ignatowicz, Medical College of Georgia, Augusta, USA
14:10 Prevention of Acute and Chronic Rejection of Skin and Heart Allografts with CD4+CD25+Foxp3+ Regulatory T Lymphocytes
Joost van Meerwijk, Toulouse University, Toulouse, France
14:25 Closure Remarks
J. Andrew Bradley

To view the abstract of each presentation, please click on the presentation title.
ROTRF Symposium Programme - pdf download [112 KB]


Since its launch in 1998, the Roche Organ Transplantation Research Foundation (ROTRF) has funded over 240 projects and distributed over 46.5 million Swiss francs (over 48 million US dollars) to researchers and clinicians in 16 countries worldwide. The funded projects focus on a wide variety of clinical and basic research topics ranging from basic pathophysiology to clinical events. Over the years, ROTRF grantees have made significant contributions to our understanding in the field of transplantation. To highlight some of these achievements, the Board of Trustees has awarded ROTRF Recognition Prizes to those investigators whose research findings from an ROTRF grant have had a major impact on the field and whose achievements best exemplify the mission of the ROTRF.

During the Luncheon Satellite Symposium to be held on Saturday 30 April and open to all participants of the 2011 American Transplantation Congress, recipients of a ROTRF Recognition Prize will present the results of their award-winning research sponsored by ROTRF. The audience will hear about these results and how they contribute to our understanding of the biology and outcomes in organ transplantation. It is also an opportunity for those who might be interested in applying for an ROTRF grant to learn what it takes to execute a successful ROTRF-funded research project.

The ROTRF supports important and innovative projects in clinical research applicable to the understanding and care of human organ transplant recipients and related tissue transplants. As a part of an initiative started in 2008, the ROTRF now funds exclusively clinically oriented research projects, such as observational clinical studies or laboratory studies that focus on material from human transplant patients. The ROTRF may also consider funding research that addresses related clinical issues in non-transplant subjects, ethics, organ preservation and allocation, and new emerging technologies. This focus on understanding the events in transplant patients is hoped to encourage research that will impact clinical management and translate into better understanding and better outcomes for people with transplants, which is the mission of ROTRF.

Presented for attendees of the American Transplant Congress. No pre-registration required.