Key Dates
6 May 2008
Notification of Acceptances
26 May 2008
Early Registration Cut-off Date
9 June 2008
Late breaking Abstract Submission Date
2 July 2008
Pre & Post Congress Tours
2 July 2008
Social Program Bookings
2 July 2008
Congress Day Tours
9 July 2008
Accommodation Bookings
9 July 2008
Accommodation Deposit deadline
9-10 August 2008
Postgraduate Weekend Courses
10-14 August 2008
Congress Opens
With thanks to
Professor Derek Hart
Professor Hart, identified tissue dendritic cells (DC) as a Rhodes Scholar. His experiments indicated their importance in transplantation and led to an interest in DC and their role in immune responses, which continued as Director of the South Island Bone Marrow Transplant Unit (New Zealand). His group defined human DC subsets, contributed fundamental studies on DC differentiation and function and generated several monoclonal antibodies to human DC surface antigens.He developed methods for counting blood DC and changes in DC counts, subsets and activation were associated with disease pathogenesis. This included work describing reversible defects in DC function in cancer patients.
Professor Hart is Director of the Mater Medical Research Institute (MMRI, Australia). His DC Program characterized blood DC and started trials using antibody selected blood DC to vaccinate cancer patients. His Program is developing antibodies to DC as novel immunosuppressive agents, which may block immune responses, whilst preserving protective specific T lymphocyte responses. Professor Hart's DC Program is continuing fundamental DC target discovery to develop human DC targeted therapeutics for applications in cancer, transplantation, autoimmune disease and infection. The MMRI is a core stakeholder in the new Translational Research Institute (Brisbane) and is a partner in the new CRC - Biomarker Translation.
John D. Pirsch, MD
John D. Pirsch, MD, is Medical Director of the Transplant Clinic at the University of Wisconsin Hospital and Clinics, Director of the Medical Transplantation Service, and Professor of Medicine and Surgery at the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health. Dr. Pirsch is certified by the American Board of Internal Medicine. He received his medical degree from the University of Minnesota Medical School, Minneapolis, and completed his internship and residency at the University of Wisconsin Hospital and Clinics, Madison. His research fellowship in hematology/infectious diseases was also completed at the University of Wisconsin Hospital and Clinics.
Dr. Pirsch is a member of the American College of Physicians, National Kidney Foundation, American Society of Transplantation, Transplantation Society, American Society of Nephrology, and International Society of Nephrology. He is involved with numerous research projects funded through private and government grants. Dr. Pirsch has been an author of four books, 31 book chapters, and 227 journal articles. He also serves on the editorial board of Transplantation. He has presented on a variety of transplant topics nationally and internationally.
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