Announcing the 2nd Annual Memorial Lecture to be given by Virginia Pascual at Cytokines 2023 in Athens.  

Virginia Pascual, MD
Gale and Ira Drukier Director of Children’s Health Research, Weill Cornell Medical College
New York, USA

Each year the Jürg Tschopp Memorial Symposium will be a highlight of the Cytokines Annual Meeting in memory of Professor Jürg Tschopp whose discoveries in the area of inflammasomes and cell death advanced fundamental understanding of innate and adaptive immunity bringing new therapies to patients suffering from debilitating inflammatory diseases.  Virginia Pascual’s Lecture, “Cytokines in systemic lupus erythematosus pathogenesis”, is representative of Dr. Tschopp’s ability to take fundamental discoveries at the bench into the clinic.

Jürg Tschopp Memorial Symposium 4: Immune regulation in autoimmune and rheumatic diseases
Session Chairs: Athanasios Tzioufas, MD, School of Medicine, University of Athens, Greece and Curt M. Horvath, PhD, Northwestern University, Department of Molecular, USA

Monday, 16 October, 2023
2:00 – 3:30 PM
Olympia B

• Jürg Tschopp Memorial Lecture: Virginia Pascual (USA): Cytokines in
  systemic lupus erythematosus pathogenesis
• Rudensky A. (Yale, USA): Shaping regulatory T cells in systemic inflammation and autoimmunity
• Jeremy Morrissette (USA): Excess IL-18 augments suppressor/regulatory cell function to prevent Experimental Autoimmune Encephalomyelitis“
• Roza Nurieva(USA): Inflammatory arthritis induced by immune checkpoint inhibitors: underlying mechanisms and therapeutic strategies
• Federica Monaco (UK): Synovial CRTAM+ T-cells are a feature of lymphoid-driven synovitis

The purpose of the Jürg Tschopp Memorial Symposium is to inspire current and future generations of scientists to perform cutting edge research that can be translated to make a difference in patients’ lives in honor of Dr. Tschopp’s legacy.

Of particular relevance to the cytokine society is Tschopp’s discovery of the inflammasome complex, a protein complex that coordinates the production of the inflammatory cytokines IL-1 and IL18 which propagate the inflammatory response. “In a scientific tour de force, Tschopp’s laboratory showed that the tender, swollen joints and excruciating pain associated with gout are caused by uric-acid crystals activating the inflammasome. Based on these findings, Tschopp persuaded the clinical-rheumatology group at the University of Lausanne to conduct human trials using IL1RA, to block IL1 one of the cytokines driving inflammation downstream of the inflammasome, now a treatment for gout. The results were stunning. Patients enjoyed almost immediate, dramatic and prolonged relief.” From Vishva Dixit, Genentech

OBITUARY| Cell Volume 145, Issye 4, P493-494, MAY 13, 2011, Jürg Tschopp 1951–2011, Richard A. Flavell 

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cell.2011.04.027

Nature Volume 472, page 296 (2011) Published: 13 April 2011
Jürg Tschopp (1951–2011), Vishva Dixit

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cell.2011.04.027

Science Vol 332, issue 6030, page 679 Published May 2011
Jürg Tschopp (1951–2011), Luke A. O’Neill

DOI: 10.1126/science.1207046