GREETINGS

Toshio HIRANO, M.D. & Ph.D.
President for the 36h Annual Meeting
Graduate School of Frontier Biosciences
Osaka University

On behalf of the organizing committee, I am very pleased to announce that the 36h Annual Meeting of the Japanese Society for Immunology (JSI) will be held in Osaka on December 11-13, 2006. Osaka is an internationally renowned city with a unique mixture of historic and modern Japan. This blending of cultures in Osaka will hopefully act as a catalyst to inspire discussions on how the newest technologies can address the many classic questions in immunology that have so far gone unanswered. I look forward to seeing old friends and meeting new ones as well as participating in the many exciting discussions. I also encourage you to fully enjoy Osaka, one of the biggest and culturally diverse cities in Japan. Some of the highlights not to miss are the Bunraku, Noh, Osaka castles and for the kids, the Universal Studios Japan. 

 

The 36th Annual Meeting of JSI will be composed of a series of international symposia:

1:	Innate Immunity and Inflammation
2:	Costimulatory Molecules and DC
3:	Mucosal Immunity
4:	Immune recognition, Signaling and Image
5:	B Cell Biology
6:	T Cell Activation, Memory and Tolerance
7:	Cell Movement and Trafficking
8:	Zinc and Immunity
9:	Regulation of Immune responses by Pathogens
10:	Immunotherapy
11:	Allergy
12:	Autoimmune Diseases
13:	Late Prof. Yuichi Yamamura Memorial Symposium

We have a catchphrase for these international symposia “Fusion of innate and acquired immunity to control immune-response in our body”. There are 12 exciting symposia encompassing basic and clinical aspects of innate and acquired immunology. In addition, we have a special international symposium in honor of the late Dr. Yuichi Yamamura, who died 17 years ago (the 17th year has a special meaning for Buddhism). As professor emeritus at Osaka University, Professor Yamamura helped found the JSI. His friends and disciples will present top of the topics in Immunology including tuberculosis, cytokines, and innate immunity. In addition to the formal lectures, there will be many opportunities for informal conversations and discussions with the participants of the meeting. To encourage these interactions, we have scheduled workshops, review talks and cross-disciplinary lectures on a host of immunological topics. The JSI annual meeting is an excellent opportunity for scientists in academic, industrial and pharmaceutical institutes to meet and exchange ideas. The Osaka conference center is very comfortable, has excellent facilities and will be an outstanding atmosphere for active discussions. 

We are all looking forward to seeing you in Osaka in coming winter!