21st Annual Mark Wilson Conference (2022)
2022 MWC Information:
Invited Speakers
Daniel Irimia, M.D., Ph.D.
“Neutrophils Cooperate during Swarming against Microbe Clusters”
Associate Professor
Division of Surgery, Science & Bioengineering
Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School, and Shriners Hospitals for Children, Boston
Director, BioMEMS Core @ MGH
Daniel Irimia is a bioengineer and a medical doctor, doing research in the field of microfluidics. He has published more than 100 articles on the application of microfluidics to bio-medical problems in inflammation and sepsis. He was recently awarded the “Pioneers of Miniaturization” prize from the Chemical and Biological Microsystems Society for his work on microfluidic tools for analyzing neutrophils and other leukocytes in health and disease.
N. Luisa Hiller, PhD
“Extracellular Vesicles: Connecting Pathogens and Hosts”
Eberly Family Career Development Associate Professor of Biological Sciences
Department of Biological Sciences
Carnegie Mellon University
Dr. Hiller’s research program examines microbial molecular mechanisms associated with disease. She studies how the human pathogen Streptococcus pneumoniae switches from commensal coexistence to pathogenesis. To address this overarching question, her lab focuses on three interconnected areas: cell-cell communication, adaptation to host-environments, and genomic variability and lineage-specific adaptations.
About the Oral Immunology/Microbiology Research Group
The Oral Immunology/Microbiology Research Group is currently comprised of 183 investigators representing forty-eight universities, research centers, and commercial organizations in the U.S. and abroad. The group had its first meeting in 1991 and has met consecutively each year to date. It is primarily, but not exclusively, through the annual meeting that the mission of the OIMRG is achieved. This meeting, which was designed to facilitate in-depth discussions by more established investigators, is built around topical areas encompassing host responses to oral bacteria, pathogenic mechanisms, and studies of host-derived factors and host-genetics, and is guided by the following objectives:
- To foster interaction and collaboration among scientists interested in oral immunology and microbiology
- To promote information exchange and collaboration between academicians and their colleagues, including those working in industry
- To provide a forum through which new investigators can begin to network with more established investigators
These principles have remained constant and virtually all participants who have been invited to this meeting, including outside speakers, remark on its uniqueness, because of both its small size and intimate nature, permitting interchange by senior investigators in a way that is unique and unparalleled. Group members are able to interact in a congenial atmosphere which helps minimize barriers to information exchange. This informal atmosphere encourages discussions during the day and well into the evenings and is responsible for many, many scientific collaborations over the years, not to mention lasting friendships.
Another notable quality of the conference is the distinguished outside speakers this meeting is able to attract. Speakers have included Nobel Prize awardees, a Shaw Prize winner (the Asian equivalent of the Nobel), and several members of the National Academy of Science during the past 10 years. Because of the “personality” of this meeting, several of the outside speakers have chosen to continue to attend the conference in future years as attendees themselves even though the oral cavity is not the focus of their research.
MARK WILSON CONFERENCE
2022 SPONSORS
The Oral Immunology/Microbiology Research Group is fortunate to have relationships with corporations, research centers, universities and individuals that have played a large part in sustaining the Mark Wilson Conference through their participation and financial support.
Our sponsors’ patronage is vital to maintaining the overarching concepts of the meeting and assists the organizers with upholding the value it provides to the oral health research community. Current sponsors of the 2022 meeting are:
This conference was supported by the National Institute of Dental & Craniofacial Research, award R13DE030371. Views expressed do not necessarily represent the official views of the National Institutes of Health.
For information on supporting the Mark Wilson Conference, please contact the conference coordinator, Jacob Burks.