2024-2025 Schedule

The Department of Microbial Pathogens and Immunity holds regular seminars with invited speakers from outside the institution, as well as researchers from RUSH University.

2024-2025 academic year seminars schedule

Seminars are held in Cohn Research Building Auditorium Room 160 (1735 W. Harrison St., Chicago, IL 60612), unless noted otherwise.

Date and Time	Speaker	Title/Topic
September 18, 2024 Wednesday, 9:30-10:30 a.m.	Rebecca Pompano, PhD Associate Professor, Chemistry and Biomedical Engineering University of Virginia (Host: Edward Barker, PhD)	“Lymphoid tissue models”
September 25, 2024 Wednesday, 9:30-10:30 a.m.	Chu Chen, PhD Professor, Cellular and Integrative Physiology University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio (Host: Xiu-Ti Hu, MD, PhD)	“Alzheimer's disease”
October 2, 2024 Wednesday, 9:30-10:30 a.m.	Mary Duckett, MA, CHES Rush University The Center for Clinical Wellness (Host: Edward Barker, PhD)	“How to manage uncertainty”
October 9, 2024 Wednesday, 9:30-10:30 a.m.	Jonathan Karn, PhD Professor and Chair, Department of Molecular Biology and Microbiology, School of Medicine Case Western Reserve University (Host: Ryan Ross, PhD)	“HIV viral reservoirs”
October 16, 2024 Wednesday, 9:30-10:30 a.m.	Brian Cobb, PhD Michael E. Lamm Professor, Department of Pathology, School of Medicine Case Western Reserve University (Host: Jeff Schneider, PhD)	“Antibody effector function and tissue resident macrophages”
October 23, 2024 Wednesday, 9:30-10:30 a.m.	Ashwanth Francis, PhD Assistant Professor, Department of Biological Science Florida State University (Host: João Mamede, PhD)	“Nuclear trafficking of HIV”
October 30, 2024 Wednesday, 9:30-10:30 a.m.	Sumit Chanda, PhD Professor, Department of Immunology and Microbiology The Scripps Research Institute (Host: João Mamede, PhD)	“Virus-host interface and innate immunity”
November 13, 2024 Wednesday, 9:30-10:30 a.m.	Oliver Fregoso, PhD Associate Professor, Department of Microbiology, Immunology and Molecular Genetics University of California Los Angeles (Host: Charia McKee)	“HIV-1 VpR”
November 20, 2024 Wednesday, 9:30-10:30 a.m.	Jesse Williams, PhD Assistant Professor, Department of Integrative Biology & Physiology University of Minnesota (Host: Jeff Schneider, PhD)	“Macrophages”
December 4, 2024 Wednesday, 9:30-10:30 a.m.	Irini Sereti MD, MHS Chief of Laboratory of Immunoregulation National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases Bethesda, MD (Host: Lena Al-Harthi, PhD)	“The Persistent Perils of Advanced HIV Disease: From Bedside to Bench”
December 11, 2024 Wednesday, 9:30-10:30 a.m.	Rong Tian, MD, PhD Professor of Anesthesiology & Pain Medicine, and Bioengineering Adjunct Professor, Biochemistry and Pathology University of Washington School of Medicine Director of Mitochondria and Metabolism Center UW Medicine Seattle, WA (Host: Jennillee Wallace, PhD)	“Mitochondria meet inflammation in heart disease”
January 8, 2025 Wednesday, 9:30-10:30 a.m.	Emily Mace, PhD Associate Professor of Pediatric Immunology (in Pediatrics) Columbia University (Host: Edward Barker, PhD)	“NK cell biology”
January 15, 2025 Wednesday, 9:30-10:30 a.m.	Stephanie Langel, PhD Assistant Professor, Department of Pathology, School of Medicine Member, Center for Global Health and Diseases, School of Medicine Case Western Reserve University (Host: Jeff Schneider, PhD)	“Maternal-neonatal immunity against influenza”
January 22, 2025 Wednesday, 9:30-10:30 a.m.	Peng Jiang, PhD Associate Professor, Department of Cell Biology & Neuroscience Rutgers University (Host: Jennillee Wallace, PhD)	“Human-mouse brain chimera”
January 29, 2025 Wednesday, 9:30-10:30 a.m.	Paolo Casali, MD UT Ashbel Smith Professor and Distinguished Research Professor Department of Microbiology, Immunology & Molecular Genetics Department of Medicine UT Health San Antonio (Host: Jennillee Wallace, PhD)	“Humanized mouse - human immune system”
February 5, 2025 Wednesday, 9:30-10:30 a.m.	Tory Johnson, PhD Assistant Professor, Department of Neurology Johns Hopkins School of Medicine (Host: Jeff Schneider, PhD)	“CNS Auto-antibodies and COVID”
February 12, 2025 Wednesday, 9:30-10:30 a.m.	Angela Wahl, PhD Associate Professor, Department of Microbiology The University of Alabama at Birmingham (Host: Lena Al-Harthi, PhD)	“HIV latency”
February 19, 2025 Wednesday, 9:30-10:30 a.m.	Xiao-Di Tan, MD Professor of Pediatrics (RT, tenured) Director of CPTRE Department of Pediatrics University of Illinois (Host: Xian-Ming Chen, PhD)	“GI innate immunity”
March 19, 2025 Wednesday, 9:30-10:30 a.m.	Yong-Hui Zheng, PhD Professor Department of Microbiology and Immunology University of Illinois (Host: Xiu-Ti Hu, MD, PhD)	“Innate immunity to HIV”
April 2, 2025 Wednesday, 9:30-10:30 a.m.	Jason Schenkel, MD, PhD Assistant Professor Department of Translational Molecular Pathology, Division of Pathology/Lab Medicine The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX (Host: Lena Al-Harthi, PhD)	“Using CD8 T-cells to attack tumors”
May 7, 2025 Wednesday, 9:30-10:30 a.m.	Elena Martinelli, PhD, MPH, MHSc Professor, Medicine (Infectious Diseases), Microbiology-Immunology Northwestern University (Host: Edward Barker, PhD)	"HIV Cure and SARS-CoV-2 pathogenesis"

Please contact the department at (312) 942-6383 or our seminar coordinator, Edward Barker, PhD, for additional information.