EFIS is pleased to announce the 2022 Eastern Star Awards:

• Dr. Iva Hafner Bratkovič, Department of Synthetic Biology and Immunology, National Institute of Chemistry of Slovenia, for her project on reconstructing the inflammasome pathway in tumor cells for cancer immunotherapy;
• Dr. Felix M. Wensveen, Department of Histology and Embryology, University of Rijeka School of Medicine, for his project on the impact of IGF1 signaling on memory CD8 T cells.

Congratulations to both Awardees!

Read more about the EFIS Eastern Star Award here. A new call for proposals will be launched in September 2022, with a deadline for applications set for January 31st, 2023.

On the recommendations of the ACTERIA Selection Jury, the Fondation ACTERIA is delighted to announce the winners of the 2022 ACTERIA Doctoral Thesis Prizes awarded by EFIS:

• In immunology: Marta Joana Costa Jordāo, German Society for Immunology (DGfI), for her thesis on the ontogeny, fate and function of central nervous system myeloid cells during homeostasis and neuroinflammation.

• In allergology: Coraline Radermecker, Belgian Immunological Society (BIS), for her thesis on the role of neutrophils and “Neutrophil Extracellular Traps” in allergic asthma onset.

The call for applications for the 2023 ACTERIA Early Career Research Prizes in immunology and allergology will open on October 1st, 2022. More information on the ACTERIA Prizes is availabe here.

In confirming its support for the Ukraine immunology and allergology community, EFIS has launched a special mobility scheme to assist Ukrainian students and early career researchers active in immunology and related fields who currently are unable to work as they are forced to flee the ongoing conflict or are already abroad and cannot return home. Download more information here.

EFIS-IUIS Webinar: Science, State and Challenges of COVID-19 vaccines

Today's the big day! The EFIS & IUIS webinar marking the Day of Immunology 2022 airs today at 3:00 PM CET. Featuring both presentations and a panel discussion, it brings together global experts to take stock of where we are and what the future may hold.

Registration is still open here! Join EFIS & IUIS to celebrate the Day of Immunology 2022!

Join the Day of Immunology 2022 Campaign!

Returning to its mission, i.e., explaining the importance of immunology to the lay public, especially younger generations, the yEFIS Task Force has put together a set of entertaining videos to answer kids' questions about immunology and vaccines. Check out the playlist here.

And remember to register in time for tomorrow's webinar "Science, State and Challenges of COVID-19 vaccines", airing live at 3:00 PM CET on Friday, April 29! View the webinar program and register here.

Join the Day of Immunology 2022 Campaign!

We continue today with the a series of videos produced by the EFIS Vaccine Task Force in collaboration with the British Society for Immunology on the importance of reliable, evidence-based information on vaccines. This is complemented by poster animations on "Your cordonavirus vaccine questions answered" assembled in eight different languages by the yEFIS Task Force. View the entire playlist here.

And remember to register in time for the April 29, 2022 webinar "Science, State and Challenges of COVID-19 vaccines", airing live at 3:00 PM CET on Friday, April 29!

View the webinar program and register here.

Join the Day of Immunology 2022 Campaign!

Today we're delighted to share the short videos received from the Ambassadors of Immunopaedia, as well as the messages from EFIS and IUIS National Societies on their plans for this year's Day of Immunology. View all the clips on the Day of Immunology YouTube channel here.

And remember to register in time for the April 29, 2022 webinar "Science, State and Challenges of COVID-19 vaccines", airing live at 3:00 PM CET on Friday, April 29!

View the webinar program and register here.

Join the Day of Immunology 2022 Campaign!

And we're off! Today marks the launch of the week of activities to celebrate the Day of Immunology 2022. Take a quick look at this short video from EFIS President, Federica Sallusto, IUIS President, Faith Osier, Immunopaedia Founder, Clive Owen, and yEFIS Spokesperson, Rami Becher, introducing this year's campaign.

And remember to register in time for the April 29, 2022 webinar "Science, State and Challenges of COVID-19 vaccines", airing live at 3:00 PM CET on Friday, April 29!

View the webinar program and register here.

These are truly challenging times: just as the world was beginning to taste the freedoms from restrictions imposed by a pandemic, another crisis has captured the attention and sentiments of the international community.

The European Federation of Immunological Societies (EFIS) first wishes to express its unwavering support and solidarity to the whole of Ukraine, its citizens, and all people affected by the war. Second, the unprovoked aggression of Russian Federation armed forces against a neighbouring nation demands condemnation, and EFIS joins the international community in denouncing this invasion.

At the same time, EFIS - as a federation of national European societies dedicated to the science of immunology and related fields - knows that the overwhelming majority of its community members share the principle that science and scientific collaboration are apolitical, know no borders, and help to guarantee peaceful coexistence among nations and their peoples. An integral part of that collaboration is the exchange of individuals and ideas, and EFIS will continue to dedicate its resources to nurture such exchange.

Conflicts of this kind breed too many innocent bystanders: normal citizens, organisations, entire communities with like-minded aims that have nothing to do with the crisis at hand. And science is one of these bystanders that must respond with the resources at its disposal.

Professor Dr. med. Reinhold Ernst Schmidt (1951 – 2022)

It is with great sadness that the EFIS Board announces the passing of former EFIS Treasurer, Professor Reinhold Schmidt, who died on 23rd January 2022.

Reinhold Schmidt was the Director of the Department for Immunology and Rheumatology at Hannover Medical School (MHH). He started his career studying Medicine and Psychology at the University of Bonn, followed by training in internal medicine, rheumatology and immunology in Bonn, Boston and London. In 1995, he was appointed full Professor and Director of the Department of Clinical Immunology and Rheumatology at the MHH. Since 2004, he was also the Director of the Jeffrey Modell Center (JMF) for Diagnostics and Therapy of Immunodeficiency at the MHH. His research interests included, autoimmunity, the pathogenesis of immunodeficiencies and HIV/AIDS.

Among his many noteworthy appointments and awards, Reinhold Schmidt will be perhaps best remembered for his dedicated service to advancing clinical and translational immunology research. He was a true advocate of immunology: at the national level in Germany, he was President of the German Society for Immunology (DGfI) between 2005 and 2006; at the European level, he served as Treasurer on the EFIS Board for nine years (1998 – 2006), and internationally, he was Chairman of the Clinical Immunology Committee and Councillor for the International Union of Immunological Societies (IUIS) for more than a decade. Furthermore, as President of the 2nd European Congress of Immunology (ECI 2009), he played a pivotal role in organising one of the most successful ECIs to date.

Speaking on behalf of the entire EFIS Board, Past President Sergio Romagnani said, “I knew Reinhold Schmidt very well as he served as Treasurer while I was EFIS President from 2000 to 2003. During this time, I had the opportunity to appreciate his impressive scientific competence, as well as his enthusiasm and love for clinical immunology. But I would like to remember Reinhold as a kind and affable man, full of cheer and able to instill happiness around him. I am mourning his departure, together with all people who have had the pleasure and the privilege of meeting and loving him", Sergio Romagnani, Professor Emeritus, University of Florence, Italy and EFIS Past President.

The EFIS Board send their sincere condolences to the family of Reinhold Schmidt – a wonderful friend and colleague who will be sorely missed.

At its most recent General Assembly, EFIS Societies expressed their voice, and with a convincing mandate elected Bojan Polić of the Croatian Society as 2022-2024 EFIS President-elect and Marieke van Ham of the Dutch Society as 2022-2024 EFIS Secretary General. A special word of thanks is due to Jacek Witkowski, nominated by the Polish Society, and Pärt Petersen, nominated by the Estonian Society, for their willingness to run for the offices of President-elect and Secretary General, respectively. EFIS congratulates both newly-elected officers, who guarantee outstanding scientific and managerial skills, and who will join incoming President, Federica Sallusto, outgoing President Andreas Radbruch, and Treasurer Winfried Pickl to form the EFIS Board 2022-2024.