The different epithelial stem/progenitor cells identified so far in the different regions of the lung interact with specific stromal, and physical/mechanical, niches. Some of these niches have recently been characterized. These niches dictate the quiescence of the epithelial stem/progenitor cells, as well as their re-entry into the cell cycle and subsequent differentiation. The mesenchyme, which gives rise to different stromal cell niches has so far been understudied during development, homeostasis, injury/repair and disease development. Similarly, the effects on stem cells of the physical/mechanical properties of their local environment are just beginning to be explored.

Key Sessions

• Stem cell niches in lung development
• Stem cell niches in lung homeostasis and repair
• Breaking niche regulation in lung cancer
• Characterisation of epithelial and mesenchymal progenitor cell populations

Student Offer

Take advantage of this fantastic opportunity for students! Fully paying 'single' or 'shared' registrants can bring a student for only €882. Unfortunately, Postdocs are not eligible. Both registration packages include; accommodation for the 05, 06, 07 October 2023 (on a shared basis for students) and a food and beverage package for the conference period. Once registered, please contact Shannon Elsden to obtain a special registration link for your student. 

Confirmed Invited Speakers

Cristina Alvira (Stanford University)
IDENTIFYING NOVEL PATHWAYS THAT REGULATE PROGENITOR PHENOTYPE TO PROMOTE POSTNATAL LUNG DEVELOPMENT AND REPAIR AFTER INJURY
Laurent Boyer (Henri Mondor Hospital)
TARGETING P16 POSITIVE CELLS TO INDUCE ALVEOLAR REGENERATION IN EMPHYSEMA 
Wellington Cardoso (Columbia University Irving)
CONTROL OF LUNG PROGENITOR CELL FATE DECISIONS IN DEVELOPMENT AND REPAIR
Xuran Chu (Oujiang Laboratory)
EVIDENCE FOR THE ROLE OF GLI1+ CELLS IN PULMONARY HYPERTENSION
Soula Danopoulos (The Lundquist Institute)
CELL LINEAGE DEPENDENT ABERRATIONS IN TRISOMY 21 LUNG DEVELOPMENT
Stijn Delanghe (Mayo Clinic)
AIRWAY EPITHELIAL HIPPO SIGNALING IN PULMONARY FIBROSIS
Elie El Agha (Institute for Lung Health)
THE MESENCHYMAL NICHE IN AIRWAY EPITHELIAL REGENERATION
Xiaoying Huang (Wenzhou Medical University)
THE ROLE AND MECHANISM OF YAP SIGNALING IN BASAL STEM CELLS DURING LIPOPOLYSACCHARIDE-INDUCED ACUTE LUNG INJURY
James (Honglong) Ji (Loyola University Chicago)
PROTEOMIC IDENTIFICATION OF REGENERATIVE NICHES FOR ARDS LUNGS
Dianhua Jiang (Cedars-Sinai Medical Center)
BASAL-LIKE CELLS IN IPF
Claude Jourdan Le Saux (University of California San Francisco)
SECRETED FRIZZLED RELATED PROTEIN 2 PROMOTES BASALOID TRANSDIFFERENTIATION OF HUMAN ALVEOLAR TYPE II EPITHELIAL CELLS
Maya Kumar (Stanford University)
NEOINTIMA FORMATION IN PULMONARY VASCULAR DISEASE
Susan Majka (National Jewish Health)
LUNG MESENCHYMAL VASCULAR PROGENITORS MODULATE ADAPTIVE ANGIOGENESIS & TISSUE REMODELING IN CHRONIC LUNG DISEASE
Parviz Minoo (University of Southern California)
REGENERATIVE STEM CELLS IN IMMATURE LUNGS; "WHY BPD IS A RESILIENT PROBLEM"
Ana Pardo-Saganta (Institute for Lung Health)
MULTITASKING LUNG EPITHELIAL STEM CELLS: IMPLICATIONS IN HOMEOSTASIS AND DISEASE
Jainwen Que (Columbia University)
ALVEOLAR REGENERATION FOLLOWING VIRAL INFECTION
John Russell (University of Cambridge)
BRANCHING TOWARDS EX VIVO MODELS TO STUDY CELL FATE AND MORPHOGENESIS IN THE DEVELOPING HUMAN LUNG
Amy Ryan (University of Iowa)
THE INFLUENCE OF THE NICHE ON AIRWAY BASAL STEM CELL EXHAUSTION
Christos Samakovlis (Stockholm University)
DECODING EPITHELIAL DIFFERENTIATION PROGRAMS IN THE MOUSE AND HUMAN LUNG
Rajkumar Savai (Max Planck Institute for Heart and Lung Research)
SPATIOTEMPORAL INTERACTIONS OF LUNG CANCER NICHES: WHAT DO IMMUNE CELLS HAVE TO OFFER?
Werner Seeger (Max Planck Institute for Heart and Lung Research)
BENCH TO BEDSIDE AND REVERSE: THE INTERESTING JOURNEY OF PULMONARY HYPERTENSION
Sara Taghizadeh (Institute for Lung Health)
FGF10 TRIGGERS DE NOVO ALVEOLOGENESIS IN A BRONCHOPULMONARY DYSPLASIA MODEL: IMPACT ON RESIDENT MESENCHYMAL NICHE CELLS
Roxana-Maria Wasnick (Institute for Lung Health and Immunity)
IMMUNE CHECKPOINT MOLECULES: UNLOCKING THE SECRETS OF STEM CELL PRIVILEGE IN THE LUNG
Laure-Emmanuelle Zaragosi (Institut de Pharmacologie Moléculaire et Cellulaire)
SINGLE-CELL ANALYSES OF THE HUMAN AIRWAYS IN HEALTH AND RESPIRATORY DISEASES
Jin San Zhang (Wenzhou Medical University)
PARTNERS IN REPAIR _ THE RSMC GOES BEYOND THE CLUB

Educational Need

The objective of this meeting is to bring together the scientific community interested in niche-epithelial stem/progenitor interaction during lung development, homeostasis and disease. It is proposed that developmental mechanisms are redeployed in the repair process and during disease progression.

The identification of the critical pathways and understanding their function will open the way to their manipulation to enhance the repair process. In particular we propose to bring the audience up to date on:
1) the characterization of the different stromal niches along the proximal-distal axis of the lung during development, homeostasis, injury/repair;

2) the characterization of in vitro assays to test/validate the quality of the stromal cell niches in supporting epithelial stem/progenitor cells (3D organoid-based models involving co-culture of stromal cell niches and epithelial/stem progenitor cells);

3) the identification of drugs affecting the niche-epithelial stem/progenitor cell interaction