Dear JSI Members and Friends of JSI;
The COVID-19 outbreak has evolved further, and we have been dealing with a significant global challenge such as the strict and impactful measures to ensure the safety of citizens and the creation of new style of our life (or new normal). The state of emergency has certainly affected not only our individual lives but also the scientific research activities. On the other hand, this challenge accelerates the introduction of remote work using the internet, encourages flex time and creates technological innovation that will shape the future of societies. This crisis has also triggered a revolution in developing new norms and standards of research, education and academic environments, and development infrastructures.
Taking this paradigm shift into account, we would like to seek for the new style of annual meeting with all of JSI members and friends, to find the creative way to change the style, program, presentation method (oral/poster), corporate exhibition, academic exchange and even switch to a virtual annual meeting. This is an opportunity for JSI to capture the future together by opening a new page for our annual meeting.
Furthermore, the COVID-19 has provided an opportunity to the immunology community to initiate paradigm shift of research aims from understanding of the elimination of to the coexistence (or co-habituation) with the pathogen by the highly sophisticated and flexible immune system. It might be the time for our society to quest for the regulation and its evolution of the immune system for coexistence (or co-habituation) with various kinds of pathogens, as well as elucidation and understanding of the elimination mechanism for a wide variety of pathogens, in the post-COVID-19 era.
At the 49th Annual Meeting of this year scheduled on December 8th-10th, in order to continuously advance our international flavor and presence, Prof. Toshinori Nakayama, the President of 49th JSI Annual Meeting and his colleagues at Chiba University have been preparing for a series of international joint symposium under the formal MOU with immunological societies of several countries. Further, in cooperation with the Federation of Immunological Societies of Asia-Oceania (FIMSA), the FIMSA Advanced Training Course has been planned as the satellite event of the JSI Annual Meeting.
In the meantime, COVID-19 caused by SARS-CoV-2 has become a major issue all over the world, and our immunology community is highly expected to provide our expertise for the understanding of a series of immunological events associated with the infection in order to overcome this infectious disease. The 49th Annual Meeting needs to consider its element to contribute our wide variety of intellectual and scientific knowledge and research results to meet the expectation of the society, how the immune system involves in the host responses against SARS-CoV2.
It seems that SARS-CoV-2 infection is gradually converging in Japan, however, the second and third waives of the infection together with the virus mutation can arise in the near future. Unfortunately, we cannot predict the COVID-19 situation in upcoming December. We have to prioritize the safety and health of the participants including JSI members, invited speakers both from Japan and overseas, general audiences and staffs, and organize the event in a most safe and secure environment.
As the result, our Board Members together with Prof. Nakayama have determined to have the 49th Annual Meeting as the virtual one-day intensive symposium on “COVID-19 and Immunity”. As such, by drastically streamlining the style of the Annual Meeting, the JSI has already set to work on its preparation. This will be the good opportunity for our greatest immunologists to introduce their state-of-the-art research, discuss and disseminate the perspective of cutting-edge immunology to fight against the global health threats posed by COVID-19. The meeting will include the themes, such as “Current and future contributions of immunological research for the control of COVID-19”, “Understanding and elucidating the immune system for coexistence with SARS-CoV-2” and others. The program committee of JSI (Chair, Prof. Toshiaki Ohteki) is steadily preparing for this new virtual meeting. The JSI positions this year's 49th annual meeting as the beginning of creating the future-style of our scientific meeting, and starts gathering members’ thoughts and inputs about our efforts seeking this new style of the annual meeting. We will continuously update new information about this meeting on our website.
On behalf of JSI, we are deeply grateful for the efforts and devotions that have been made by Prof. Nakayama and his team members, Vice Presidents, Profs. Hiroshi Nakajima and Shinichiro Motohashi, Executive Director, Dr. Kiyoshi Hirahara of Chiba University, and all of the committee members.
Now, we are pleased to announce that Prof. Nakayama will take a leading role of the scientific meeting at the Makuhari Messe, Chiba in December 2023 (three years later), as the President of the 52nd Annual Meeting of the JSI.
We would like to ask all of you for your understanding and cooperation. We are convinced that we will get through this difficult situation because we are working together and contributing our scientific knowledges to the society through the immunology.
Hiroshi Kiyono, D.D.S., Ph.D.
President and Chairman of Board, JSI
Toshinori Nakayama, M.D., Ph.D.
President, The 52nd Annual Meeting of JSI
Toshiaki Ohteki, D.D.S., Ph.D.
Chair, Program Committee of JSI
