Invited talk by Prof. C. Ronald Kahn, Harvard Medical School.

One of the world’s—if not the world’s—leader in insulin signaling.

Date: Wednesday April 18^th
Time: 09:00
Place: Auditorium @ Armauer Hansens hus, Haukeland University Hospital

A recent study from Prof. Kahn has identified viruses that can produce insulin-like hormones that are active on human cells. This novel discovery brings new possibilities for revealing biological mechanisms that may cause diabetes, as well as autoimmune disease, metabolic conditions or cancer.

Viruses known to infect fish and amphibians, could possibly expose humans to viral insulins. Prof. Kahn and his colleagues at Joslin have found that various viruses can produce peptides that are similar in whole or in part to 16 human hormones and regulatory proteins. Four viruses interestingly have insulin-like sequences, and show ability to bind to and stimulate human insulin receptors and receptors for a closely related hormone called IGF-1 (insulin-like growth factor 1). The viral peptides could this way potentially stimulate all signaling pathways inside the cells that are stimulated by human insulin and IGF-1, including glucose uptake and cellular Growth.

by Andreas Radbruch Prof. Dr. rer. nat.

“Pathogenic memory plasma cells – a roadblock to tolerance induction in chronic inflammatory diseases”

Tuesday, May 15^th, at 13:00 – 14:00
Auditorium AHH

Andreas Radbruch is an immunologist and scientific director at the German Rheumatism Research Centre Berlin as well as professor for rheumatology at the Medical faculty of the Humboldt University of Berlin (Charité), Germany. His research focus is on the topics of autoimmunity, inflammation and immune pathology, biology of T and B lymphocytes and plasma cells, and development of molecular imprinting of immunological memory as well as cytometry and cell sorting. In particular, his work aims at a molecular understanding of the control of immune reactions and immunological memory in vaccination, and autoimmune and allergic inflammation.

Arranged by The Research Group Immunology and Rheumatology, NSI Bergen and The Bergen Research School in Inflammation.

The Blix Foundation for the Promotion of Medical Research was founded on December 1, 1983. The purpose of the fund is to support medical research, especially in the fields of cardiovascular disease and cancer, including medical diagnostics in these fields. Fund support will particularly go to research projects combining basic and clinical research, with special emphasis on applications from younger researchers. Application for support is sent to the board of directors of the fund by Erik Keiserud, Advokatfirmaet Hjort DA, PO Box 471, 0105 Oslo. The application must be sent by 25 June 2018. It must be written on a standard form that will be sent on request by e-mail: goe@hjort.no.