Teaching Day

Exercise session I

1) Analyzing the molecular machinery of complement (P. Gros, D. Ricklin)
Practical tips about how to select and prepare complement proteins and their binding partners for structural and biophysical studies (e.g., SPR), pitfalls in data interpretation, etc.

2) Of mice and cells: disease models in complement research (C. Kemper, A. Tenner, G. Hajishengallis)
Chances and challenges of working with animal models (rodents, pigs, primates etc.), isolation of immune cells, use of cell-based models.

3) Keeping complement happy (K. Nilsson Ekdahl, B. Nilsson, P. Zipfel)
Isolation, purification, storage and stability/handling issues with complement proteins. Suitable expression systems for recombinant complement fragments.
4) Assessing complement function: one assay at a time (A. Blom, T. Mollnes) 
An overview, recommendations and limitations of in vitro complement assays.

Exercise session II

1) Infection and evasion by microbial pathogens (P. Zipfel, A. Blom, G. Hajishengallis)
2) From structure to function to disease (C. Kemper, P. Gros)
3) Clinical aspects of complement analysis (T. Mollnes, B. Nilsson)
4) Therapeutic intervention in the complement system (D. Ricklin, A. Tenner)

Additional Information

Eligibility
The Teaching Day of the ICW is reserved for students and postdoctoral researchers in order to limit group size during exercise sessions and promote peer discussion. We therefore kindly ask senior researchers not to register for or attend the Teaching Day..

Arrival & Registration
Please plan to arrive in Chania on or before Tuesday, 9 October 2012, since the Teaching Day will start in the morning of Wednesday, 10 October 2012. A registration desk at which you will receive your badge, program and additional information will be open on Tuesday evening (6:00-7:30 PM) in the lobby of the Minoa Palace Hotel and on Wednesday morning in the lobby of the conference center.

Conference Center
The Teaching Day will take place at the conference center of the Minoa Palace Hotel in Chania.

Breakfast
Breakfast will be served from 7:30 AM in the hotel that is included in your travel package (Minoa Palace Hotel or Porto Platanias Hotel). Please allow enough time to walk to the conference center if you are staying at the Porto Platanias Hotel (~15 min walking distance).

Lunch
For all participants of the Teaching Day, lunch will be served in the main restaurant of the Minoa Palace Hotel. A variety of food choices, including vegetarian option, will be available on the lunch buffet. Please note that no alcohol will be served during lunch.

Lectures
The morning session will cover several lectures about key topics in complement research by renowned experts. These lectures cover both molecular and clinical aspects and are intended to provide an overview about important principles, emerging topics and critical connections to related fields. Lectures are 25 min and do not include Q&A (discussions are encouraged during breaks and exercise sessions).

Exercise sessions
Two round of exercise session will take place in the afternoon, primarily covering practical aspects of academic research (part I) and clinical aspects (part II). Two to three experts in the field will be available to share their experience, engage in discussion and answer your questions. These sessions are intended to be interactive (involving real-life examples, case studies, etc.) and we encourage you to actively participate in the discussions. Participants will be able to join one topic in each part of the exercise sessions according to their priorities (please complete the survey).

Course material
Lecturers may share accompanying material for their lectures and/or exercise sessions online at:
https://www.dropbox.com/sh/53bv8ng9h6vpjuq/sdCcXIJZQa
This repository will be available before, during and up to two weeks after the ICW.