16th Young Investigators Symposium
Recap of the 16th NRS Young Investigators Symposium
On November 29th, the 16th NRS Young Investigators Symposium (YIS) was successfully organized by the Young Investigators Board (YIB) at Hotel Casa in Amsterdam. This year’s theme “Respiratory research from bench to bedside to community” brought together many young scientists and clinicians within the field of Respiratory Medicine.
The day began with three outstanding presentations covering a diverse range of topics:
- Dr. Hettie Janssen (Erasmus University Medical Center – Sophia Children’s Hospital) delivered the first talk, titled “Innovations in monitoring infection and inflammation in Cystic Fibrosis lung disease: a tango between lab and clinics”. She shared exciting advancements in the development of novel therapeutics and diagnostic tools for cystic fibrosis patients, highlighting their translation from the clinic back to the lab for further analysis.
- Prof. dr. Hermelijn Smits (Leiden University Medical Center) stepped in to replace one of the originally scheduled speakers who could not attend due to unforeseen circumstances. Prof. Smits presented on the intriguing “farmers theory” in asthma. She showed interesting data of lung and immune cells among different study populations in rural and urban environments.
- Prof. dr. Cécile van Els (RIVM) concluded the presentations with her talk titled “Vaccines to respiratory pathogens: innovations to address current and emerging infectious diseases”. She explored the challenges and opportunities in vaccine development, offering insights into societal perspectives on vaccination in the Netherlands.
The program continued with an interactive network activity: the Icebreaking Bingo. This activity fostered lively interaction and a touch of friendly competition. Eventually, three participants won sweet prizes during this Bingo.
After lung attendees divided into two concurrent sessions:
- Masterclasses: Guided by NRS presidents - prof. dr. Huib Kerstjens (current president) and prof. dr. Hermelijn Smits (past president) – and supported by members of the YIB. During the masterclasses PhD students had the opportunity to practice their presentation skills during a short pitch and were competing to win the masterclass award.
- Workshop on “Science and Social Media”: Led by Stephan van Duin, this workshop offered senior PhD students and postdocs valuable insights into creating effective social media posts to communicate research. It included some very good and relevant discussions among the participants.
The day ended with awarding the prestigious awards:
- Masterclass award: Ayla Kwant
- NRS Swieringa award: Dr. Esmee van de Ploeg & Dr. Sacha Spelier
- SAB Best paper award: Dr. Tamar Tak
The YIB wants to greatly thank all the participants and sponsors of this year’s edition of the YIS for making it a dynamic, engaging and successful event! We look forward to welcoming you all again next year! Photos of the day can be found below.
16th NRS Young Investigator Symposium-
"Respiratory research from bench to bedside to community"
Are you a young researcher, including PhD students and post-docs, or a trainee physician specializing in lung disease research in the Netherlands? Join the NRS Young Investigator Symposium 2024 on the 29th of November! This symposium provides a platform to expand your network within the Netherlands, enhance your presentation skills, engage in data discussions, and gain inspiration from keynote leactures in the field of pulmonology. Discover more about the program and the optional abstract submission process below.
PROGRAM
09:15 - 09:45 Arrival and registration
09:45 - 10:00 Welcome
10:00 - 10:30 Lecture I
Dr. Kornel Golebski (AMC)
From defence to disease: the role of innate lymphoid cells in pathologies of the airways.
10:30 - 11:00 Lecture II
Dr. Hettie Janssens (Erasmus MC)
Innovations in monitoring infection and inflammation in CF lung disease: a tango between lab and clinics
11:00 - 11:15 Short break
11:15 - 11:45 Lecture III
Prof. dr. Cécile van Els (RIVM)
Vaccines to respiratory pathogens: innovations to address current and emerging infectious diseases
11:45 - 12:45 Icebreaking Bingo
12:45 - 13:45 Lunch
13:45 - 15:45 Masterclasses
Dr. Kornel Golebski & Dr. Willianne Hoepel
Prof. Huib Kerstjens & Dr. Rosanne Beijers
13:45 - 15:45 Workshop "Science and Social Media" by Stephan van Duin
15:45 - 17:00 Group photo, Awards, Borrel & Closing
Morning program
“From defence to disease: the role of innate lymphoid cells in pathologies of the airways”
Dr. Kornel Golebski (AMC)
“Innovations in monitoring infection and inflammation in CF lung disease: a tango between lab and clinics”
Dr. Hettie Janssens (Erasmus MC)
“Vaccines to respiratory pathogens: innovations to address current and emerging infectious diseases”
Prof. dr. Cécile van Els (RIVM)
Afternoon Program:
Attendees can engage in an interactive workshop centered on "Science and Social Media", led by Stephan van Duin. Alternatively, they may participate in a Masterclass, which offers personalized feedback to enhance presentation and communication skills. Masterclasses will be in small groups chaired by a senior in the field and NRS Young Investigator Board member. It's important to note that participants in the early stages of their careers are strongly advised to take part in the masterclass, as it provides tailored insights and benefits for their professional growth. Participants in the Masterclass are required to submit an abstract.
The "NRS Masterclass Award" will be given to the young investigator who gave the best presentation in the Masterclass; the awardee will recieve a prize of € 500,-
WORKSHOP- "How to write engaging posts for social media"
How do you apply the basics of science communication to a social media post? In this workshop you will learn how to communicate clearly about your research by writing an engaging post for LinkedIn. It starts with figuring out exactly why you want to communicate in the first place: what is your goal? With your goal in mind, you will then learn how to set up a good social media post. How do you prevent cliches, and grab attention right away? The skills you will pick up will help you write your own post, but can also help you in other forms of science communication.
MASTERCLASS ABSTRACT SUBMISSION GUIDLINE
- Maxiumum 300 words
- 1 figure/table (optional)
- Deadline: 30 October 2024
If you do not have any results from your study yet, simply provide an abstract that covers the background, hypothesis, and methods of your study. Preliminary data are also welcome. All abstracts will be accepted, you will not receive a confirmation of acceptance. Upon arrival and registration, you will receive an overview of the participants in each masterclass.
A TV screen will be available to project your PowerPoint slides during the Masterclass. Each participant will have 5 minutes to explain their study, followed by a short discussion (5-10 minutes). The presentation should be limited to a 5 slides and structured as follows: introduction, results (maximum 3 figures, 1 figure per slide), and discussion. If you do not have any results from your study yet, simply present the background, hypothesis, and methods of your study.
Be aware that joining the masterclass you automatically compete for the Masterclass award of 500 euros! You will be judged on your presentation (layout and structure) as well as presentation and discussion skills.
GET TO KNOW OUR SPEAKERS
Dr. Kornel Golebski is an immunologist, molecular biologist, and Doctor of Medicine. He obtained both his master's and PhD degrees from the University of Amsterdam. His research focuses on the immunological mechanisms underlying the pathologies of the lower and upper airways, including asthma, allergy, and chronic rhinitis. He focuses on the role of airway epithelium in mediating inflammatory processes and studies how interactions between structural cells and immune cells, such as innate lymphoid cells, shape the local tissue environment that drives pathologies of the human airways. Recently, he secured funding to develop human cell platform models for predicting individual patients' responses to therapeutics.
Dr Hettie Janssens is a pediatric pulmonologist and associate professor at the Erasmus MC-Sophia Children’s Hospital since 2009. She is head of the Pediatric CF-center, combining clinical work with research and management. Her research focuses on the pathophysiology and monitoring of cystic fibrosis (CF) lung disease, aiming to develop non-invasive monitoring tools for early CF lung disease. She collaborates with numerous partners locally, nationally and internationally. She is co-author on more than 100 peer-reviewed publications. She is a board member of the European CF Society- Clinical Trial network (ECFS-CTN).
Prof. dr. Cécile van Els is an Dutch immunologist. She graduated as a medical biologist at Utrecht University (UU) and obtained her PhD in the field of minor transplantation antigen-immunity from Leiden University. She then joined the National Institute for Public Health and the Environment (RIVM) to study cellular immunity to HIV and other pathogens. Fascinated by the role of MHC presentation in immune mechanisms she co-developed a dedicated nanoproteomics platform for the targeted discovery of pathogen-derived HLA-presented T cell epitopes. As a PI, her research focused on understanding the acquisition, maintenance and waning of mechanistic correlates of protection against a wide range of human pathogens, after natural infection or vaccination. She wrote >150 articles and >10 expert reviews, the latter on specific correlates of protection in relation to measles virus, influenza virus, mycobacteria, pneumococci and the pertussis bacterium. She likes working in the public domain (RIVM) as well as in academia (where she holds a chair in ‘Vaccinology’ at UU) and in (inter)national consortia to advance vaccine research, -innovation and -acceptance. Since the corona crisis she regularly translates scientific knowledge regarding vaccines and immunity as a trusted advisor to policymakers and to the general public. A recent popular science paperback (in Dutch) by her hand is ‘Vaccins, prikkelende stof’.
Stephan started in science communication right after graduating as a biologist, and by now he’s seen it all. He was a science journalist for some years, and worked on science festivals and high-profile science center exhibitions before turning his attention to scientists. Since 2016, he exclusively works with scientists to help them tell their story. He does this through workshops and individual consultancy.
As co-chairman of the Dutch science communication association SciCom NL, he is also improving the discipline of science communication or ‘scicomm’ even further. Stephan’s vision is that both science and society can benefit from clear science communication when it’s done the right way.
Registration is free for NRS members.
Non-member fee: €150,-
Registration and abstraction submission portals open from 05-08-24 to 30-10-24.
