ESDR Future Leaders Academy 2025
Grantee: Thomas Florestan, European Society for Dermatological Research (ESDR)
Amount: EUR 25,000
Grant category: Research Networking
Year: 2025
Geography: Switzerland
ESDR Future Leaders Academy, a 3-day event from 6.-8. November 2025 held in Nice with the theme ’Excellence in skin science, future is ours’. The goal of this initiative is to foster excellence in academic dermatology and encourage gifted young dermatologists to further pursue their careers through guidance and mentoring. The program is primarily open to European residents currently engaged in skin-related research (MD, PhD, Post-Doc). There will be 25 applicants who will be selected to present their current research, along with 7 mentors who will make a more personal and inspiring presentation. Besides scientific sessions there is a strong emphasis on encouraging young people to network and to exchange ideas during the academy.
Deciphering the coronin 1 pathway for selective inhibition of inflammatory skin diseases
Grantee: Jean Pieters, Principle Investigator, Biozentrum, University of Basel, Switzerland
Amount: DKK 3,989,627
Grant category: Research Grants in open competition
Year: 2025
Geography: Switzerland
Inflammatory skin diseases such as atopic dermatitis and psoriasis are debilitating and chronic conditions characterised by the appearance of rashes and scaly plaques. The symptoms are caused by overactivation of the immune system in which T cells play a key role. Current treatments are known to suppress the entire immune system or target pathways required for appropriate immunity and therefore are associated with significant risks for infections and cancer. Our laboratory has recently defined a pathway that is selectively involved in T cell-mediated inflammatory skin disorders while being dispensable for normal immunity. Within this project we aim to investigate the molecular mechanisms involved, and explore the potential of targeting this pathway as a therapeutic strategy for the suppression of skin inflammation while maintaining overall immunity. The results from this work may allow the delineation of hitherto unexplored and steroid-sparing therapies for inflammatory skin disorders.