Il progressivo invecchiamento della popolazione è un trend in continuo aumento: entro il 2050 la proporzione di anziani nel mondo raddoppierà. Approfondire lo studio e la cura delle malattie età-correlate diventa quindi una priorità assoluta, sia per il miglioramento della salute della popolazione, che per la sostenibilità dei sistemi sanitari.
The progressive aging of the population is an ever-increasing trend: by 2050 the proportion of elderly people in the world will double. Deepening the study and treatment of age-related diseases therefore becomes a top priority, both for the improvement of population health and for the sustainability of health care systems.
Hence the focus of the 14th Ri.MED Scientific Symposium “Inflammation and Aging: Mechanisms, mediators and therapeutic interventions,” held on May 19 and 20, 2022 at Palazzo Steri, venue of the Rectorate of the University of Palermo.
Opening remarks were made by Massimo Midiri, Chancellor of the University of Palermo, Paolo Aquilanti, President of the Ri.MED Foundation, Angelo Luca, Director of IRCCS ISMETT and Vice President of the Ri.MED Foundation, Dario Vignali, Scientific Director of Ri.MED, and Toren Finkel, Chairman of the event and Director of the Aging Institute of UPMC.
Excellent names from the international scenario arrived in Palermo to compare complementary approaches useful for a greater understanding of the relationship between aging and inflammation. The goal of the research presented is the development of innovative diagnostic and therapeutic solutions useful to slow down or even reverse the genesis of the chronic inflammatory state, and thus enable the effective treatment of a wide range of age-related diseases. Ranging from chronic immune activation in the elderly to the scientific mechanisms that generate age-related pathological conditions, scientists explored new approaches for treating diseases such as Alzheimer’s, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, osteoarthritis, septicemia, and others.
This is one of the first international meetings focused exclusively on the topic of the relationship between inflammation, aging and the immune system, complementary approaches from which useful collaborations can arise to translate scientific insights into new therapies.
Chair of the event was Prof. Toren Finkel, Director of the Aging Institute at University of Pittsburgh/UPMC.
Thursday 19, May 2022 from 2:30 pm until 6:30 pm
KEYNOTE SPEAKER: Claudio Franceschi, MD, PhD
Professor of Immunology, University of Bologna, Italy
Inflammaging from theory to practice
Arne Akbar, PhD
Professor of Immunology, UCL Division of Biosciences
Targeting inflammaging to enhance immunity in humans
Chiara Cipollina, PhD Group Leader in Experimental Lung Research, Fondazione Ri.MED, Palermo, Italy
Alessandro Bertani, MD, PhD Clinical Assistant Professor of Surgery, University of Pittsburgh Chief, Division of Thoracic Surgery and Lung Transplantation, IRCCS ISMETT
Innate immune responses in age-related lung diseases
Roberto Di Gesù, PhD
Principal Investigator in Musculoskeletal tissue engineering, Fondazione Ri.MED, Palermo, Italy
New frontiers in Osteoarthritis as an inflammatory age-related disease
Friday 20, May 2022 from 9:00 am until 1:00 pm
KEYNOTE SPEAKER: Jeremy David Walston, M.D.
Professor of Geriatric Medicine & Gerontology,Johns Hopkins Bayview Medical Center, Baltimore, USA
Eline Slagboom, PhD
Professor of Molecular Epidemiology, Leiden University Medical Center, NL
Markers of inflammation and metabolic health in lifestyle interventions and multigenerational longevity
Antonino Cattaneo, PhD
Professor of Physiology, Scuola Normale Superiore (Pisa, Italy) & EBRI Rita Levi-Montalcini (Rome, Italy)
Painless NGF: a neuroprotective therapeutic candidate for Alzheimer’s disease, targeting microglia
Janet Lord, FMedSci
Institute of Inflammation and Ageing, Birmingham University
Immune Ageing in Critical Illness
Mario Barbagallo, MD, PhD
Professor of Internal Medicine and Geriatrics, University of Palermo, Italy
Multimorbidity and Inflammation in the older person
Toren Finkel, MD, PhD
Director, Aging Institute of UPMC, Pittsburgh, USA
Therapeutic approaches for age-related disease
