Courses

Participants will first receive a brief overview of the cellular components of the immune system and its strategies and mechanisms used to prevent the spread of pathogens and their products. This will include a summary of the organization of the immune system, its strategies for responding to pathogens, and the major cellular components of innate and adaptive responses. Participants will learn how specific inborn errors of immunity affect the immune system and how certain drugs used in the treatment of diseases can cause unintended immune dysfunctions. Case studies highlighting different aspects of immune response in the context of increased susceptibility to infections as well as increased risk of immune dysregulation are presented. Participants will learn about diagnostic approaches including functional assays, flow cytometry and genetics. Treatment options are presented including immunoglobulin therapy, Jak-inhibitors and other immunosuppressive medications.

Schedule

09.00 – 10.00 Seminar: Brief overview of the cellular components of the immune system and their role in the human body
Michael Schmück-Henneresse

10.00 – 10.15 Short Break

10.15 – 11.45 Seminar: Inborn errors of immunity – from symptoms to diagnostics to treatment

Leif Hanitsch

11.45 – 13.00 Lunch Break

13.00 – 14.30 Seminar and Visit to the Clinic: Dysfunctions of the immune system in cancer patients

Il-Kang Na

14.30 – 14.45 Short Break

14.45 – 16.45 Seminar: Immunology and Transplantation

Nina Babel

Requirements

For optimal comprehension, students should have an entry-level understanding of molecular and cellular biology - with emphasis on gene expression, protein synthesis, signalling molecules and cellular receptors.

Course format: seminar and hands-on sessions

Requirements: prior knowledge of biomaterials research or 3D printing is not required

This course will introduce you to the role of biomaterials, from their use as a research tool to their application in in vivo tissue regeneration. We will provide both, the background of biomaterial chemistry, fabrication and pro-regenerative function as well as their handling and the requirements for in vivo application. Due to the wide application of biomaterials in the orthopedic field, the focus will be on bone regeneration, but examples from other fields and future biomaterial developments for other organs will also be covered. Overall, you will learn how biomaterials have evolved from passive support structures replacing damaged tissue to bioactive pro-regenerative tools for tissue regeneration targeting individual cell functions.

Classes of biomaterials, their chemical basis and methods for their fabrication will be presented and disussed in an interactive format. A special focus will be on additive manufacturing (3D printing), that has recently attracted enormous attention in the biomaterial field and is considered the technology of the future for the fabrication of architecture and/or patient-specific biomaterials. For full tissue regeneration, the biomaterial has to vanish over time and hand over function to endogenously formed tissue. Thus, aspects of biomaterial degradation from a chemical and biological perspective will be another focus of the course. Next to their chemical properties, the internal architecture and the mechanical properties of biomaterials have been shown to be relevant cues to recruit cells and to support their differentiation into tissue-specific cells driving tissue regeneration. Recent findings on this topic will be presented and future concepts based on advancing technical possibilities through additive manufacturing will be discussed.

The theoretical understanding will be consolidated by practical experience with different biomaterials in the lab. You will have the opportunity to develop your own biomaterial design for a specific clinical problem on the drawing board, transfer it to a computer model (no experience with CAD software required), materialize your idea using a 3D printer in the lab and test the functionality of your “product” in respect to its application. Furthermore, a spectrum of biomaterial concepts developed in the BCRT/BSRT network will be presented in the lab and you will have the opportunity to experience their handling properties and learn how these properties relate to in vivo functionality. Aspects of cell seeding, biomaterial implantation and clinical applicability will also be discussed. If you are using or developing biomaterials in your own research project, you will also have the opportunity to discuss your own research questions regarding these biomaterials.

This course offers a 2.5-day advanced training on preclinical animal models.

The course starts with a short discourse on the history of animal experimentation in science, covers regulatory aspects and will introduce the 3Rs principle, which has evolved into 6Rs and could even be extended to 7Rs. Furthermore, animal experimental work will be discussed from an ethical point of view and alternatives to in vivo research will be addressed. New technologies such as the use of genetic modifications and resulting test systems will also be a topic. In this context, the time required to create a transgenic animal model will also be addressed and its advantages and disadvantages discussed. The goal of trying to mirror clinical patient conditions in animal models will be challenged.

The course will include some introductory lectures but aims to engage you in lively discussions stimulated by group exercises.

During this course the students will be provided with the basic knowledge about the anatomy of the motion apparatus. A lot of examples from orthopedic and traumatologic allday will support the theoretic insight and enable the students to understand clinical problems, evolving around the anatomic field. A workshop, which will take place in the Institute for Anatomy of the Campus Charité Mitte will allow the participants to get in touch with "real" anatomy in form of specimens of extremities and to get a deeper understanding of the acquired knowledge.