The Lithuanian Society for Immunology
The Lithuanian Society for Immunology (LSI) unites researchers and clinicians working in the field of immunology.
LSI maintains international contacts with scientists from abroad, especially with our neighbors – the immunologists from Latvia and Estonia.
LSI is a member of the European Federation of Immunological Societies (EFIS).
Brief history
LSI was founded in 1991 by the efforts of professors V. A. Tamošiūnas and B. Padegimas, assoc. prof. E. Razgauskas, and others.
LSI prepared the Statute that was registered at the Ministry of Justice of the Republic of Lithuania.
After its establishment, LSI organized Summer Schools for Young Immunologists in different Lithuanian towns: Birštonas (1992), Palanga (1993), Trakai (1995), and Nida (1997) to promote the activities in the field of immunology. In the schedule of these Summer schools, prominent immunologists from Lithuania and foreign countries (Germany, Sweden, Poland, UK) presented lectures and seminars. In later Summer schools, the reports were also made by the former Summer school attendees, who studied abroad.
Activities
LSI elects the Society Board and the Revision Committee as well as determines the annual membership fee.
At the annual meetings that usually take place in December, LSI foresees and plans the activities for the coming year, i. e. the seminars, conferences, and participation in the conferences or the internship abroad.
LSI also organizes the annual conferences on the Day of Immunology (April 29) which has been announced by IUIS and EFIS and is celebrated worldwide since 2005. Information about the Day of Immunology can be found here:
https://www.efis.org/home.html#anc424
Lithuanian Society for Immunology (LSI) contact e-mail:
LSI President
Prof. dr. Aurelija Žvirblienė (aurelija.zvirbliene@bti.vu.lt)
LSI Board
Dr. Vita Pašukonienė
LSI Head of the Board
Dr. Dovilė Stravinskienė
LSI Secretary (maternal leave)
Dr. Martynas Simanavičius (martynas.simanavicius@bti.vu.lt)
LSI Deputy Secretary
Dr. Asta Miškinienė
LSI Treasurer
Board members:
Dr. Audronė Eidukaitė
Dr. Agata Mlynska
Indrė Dalgėdienė
Dr. Ingrida Jacevičienė
Dr. Eivina Radzevičiūtė-Valčiukė
Dr. Radvilė Malickaitė
EVENTS
2024-10-07
Baltic-Polish School of immunology in Vilnius
https://bpsi2025.lt/
2024-09-16
Spring School on Immunology in Germany
Deadline for application is October 13, 2024. Application only via https://dgfi.org/iuis-dgfi-stipends/.
2024-09-09
Lithuanian immunologists participated at the European Congress of Immunology (ECI 2024) in Dublin
The 7th European Congress of Immunology (ECI 2024) that was held in Dublin (Ireland) from September 1st to 4th 2024, was attended by a large delegation of Lithuanian immunologists - 11 LSI members. The Congress was organized by the Irish Society of Immunology and took place at the Convention Centre Dublin. The scientific program of ECI 2024 was very broad, covering various areas of immunology. Besides Keynote presentations, several parallel thematic symposia and workshops as well as poster sessions were organized, where LSI members presented their posters. At the workshops, early-career immunologists presented short (up to 10 minutes) talks. LSI members not only actively participated in poster sessions, but also contributed to their organization - M. Simananavičius, A. Lučiūnaitė, I. Dalgėdienė, A. Mlynska evaluated the submitted abstracts before the congress, while A. Žvirblienė moderated one of the workshops ('Immunity in respiratory infections').
In addition to the scientific program, the EFIS General Assembly took place during the congress, where the representatives of national societies elected new members of the EFIS Board and the organizers of the upcoming 9th Congress. According to voting results, Copenhagen will host the ECI in 2030 (the next ECI will be held in Florence in 2027).
Due to the rainy, windy weather and the intensive Congress program, we had no time for sightseeing, but it was nice to see Dubliners gathering at the technological sculpture - a portal with a live broadcast from Vilnius.
2024-05-31
In memoriam Vytas Antanas Tamošiūnas
2024-05-28
LSI members attended the School of Immunology in Bialystok
The School of Immunology "50 Shades of Immunology" took place in Bialystok (Poland) on, May 18-21, 2024. It was attended by a large delegation of LSI members, as well as representatives of Latvian and Estonian immunological societies. We went to Bialystok immediately after another important international event - the "EFIS on Tour" symposium in Vilnius, so it was a great opportunity not only to share scientific knowledge, but also to continue discussions about future plans and collaboration possibilities between Polish and Baltic immunologists.
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2024-05-17
Vilnius hosted "EFIS on Tour"
The European Federation of Immunological Societies (EFIS) and the Lithuanian Society for Immunology (LSI) organized the "EFIS on Tour" symposium, which took place on May 17th, 2024 at the Lithuanian Academy of Sciences (LAS).
"EFIS on Tour" is a traditional event organized by EFIS board that visits national immunological societies, discuss about their activities and provides valuable recommendations. This was the first visit of EFIS board to Lithuania.
In addition to LSI and EFIS board members, the event was attended by representatives of Latvian and Estonian immunological societies, researchers working in various Lithuanian institutions, students, PhD students. The program of the Symposium included the presentations about the activities of Lithuanian, Latvian and Estonian immunological societies, programs to be financed by EFIS and the European Commission (EC), recent advances in immunology research. An overview on the activities of Baltic immunological societies was given by Aurelija Žvirblienė, Kai Kisand and Natalja Kurjāne. The scientific presentations were made by young LSI members Asta Lučiūnaitė, Agata Mlynska, Ieva Adomaitė, EC representative Jonas Bunikis, EFIS board members Bojan Polić, Winfried F. Pickl, Marieke van Ham and Andreas Radbruch, the representative of BD Biosciences Morten Lobner. The symposium was followed by an informal discussion about the achievements, challenges and future plans of Baltic immunological societies.
K. Kisand, M. Simanavičius, A. Žvirblienė, B. Polić, M. van Ham, W.F. Pickl, T. Wiley, M. McGrath
The organizers are grateful to LAS administration for hosting the event and providing a technical support, the general sponsor BD Biosciences for a financial support, PhD students Dainius Gudas and Kristina Mašalaitė who volunteered at the symposium and all LSI members who contributed to organizing this event.
LSI president Aurelija Žvirblienė
Program of "EFIS on Tour":
 | EFIS-on-Tour_Vilnius.pdf (262.5KB) |
| EFIS-on-Tour_Vilnius.pdf (262.5KB) |
Photogallery:
2024-04-29
Conference for the International Day of Immunology
To celebrate the International Day of Immunology, on April 29th, 2024 the Lithuanian Society for Immunology (LSI) and the Allergology Commission of the Lithuanian Academy of Sciences (LAS) organized the conference "Life with allergy: from childhood to old age". The Day of Immunology takes place every year on April 29. The themes for this Day are proposed by the International Union of Immunological Societies (IUIS). Day of Immunology 2024 theme is “Immunity Through the Ages: Navigating the Science of Aging and Immunology“. In line with this theme, issues of immunology and allergology related to aging were discussed at the conference. The conference was opened by LSI President Acad. Aurelija Žvirblienė and the Chair of the LAS Allergology Commission Acad. Rūta Dubakienė. Acad. A. Žvirblienė told about changes in the immune system from infancy to old age and cellular mechanisms of immunosenescence that cause a higher risk of infectious and autoimmune diseases in older age and a weaker response to vaccines. Acad. R. Dubakienė explained the nature of allergic diseases and provided recommendations for specific immunotherapy for patients of different ages. Member of LSI Board Dr. Asta Miškinienė presented a comprehensive overview of allergens, families of these molecules, their similarities and differences. LSI member Gabija Biliūtė presented a study that analyzed the sensitization pattern to various allergens in Lithuania. This study revealed significant differences in allergic sensitization profiles between children and adults. The conference was followed by an informal discussion.
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2023-12-07
LSI Annual Conference
Participants of the LSI annual conference.
LSI annual conference was held on Dec. 5, 2023 at the Center for Innovative Medicine.
The conference was started by Vita Pašukonienė who presented the CITIM-2023 conference and its main topics. The traditional CITIM conference was supposed to take place in 2021, but it was postponed due to the pandemic and the war in Ukraine. The conference was attended by 150 participants, including the researchers from the National Cancer Institute who presented both oral and poster presentations. The organizer of the CITIM-2023 conference V. Pašukonienė was pleased that both the scientific and cultural program of the conference was highly evaluated by the participants.
Dr. Martynas Simanavičius, member of LSI council, VU Life Sciences Center
Dr. V. Pašukonienė, LSI vice-president, National Cancer Institute
Martynas Simanavičius presented SARS-CoV-2 seroepidemiological study that was conducted in Spring 2023. This study was initiated by the Ministry of Health and funded by the Research Council of Lithuania. It was carried out by researchers from the Lithuanian University of Health Sciences. Vilnius University and Santaros clinics. Despite a serious challenge related to difficulties to collect the planned representative cohort, it was possible to assess the level of immunization of the Lithuanian population that was shown to be extremely high (~99%). Based on the questionnaire data and the results of serological tests (anti-S and anti-N IgG), it was found that most of the subjects have "hybrid" immunity, formed both after vaccination and SARS-CoV-2 infection.
Young scientists Eivina Radzevičiūtė-Valčiukė, Kristina Mašalaitė and Agata Mlynska shared their impressions from the international conferences and courses they attended in 2023.
After the scientific presentations, the LSI president Aurelija Žvirblienė presented the Annual report where she reviewed LSI activities, introduced new LID members and discussed future LID events, the most important of which is the expected visit of the EFIS Board to Vilnius in May 2024 (EFIS on Tour). The LSI report was continued by LSI treasurer Asta Miškinienė, who evaluated the year 2023 as financially successful, as it was possible to attract a significant amount of funds from sponsors. The chairman of the audit commission Almantas Šiaurys confirmed that the financial documents are handled properly. At the end of the annual conference, LSI secretary Dovilė Stravinskienė reminded about the changes to the LSI statutes and asked LSI members to express their opinion by voting.
Prof. Aurelija Žvirblienė, President of LSI, VU Life Sciences Center
2023-11-21
Conference "Baltic Immunological Day"
The scientific-practical conference "Baltic Immunological Day" organized by the Latvian Society of Immunologists was held in Riga on November 17th, 2023. The main topic of the conference was primary immunodeficiencies. Speakers from Latvia, Lithuania, Estonia, Poland, Germany presented interesting clinical cases and reviewed the advances in laboratory diagnostics.
Photo (from left to right): the participants of the Conference LSI board member dr. A.Miškinienė, LSI president prof. A.Žvirblienė, prof. V.Kvedarienė (Vilnius University), prof. B.Gradauskienė (Lithuanian University of Health Sciences).
After the conference, the representatives of Lithuanian, Latvian and Estonian immunological societies discussed the perspectives and possibilities of collaboration between immunologists of the Baltic states. The president of the Latvian Association of Immunologists N. Kurjane, the representative of the Estonian Society for Immunology and Allergology K. Kisand, the president of LSI A. Žvirblienė and the member of LSI Council A. Miškinienė participated in the discussion and shared plans how to revive the former intensive cooperation of Baltic immunological societies. The future joint events of Baltic immunologists including Immunology Summer Schools may significantly contribute to the cooperation. LSI representatives invited Latvian and Estonian colleagues to participate in the "EFIS on Tour" symposium, which will be held in 2024. May 17 In Vilnius. Baltic immunologists will also participate in the Immunology Summer School taking place in Poland in 2024. May 18-21. It is planned that the next regional Immunology Summer School of three Baltic states and Poland will be organized in 2025 in Vilnius, so LSI will take a responsibility to organize this event.
More information about the Conference:
https://www.rsu.lv/en/events/baltic-immunological-day-practical-conference-professional-development
2023-06-21
ABC7 summer school in Tallinn: about autoimmunity and more
Participants of the summer school ABC7 in the open-air museum of Estonia (photo by Tamara Vorobjova, University of Tartu).
On June 14-16, 2023, members of the Lithuanian Society for Immunology (LSI) participated in the 7th international summer school "ABC7: Autoimmunity, B cell and Complement" organized by the Estonian Society for Immunology and Allergology (EIAS), The European Federation of Immunological Societies (EFIS) and the Nordic Complement Committee (NCC). Attendees heard exclusive presentations by renowned scientists on the cutting edge of the immune system in the fields of autoimmune response, B cells and the complement system, starting with keynote lectures by Seppo Meri (University of Helsinki, Finland) and Burkhard Becher (University of Zurich, Switzerland).
The target groups of the summer school were doctoral students, medical residents, early career researchers. They had the opportunity to present their work by oral and poster presentations, and participate in career development workshops. LSI member dr. Asta Lučiūnaitė presented her oral presentation on the research of macrophage activation by the immune complexes. During the career development workshop, LSI president prof. A. Žvirblienė presented what opportunities and challenges arise in the field of immunology research in Lithuania. During the discussion, the personal experiences of both experienced and young scientists were heard of their career path. Secretary of LSI and the representative of the EFIS Gender and Diversity Task Force Dr. D. Stravinskienė invited a more active discussion on the issues of gender equality and underrepresented groups, and former EFIS General Secretary Pablo Engel (University of Barcelona, Spain) reminded young researchers about EFIS funding opportunities for travels and internships. Also prof. Maciej Kurpisz, president of the Polish Society for Fundamental and Clinical Immunology, was pleased about the opportunities for cooperation and invited everyone to come to the immunology school in Poland next year.
Summer school organizer dr. Kai Kisand (University of Tartu), prof. Maciej Kurpisz (President of the Polish Society for Fundamental and Clinical Immunology), LSI President Prof. A. Žvirblienė (photo by Tamara Vorobjova).
Dr. Asta Lučiūnaitė presented her work at the session of young scientists. (Photo: D. Stravinskienė).
During the meeting dinner, the participants visited the Estonian open-air museum, which presents the country's rural architecture and lifestyle. This conference brought together scientists from the Baltic and Scandinavian regions, helped young scientists discover new connections, and encouraged international cooperation. LSI members are invited to participate in future regional immunology schools and conferences, where they can improve their knowledge about basic and clinical autoimmunology, exchange information on new trends in autoimmunity diagnostics, and to cooperate in autoimmunity-related research.
2023-06-19
The visit of the Honorary member of LSI, professor H. H. Peter in Lithuania
On June 13th, 2023, the Lithuanian Academy of Sciences (LAS) together with the Lithuanian Society for Immunology (LSI) organized the scientific conference „Current achievements in immunology“ with the participation of the Honorary member of LSI and foreign member of the LAS, former President of German Society for Immunology, professor Hans Hartmut Peter who presented the lecture on IgG4-related diseases. Other presentations were given by VU professor Laura Malinauskienė and doctor Goda Filipavičienė from the University of Health Sciences. After the conference, there was an informal discussion with prof. H. H. Peter. The participants of the discussion reminded that prof. H. H. Peter was the main organizer of the international Summer Schools of Immunology that significantly contributed to the development of immunology research in Lithuania in the first years after restoring its independence (1992-2005). Former president of the LSI prof. V. A. Tamošiūnas presented his autobiographic book and the book of a famous Vilnius University professor of XIX century J. Sniadecki „Theory of organic beings“. Former LSI member prof. S. Gendvilis also shared his memories, as he has a long-year personal relation with H. H. Peter and contributed to organizing his current visit.
Prof. H. H. Peter and his wife spent over a week in Lithuania - they visited not only Vilnius, but also Nida. Prof. H.H Peter noticed significant changes in Lithuania during the last 20 years. He not only reminded the joint events organized by German and Baltic Societies for Immunology, but also was interested in current international activities of the LSI. He encouraged the participation of LSI members in EFIS activities and LSI efforts to establish closer collaborations with Estonian, Latvian, Polish and German immunologists.
Photos from the conference organized by LAS and LSI are here
2023-05-18
Immunologists from all over the world discussed in Vilnius at the CITIM-2023 conference
On April 24-27 2023, the 7th International Conference "Cancer immunotherapy and immunomonitoring (CITIM-2023 Vilnius)" took place in Vilnius. The conference was jointly organized by the National Cancer Institute (NCI) and the Lithuanian Society for Immunology (LSI). The achievements in cancer immunology and the possibilities of applying new technologies in the clinic were shared by prominent immunology authorities from Los Angeles, Pittsburgh, Seattle, Richmond (USA), Santiago (Chile), Heidelberg, Essen, Mannheim, Tübingen (Germany), London (UK), Prague (Czech Republic), Milan (Italy), participants from Tel Aviv, Jerusalem, Beer-Sheva (Israel), Stockholm (Sweden), the delegation from Kyiv and Rivne (Ukraine).
"Every two years, the CITIM conference is held in a different European country. We took over the organizers' baton from Goergia. We feel the responsibility, but at the same time we also appreciate the work of Lithuanian immunologists, because CITIM raises its flags in countries having a potential for cancer immunology research, - said the head of the National Organizing Committee, prof. Vita Pašukonienė. - Due to the pandemic and the war in Ukraine, the preparation for the CITIM-Vilnius conference took even four years - twice as much time as usual. In this period, many undiscussed topics and unshared results accumulated, so it was a difficult task to rearrange the program, to invite guest lecturers and sponsors to this traditional European event, which brings together specialists from all over the world".
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The conference was warmly welcomed by dr. Karolis Ažukaitis, the Vice-Dean for Science and Innovations of the Faculty of Medicine of Vilnius University. The elected member of the Vilnius Council Aurimas Navys (picture on the right) compared cancer with an occupier, and the immunotherapy technologies presented by the conference participants - to the latest warfare technologies.
At the CITIM-2023 Vilnius conference, 150 participants discussed for 4 days, giving 46 oral presentations and 34 poster presentations, from which 8 best presentations of young researchers were selected. Among them, the presentation of Emilija Paberalė, a PhD student of the Laboratory of Immunology at NCI, was awarded.
Lithuania was represented by 5 oral presentations, four of which were from the NCI. Dr. Jan Krasko, Dr. Agata Mlynska, Dr. Marius Strioga presented the results of their research. The first results of the joint Lithuanian-Ukrainian project were presented by Dr. Olga Karaman, a researcher from Kyiv who transferred her research to NCI due to the war in Ukraine. Poster presentations were presented by the Laboratories of Molecular Oncology and Immunology of NCI.
Emilija Paberalė, a PhD student of the Laboratory of Immunology at NCI
Dr. Agata Mlynska, the Laboratory of Immunology at NCI
The participation of the Ukrainian delegation in the conference also had a strong ideological meaning. Through the combined efforts of the International and National Organizing Committees, all participation costs of the Ukrainian delegation were fully reimbursed. Moreover, in solidarity with a country defending its independence, it was decided that the next CITIM meeting should be held in Lviv, Ukraine, in two years. "I wish this angel created by Lithuanian folk artists will protect your country. It is difficult to expect that he will help to organize the CITIM conference, but this will be a guarantee that we all will join our efforts to do THAT" - Prof. V. Pašukonienė said at the end of the conference, presenting a wooden stylized angel created by Lithuanian folk artists to the head of the Ukrainian delegation dr. For Rostyslav Bilyy.
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Pictures from the CITIM-2023 conference in the gallery.
New LSI president, LSI vice-president and LSI board members started their 5-year term on the 4th of January, 2023
"EFIS on Tour" Symposium
“EFIS on Tour” Symposium will be held on May 17, 2024 in the Conference hall of the Lithuanian Academy of Sciences (Gedimino av. 3, Vilnius).
The Program of the Symposium:
| EFIS-on-Tour_Vilnius_programa.pdf (855.92KB) |
| EFIS-on-Tour_Vilnius_programa.pdf (855.92KB) |
Other international upcoming events
Immunology School "50 Shades of Immunology" in Bialystok, Poland, May 18-21, 2024: https://www.immunoschool.ptidik.com/
EuroMAbNet meeting in Montpellier, France, June 17-19, 2024: https://www.euromabnet.com/meeting/13th-meeting-montpellier.php
European Congress of Immunology (ECI 2024) in Dublin, Ireland, September 1-4, 2024: https://eci2024.org/