B and T Cell Collaboration in Lymphoid and Nonlymphoid Microenvironments

About This Grant

Abstract Support is requested for a Keystone Symposia conference entitled “B and T Cell Collaboration in Lymphoid and Nonlymphoid Microenvironments,” organized by Drs. Stephanie C. Eisenbarth, Jason G. Cyster and Ziv Shulman, with scientific programming input from Keystone Symposia. The meeting will take place March 16–18, 2026 at the Keystone Resort in Keystone, Colorado, USA. Protective antibody-mediated immune responses typically depend on the generation of high-affinity antibodies capable of neutralizing pathogen activity and triggering effector functions of innate immune cells. However, antibody functions can be harmful in autoimmune diseases and allergic reactions. Therefore, understanding how antibodies are generated is fundamental for designing vaccination strategies and manipulating B cell responses in these pathological conditions. The generation of long-lasting antibodies is critical for infection defense and depends on collaboration between cognate T cells and B cells. The interaction and signaling that occurs between these related cells promote B cell clonal expansion and differentiation into antibody-secreting cells to fight infection, germinal center B cells to improve the quality of the antibodies, and memory B cells to increase immune response. This Keystone Symposia meeting aims to highlight advances in our understanding of basic immune mechanisms of B cell and T cell interactions in humoral immunity by focusing on emerging science obtained from pre-clinical models and translational science. The meeting will emphasize the cellular dynamics of B-T cell interactions and the underlying molecular mechanisms that promote B cell differentiation and will address similar events occurring in non-lymphoid organs. Additionally, T-B collaborations that drive pathological conditions, such as autoimmunity and allergy, as well as their positive functions in cancer, will be discussed. The conference program will provide valuable insight into immunological mechanisms relevant to allergic and autoimmune diseases, with an aim to prevent and expand potential treatments for these diseases. This meeting will bring together a diverse group of immunology investigators from across multiple research areas to present the latest research on how productive antibody responses are mounted, their role in combating infectious diseases and their dysfunction in allergy and autoimmunity. Accordingly, this conference is paired with the Keystone Symposia conference, “B Cells and Plasma Cells: Fundamental and Translational Biology,” to advance collaborative science.