Connecting Antibody Biology, Structure and Function to Future Applications

Antibodies are multi-faceted proteins that are capable of an array of important functions. They have a major part to play in immune protection against invading pathogens, play critical roles in a large variety of clinically important inflammatory and auto-immune diseases, play a central role in the induction of protection during vaccination and the knowledge from this is increasingly used in the clinic to generate highly effective therapeutic reagents. Antibodies in fact represent the largest class of biologic agents that are currently either in development or approved by the Food and Drug administration for the treatment of an enormous range of diseases.

The 2016 Gordon Research Conference on Antibody Biology and Engineering, which is the fourth in this series, will present in-depth coverage of recent advances in this exciting field, in an informal setting designed for maximal interaction. The conference will bring together academic researchers with their colleagues in the biopharma industry: it will provide an ideal opportunity for leading researchers from around the world to present and discuss cutting-edge data including unpublished findings.

The conference will mingle basic scientific aspects of antibodies like Antibody Structure and Dynamics, Generation of Antibody Diversity, Antibody Effector Mechanisms, Pathogenic and Protective Antibodies with applications of this knowledge to clinical development, focusing on the antibody as a therapeutic agent, including topics such as Bispecifics, Antibody-Drug Conjugates and other Novel Therapeutic Concepts to Modify Disease.

For the second time the conference will incorporate a Gordon Research Seminar as a specific means to foster involvement by scientists at the graduate student and post doctoral level. Planned by and for trainees, it will provide an opportunity for our junior researchers to present seminars and posters in a supportive, interactive environment.