Isle of Riems, 19 June 2024: The microbiome, i.e. all microorganisms that naturally colonise a living organism, contributes significantly to the health of humans and animals. In recent years, research has focused on whether the composition of the human microbiome is heritable, with conflicting results. In pigs, however, a study has shown for the first time that a specific gene variant in the well-known AB0 blood group system does indeed affect the gut microbiome. Professor Michel Georges will present the study and its results, which have also been published in the prestigious journal Nature, at the 12th Loeffler Lecture at the Alfried Krupp Wissenschaftskolleg in Greifswald on 27 June. With this Loeffler Lecture, the series of events, which previously focused on research topics in infectious medicine, is expanding its spectrum to include the interaction between microbes and hosts. "We are all learning more and more about the influence that primarily non-pathogenic microorganisms have on the health of humans and animals. Modern methods of functional genome analysis also allow us to focus on the role of host genetic diversity," says FLI President Prof Dr Christa Kühn.
Michel Georges is Professor of Genetics and Genomics at the Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Liège, Belgium. He has dedicated his career to the development and application of genomic tools for the genetic analysis of complex traits of medical and agricultural importance in humans and domestic animals. Among other things, his laboratory has developed insights into the genetic predisposition to mobilise endogenous retroviruses and identified several mutations affecting the musculature of domestic animals, including the gene for muscle hypertrophy in dogs.
Michel Georges was awarded the Wolf Prize for Agriculture in 2007, the Belgian Francqui Prize in 2008 and an ERC Advanced Grant in 2013. He is a member of the Royal Belgian Academy of Medicine (1997), the National Academy of Sciences of the USA (2013) and the National Academy of Agriculture of France (2016).
The "Loeffler Lecture" was established in 2012 by the Friedrich Loeffler Institute and the Alfried Krupp Wissenschaftskolleg in Greifswald to honour achievements in current research topics in infectious medicine.The aim is to honour Friedrich Loeffler's pioneering achievements in infectiology.With the 12th Loeffler Lecture, the series opens up to other animal health topics and will in future honour scientists who have made a special contribution to their field of research.The event is usually held close to Friedrich Loeffler's birthday in June.
Friedrich Loeffler, one of the founders of virus research, was born in Frankfurt/Oder on 24 June 1852.After studying medicine in Würzburg and Berlin, he worked with Robert Koch.In 1888, Loeffler was appointed to the newly established chair of hygiene in Greifswald.In 1898, together with Paul Frosch, he was the first to describe a virus as a filterable and corpuscular infectious agent in the form of foot-and-mouth disease. On 10 October 1910, he founded the world's first virus research institute on the island of Riems, today's Friedrich Loeffler Institute, named after him.
12th Loeffler Lecture
Date, time: Thursday, 27 June 2024 from 18:00 - 19:30
Venue: Alfried Krupp Wissenschaftskolleg Greifswald, Martin-Luther-Strasse 14, 17489 Greifswald
Professor Michel Georges, Ph.D. (University of Liège, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine)
Title: Coevolution of balanced polymorphisms in the porcine host and its gut microbiome
Welcome: Professor Dr Thomas Klinger, Alfried Krupp Wissenschaftskolleg
Introduction and moderation: Professor Dr Christa Kühn, Friedrich Loeffler Institute
Admission free
Further information and access to the lecture hall: https://www.wiko-greifswald.de/en/
