Organizers & Topics

2026 Keynote Speakers:

Colleen M. Cavanaugh, Harvard University

Jonathan A. Eisen, University of California, Davis

2026 Session Chairs:

Jack GilbertUniversity of California-San Diego

Amelia LindseyUniversity of Minnesota

Laura KatzSmith College

Laura Knoll, University of Wisconsin-Madison

Julia OhDuke University

John RawlsDuke University

Maggie Sogin, University of California Merced

2026 Conference Co-Chairs:

Federico Rey, University of Wisconsin-Madison

Rosanna A. AlegadoUniversity of Hawaiʻi, Mānoa

2026 Scientific Topics:

One Health and Beneficial Microbes

Microbe-Host Interaction at the Molecular Scale I

Microbe-Host Interactions at the Molecular Scale II

Microbe-host interactions at the Ecological Scale

Microbe-Host Interactions at the Ecological Scale II

Microbe-host interactions at the Evolutionary Scale

New Approaches to Study Microbe-Host Crosstalk

2026 Planning Committee:

Kevin Kohl, University of Hawaii

Katherine Lemon, Baylor College of Medicine

Kat Milligan-McClellan, University of Connecticut

David Clarke, University of Cork

Elizabeth Johnson, Cornell University

Irene Newton, Indiana University (ISS)

Buck Samuel, Baylor College of Medicine

Elizabeth Heath-Heckman, Michigan State University (ISS)