Invited speakers

Nolwenn M Dheilly, PhD, HDR (Orcid: 0000-0002-3675-5013) is head of the Pathogen Discovery Laboratory at Institut Pasteur Paris with a long interest in co-infections. Dr Dheilly obtained her PhD at Macquarie University (Sydney, Australia), and completed postdoctoral training at Ifremer (Plouzané, France) and Université de Perpignan (France). She has held scientific and academic appointments at Stony Brook University (New-York, USA) and at the French agency for food, environmental and occupational health and safety (Ploufragan and Maisons-Alfort, France) before joining Institut Pasteur as Head of the Pathogen Discovery Laboratory (Paris, France). Her lab leverages the power of next generation sequencing technologies to identify and characterize novel potential zoonotic diseases agents and conduct informed studies to characterize their zoonotic potential and role in diseases. This ultimately leads to a better understanding of the epidemiological, clinical, and pathophysiological features of diseases, and in the development of novel diagnostic and preventive measures.

Dr. Carolyn Elya received her Ph.D. in 2017 from UC Berkeley  working with Dr. Michael Eisen where she accidentally discovered zombies in her backyard. She developed the zombie fruit fly (Drosophila melanogaster-Entomophthora muscae) lab system based on this encounter, and brought it with her to Dr. Benjamin de Bivort’s group at Harvard University with whom she worked from 2018-2023 as a postdoc investigating the neuromechanistic basis of zombie behaviors. Dr. Elya started her own group in January 2024 in the Molecular and Cellular Biology Department at Harvard University. As the head of her own lab, Dr. Elya is thrilled to dive even deeper into the zombie fruit fly system to understand host-pathogen interactions and mechanisms of behavior manipulation.

Dmitry Fedosov received his PhD degree in applied mathematics in 2010 from Brown University, USA. The PhD thesis on multiscale modeling of blood flow and soft matter was recognized with the 2011 Nicholas Metropolis Award for outstanding doctoral thesis work in computational physics from the American Physical Society. After completing his PhD, Dmitry moved to Forschungszentrum Juelich, Germany for a postdoctoral position in the theoretical soft matter and biophysics group.  In 2012, Dmitry was awarded the Sofja Kovalevskaja Award from the Humboldt foundation to build up an independent research group at the Institute of Complex Systems, Forschungszentrum Juelich, Germany. In 2016, he obtained a Habilitation in Theoretical Physics from the Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences, University of Cologne, Germany. Dmitry continues to work as a group leader at the Institute for Advanced Simulation, Forschungszentrum Juelich with a research focus on non-equilibrium physics, including various complex systems in biophysics, and soft and active matter.

Tiziana Gobbin is a parasite ecologist at Hasselt University and Programme Officer of the SSC Parasite Specialist Group within the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), investigating the impact of human activities on wildlife parasites.

Using natural history collections, she retrieves long-term data on parasite communities infecting freshwater fishes. She aims to understand how these are changing and for what reasons, and to assess the extinction risks of parasite species. She aspires to raise awareness on the ecological importance of parasites and to switch general perception of parasites, advocating for the conservation of wildlife parasites. 

Gerhard Gompper is an expert in structure and dynamics of soft matter, flow behavior of complex fluids, and self-organization of active and living matter. After obtaining his Ph.D. at Ludwig-Maximilian University, Munich, he went on to perform research at the University of Washington, Seattle, Ludwig-Maximilian University, Munich, and the Max Planck Institute for Colloids and Interfaces in Berlin. He is a full professor at University of Cologne and the director of the “Theoretical Physics of Living Matter” division at the Institute for Advanced Simulation, Forschungszentrum Jülich.

After her studies at the Universities of Heidelberg, Germany, and Uppsala, Sweden, Eva Kowalinski, investigated the interplay of the innate immune receptor RIG-I with viral RNA during her PhD at the EMBL, Grenoble, France. In her postdoctoral training at the Max Planck Institute of Biochemistry in Munich, Germany, she focused on RNA quality control by the RNA degrading exosome. Since 2017 with her independent research group at EMBL Grenoble, she elucidates mechanisms of RNA processing and modification complexes with a special focus on trypanosomatid RNA biogenesis,  combining electron microscopy, x-ray crystallography, biochemistry and cell biology methods.

As a high school student, I was inspired by readings from Konrad Lorenz, who pioneered a mechanistic approach to understanding animal behavior. This early fascination guided my academic journey, leading me to focus on the neuronal analysis of locomotion in invertebrates during my PhD. These organisms exhibit relatively stereotyped behaviors governed by specific neuronal circuitries.

For my postdoctoral training, I had the privilege of learning under Ron Hoy at Cornell University and Jeffrey Camhi at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, both esteemed leaders in Neuroethology. Their mentorship profoundly influenced my scientific development and career trajectory.

In 1991, I established my laboratory at Ben Gurion University in Israel, where my research took a new direction following an encounter with Werner Rathmayer and his work on parasitoid wasps. This pivotal meeting sparked my interest in how the wasp's venom manipulates host behavior through neuronal mechanisms. It opened a window for exploring the neuronal underpinnings of animal behavior.

Currently, I hold the position of Professor in the Department of Life Sciences at Ben Gurion University. Here, I am actively involved in research and in teaching courses in Physiology and Neuroscience, aiming to inspire the next generation of scientists in these fields.

Professional Experience:

1991–present Research Scientist, Institute of Parasitology, České Budějovic
1992–2012      Member of the Scientific Board of the Institute of Parasitolog
1993                 Postdoctoral Fellow, E.C.Slater Institute, University of Amsterdam, The Netherland
1995–2022      Head of the Laboratory of Molecular Parasitology, Institute of Parasitolog
1994–1997      Assistant, Faculty of Biology, University of South Bohemia, České Budějovic
1997–1998      Postdoctoral Fellow, Department of Biology, University of California, Riversid
1998–1999      Visiting Scientist, Molecular Biology Institute, University of California, Los Angeles
2003–2012      Chair of the Department of Molecular Biology, University of South Bohemi
2006–present Professor, Faculty of Sciences, University of South Bohemi
2007–2012      Member of the Scientific Board of the Faculty of Sciences
2008–2013      Member of the Scientific Board of the Faculty of Agricultur
2008–2012      Head of the Scientific Board of the Institute of Parasitology 
2012–2022      Director of the Institute of Parasitology
2012–2018      Committee member of the International Society of Protistologists
2021–present  Vice–head of the principal Scientific Board of the Czech Academy of Sciences

Honors and Awards: 

1993                EMBO Fellowship
1995                Fulbright Travel Grant
1997                Young Scientist Award of the President of the Czech Academy of Sciences
2000–2005     European Councillor of the International Society for Evolutionary Protistolog
2006–2008     President of the International Society for Evolutionary Protistolog
2002                Prize of the Czech Academy of Sciences for outstanding young researcher
2003–2009     President of the Czech Society of Protozoolo
2004–present Member of the Learned Society of the Czech Republic
2007                 Prize of the Czech Academy of Science
2007–2009      Vice–president of the International Society of Protistologist
2009–2011      Associate of the Canadian Institute for Advanced Researc
2011                 Prize of the Minister of Education for Excellence in Researc
2012–2017      Senior Fellow of the Canadian Institute for Advanced Research
2013–present  Member of the Faculty of 1000
2013                 Medal from the mayor for merits in research and education
2014–present  Fellow of the American Academy for Microbiology
2015–present  Fellow of the European Academy of Microbiology
2016–present  Member of the Comenius Academic Club
2018–present  Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS)
2020                  Prize of the President of the Czech Academy of Sciences for research excellence
2020–present  Member of the scientific board of the Neuron Endowment Fund
2023-present   Member of the American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biolog
2023-present   EMBO membe
2023                  J. G. Mendel medal for Achievements in Natural Science
2023                  Prize of the Minister of Education for Excellence in Researc
2024-present   Member of the U.S. National Academy of Science
2025-2026        President elect of the International Society of Protistologists

Prof. Ortega-Mora studied Veterinary Medicine at the Complutense University of Madrid (UCM) (1986) and obtained his PhD in Veterinary Sciences in 1991. His pre and postdoctoral experience includes stays at the Faculty of Medicine at the State University of New York (USA) and Moredun Research Institute in Edinburgh (UK). At present, he is professor at the Animal Health department, faculty of Veterinary Sciences (UCM), director of the SALUVET research group and CEO of the spin-off SALUVET-Innova. Prof Ortega’s main scientific interests concern the pathogenesis, diagnosis, and drug and vaccine development of protozoan diseases affecting domestic ruminants.

I am a Professor of Parasitology with an interest in cutaneous leishmaniasis, both from biological and anthropological perspectives. I am based in the School of Life Sciences at Keele University in the UK. I studied Applied Zoology at the University of Leeds and completed a PhD at Bangor University on schistosomiasis. Following a postdoctoral position at the Institute of Cancer Research, I returned to the field of parasitology to join the research group of Professor Debbie Smith at Imperial College London and later at the University of York where I studied the cell biology of Leishmania spp. and Trypanosoma brucei. I was appointed at Keele University in my first academic post as Lecturer in Bioscience in 2013. My lab-based research focuses on kinetoplastid parasite biology and the development of new therapeutics. Since 2019, I have been co-lead of ECLIPSE, a five- year applied healthcare programme funded by NIHR which aims to reduce stigma and improve healthcare access for people with cutaneous leishmaniasis (CL) in Brazil, Ethiopia and Sri Lanka. I was promoted to Professor at Keele University in January 2022. I am the Vice President of the British Society for Parasitology and Chair of a WHO Working Group on Skin NTDs (psychosocial aspects) to support the delivery of the WHO Roadmap for NTDs (2021-2030).

Wolfgang Rössler studied Biology at the University of Marburg, Germany and received a doctoral degree in Zoology/Neurobiology in 1990. Following a research period as a postdoc and after achieving his habilitation at the University of Marburg, he was awarded a DFG research fellowship in 1995 to join the Arizona Research Laboratories Division of Neurobiology at the University of Arizona, USA and extended his research stay as NIH funded Research Associate until 1999. He returned to Germany as Assistant Professor at the Physiological Institute (Molecular Neurophysiology), Faculty of Medicine, University of Göttingen. In 2001, he was offered a Professorship at the Biocenter, University of Würzburg and promoted to the Chair of Zoology II (Behavioral Physiology and Sociobiology) in 2011. He established a research program on the Neuroethology of Social Insects with a particular focus on the mechanisms of olfactory communication, behavioral plasticity, and the neuronal basis of navigation. Further details: https://www.biozentrum.uni-wuerzburg.de/en/zoo2/people/wolfgang-roessler-personal-page/

https://www.linkedin.com/in/paulmselzer/
With over three decades of experience in scientific leadership and management Prof. Selzer is a seasoned and internationally respected research scientist/executive who has seamlessly bridged the gap between the pharmaceutical industry and academia. He studied Biology and Biochemistry completed with a PhD at the University of Tübingen, Germany and did a post-doc at the University of California San Francisco, USA. Moreover, he holds a Habilitation (venia legendi) in biochemistry from the University of Tübingen, Germany, honorary teaching positions at the Queen’s University Belfast, Northern Ireland, University of Modena and Reggio Emilia, Italy, and the University of Glasgow, Scotland. Prof. Selzer’s professional journey includes tenures at international pharmaceutical companies such as Boehringer Mannheim/Roche AG, SmithKline Beecham/GlaxoSmithKline, Hoechst Roussel Vet, Intervet and MSD Animal Health. In 2018 Prof. Selzer was recognized with the award of the Rudolf Leuckart Medal by the German Society for Parasitology, so far, the first and only scientist from a pharmaceutical company to receive this award.

Chelsea Wood is an Associate Professor in the School of Aquatic and Fishery Sciences at the University of Washington, as well as her department's Associate Director and Graduate Program Coordinator. Her research addresses the question: is the world wormier than it used to be? That is, she is interested in the historical ecology of parasitism. She uses multiple techniques to resurrect information on parasite populations of the past, supplying historical context that can reveal whether and why the abundance of parasites is changing through time.