Biosecurity and Infectious Diseases: Pandemic Threats, Frontline Research, and the Path Forward (F2)
September 20-24, 2027
| Location to be Determined
Melanie M Ott, Olivier Schwartz and Leo Poon
Monday, September 20, 2027
| 4:00–8:00 PM |
Registration |
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| 6:00–8:00 PM |
Welcome Mixer |
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Tuesday, September 21, 2027
| 8:00–8:10 AM |
Welcome Remarks (Joint) |
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| 8:10–8:40 AM |
Keynote Session (Joint) |
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Raul Andino †, University of California, San Francisco
Virus Evolution and Live-Attenuated Viral Vaccines |
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Wendy Barclay †, Imperial College London
The Arsenal of Modern Virology: From Viral and Human Genetics to Human Challenge Studies |
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| 8:40–11:15 AM |
Spillover Risk, Surveillance and Potential from Animals to Humans (Joint) |
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Le Van Tan †, Oxford University Clinical Research Unit
Viral Surveillance: What Probing Nature Teaches Us About Pandemic Preparedness |
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Michael S. Diamond †, Washington University School of Medicine
Zoonotic Reservoirs, Spillover Mechanisms, and Surveillance of Emerging Positive-Strand RNA Viruses |
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Cleo Bertelsmeier †, University of Lausanne
Wildlife Trade Drives Animal-to-Human Pathogen Transmission |
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Short Talk(s) Chosen from Abstracts
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| 9:30–9:50 AM |
Coffee Break |
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| 11:15–1:00 PM |
Poster Setup |
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| 11:25–12:25 PM |
Panel Discussion 1: Global Risk-Value Framework of Spillover and General Infectious Disease Research |
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* Leo Poon, University of Hong Kong
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Cleo Bertelsmeier †, University of Lausanne
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| 12:25–5:00 PM |
On Own for Lunch |
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| 1:00–10:00 PM |
Poster Viewing |
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| 2:30–4:30 PM |
Symposia Spotlight 1: Emerging Pathogens: Discovery, Surveillance, and Preparedness |
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Short Talks Chosen from Abstracts
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| 4:30–5:00 PM |
Coffee Available |
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| 5:00–7:00 PM |
New Frontiers of Pathogen Research |
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Melanie M Ott, Gladstone Institutes
From Viral Evolution to Pandemic Preparedness: Safe, High-Throughput Experimental Approaches to Predict Emerging Viral Variants |
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Olivier Schwartz, Institut Pasteur
Viral Evolution and Immune Escape: Lessons for Next-Generation Therapeutics |
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Christian Drosten †, Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin
Ancient Virus Evolution: Lessons and Responsibilities Today |
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Short Talk(s) Chosen from Abstracts
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| 7:00–8:00 PM |
Social Hour with Dinner |
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Wednesday, September 22, 2027
| 8:00–11:00 AM |
AI in Infectious Disease Research (Joint) |
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Ethan Jackson †, Microsoft
Project Premonition: Reimagining Pathogen Surveillance with AI, Robotics, and Genomics |
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Aude Bernheim †, Institut Pasteur
Evolution of Immunity Across Domains of Life |
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Kathryn Tunyasuvunakool †, DeepMind
From AlphaFold to AI for Scientific Discovery |
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Short Talk(s) Chosen from Abstracts
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| 9:00–9:20 AM |
Coffee Break |
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| 11:00–1:00 PM |
Poster Setup |
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| 11:00–5:00 PM |
On Own for Lunch |
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| 1:00–10:00 PM |
Poster Viewing |
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| 3:00–4:30 PM |
Career Roundtable (Joint) |
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| 4:30–5:00 PM |
Coffee Available |
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| 5:00–7:00 PM |
Transparency and Responsible Communication in Infectious Disease Research |
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Leo Poon, University of Hong Kong
Open Data in a Pandemic: Building Trust Through Global Pathogen Surveillance |
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Lalitha Sundaram †, University of Cambridge
Biosecurity and Pandemic Preparedness in a New Age of Infectious Disease Research |
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Kevin M. Esvelt †, MIT Media Lab
Safeguarding Exponential Biology |
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Lisa F.P. Ng †, Infectious Diseases Labs, ASTAR
From Discovery to Dialogue: Communicating Infectious Disease Research for Public Trust |
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Short Talk(s) Chosen from Abstracts
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| 7:00–8:00 PM |
Social Hour with Dinner |
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Thursday, September 23, 2027
| 8:00–11:00 AM |
From Discovery to Countermeasures |
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Jesse D. Bloom †, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center
The Evolutionary Origins of Emerging Viruses: Predicting the Next Spillover |
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Christian T. Happi †, Redeemer's University
Genomics Against Epidemics: Building African Leadership in Infectious Disease Research |
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Minkyung Baek †, Seoul National University
Landscape-Scale Navigation Unlocks Antibody CDR Structural Logic for AI-Guided Rescue and Therapeutic Optimization |
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Short Talk(s) Chosen from Abstracts
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| 9:00–9:20 AM |
Coffee Break |
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| 11:00–5:00 PM |
On Own for Lunch |
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| 11:10–12:10 PM |
Panel Discussion 2: Defining Standards, Boundaries, and Opportunities |
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* Melanie M Ott, Gladstone Institutes
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Michael S. Diamond †, Washington University School of Medicine
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Lalitha Sundaram †, University of Cambridge
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Lisa McDonald †, Global Health Security Fund,
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Herbert 'Skip' W Virgin †, Gates Foundation
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| 2:30–4:30 PM |
Symposia Spotlight 2: Translating Discovery into Preparedness and Public Health |
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Short Talks Chosen from Abstracts
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| 4:30–5:00 PM |
Coffee Available |
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| 5:00–6:45 PM |
Sharing Global Risks and Resources |
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James W. Black †, OpenAI
Biological Foundation Models: Emerging Capabilities and Biosecurity Risks |
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Lisa McDonald †, Global Health Security Fund,
Public-Private Models for Globally Aligned Health Security |
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Herbert 'Skip' W Virgin †, Gates Foundation
Enabling Innovation While Managing Risk: A Global Health Perspective on Infectious Disease Research |
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Short Talk(s) Chosen from Abstracts
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| 6:45–7:00 PM |
Meeting Wrap-Up: Outcomes and Future Directions |
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| 7:00–8:00 PM |
Social Hour with Dinner |
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| 8:00–11:00 PM |
Entertainment |
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Friday, September 24, 2027
