nPOD Meeting Program

Meeting Program

A special program open to all young investigators

Prior registration requested but not required

Carmella Evans-Molina MD, PhD

Co-Chairs: Sarah Richardson, PhD and Todd Brusko, PhD

Aqualea Grand Ballroom


Key Question 1 Introduction (1:45 PM – 1:55 PM)

Presenters: Sarah Richardson, PhD and Todd Brusko, PhD


Development of Adaptive Immunity During Childhood (1:55 PM – 2:20 PM)

Presenter: Joshua Gray, PhD


Age-Dependent Effects of Childhood Exposures on Islet Autoimmunity Risk (2:20 PM – 2:45 PM)

Presenter: Kendra Vehik, PhD


Islet Cellularity in Health and Disease (2:45 PM – 3:10 PM)

Presenter: Ulf Ahlgren, PhD

Co-Chairs: Sarah Richardson, PhD and Todd Brusko, PhD

Aqualea Grand Ballroom

Co-Chairs: Teresa Rodriguez-Calvo, PhD and Emily Sims, MD

Aqualea Grand Ballroom


Key Question 2 Introduction (4:15 PM – 4:25 PM)

Presenter: Teresa Rodriguez-Calvo, PhD and Emily Sims, MD


Courses and Consequences of Impaired Islet Prohormone Processing in T1D (4:25 PM – 4:50 PM)

Presenter: YC Chen, PhD


T Cell Recognition of Post-Translationally Modified and Misprocessed Prohormone Peptides  (4:50 PM – 5:15 PM)

Presenter: Eddie James, PhD


Plasticity in Proglucagon Processing in Alpha-Cells (5:15 PM – 5:40 PM)

Presenter: Jonathan Campbell, PhD

Co-Chairs: Teresa Rodriguez-Calvo, PhD and Emily Sims, MD

Aqualea Grand Ballroom

Molecular Biology of Type 1 Diabetes Etiology

Presenter: Åke Lernmark, MD, PhD

Sky Terrace

Light hors d’oeuvres provided

Belleair Room

Led by: Amelia Linneman, PhD and Jessica Dunne, PhD

Madeira Room

Co-Chairs: Teresa Mastracci, PhD and Rebecca Hull, PhD

Aqualea Grand Ballroom


Key Question 3 Introduction (8:30 AM – 8:45 AM)

Presenter: Teresa Mastracci, PhD and Rebecca Hull, PhD


Pancreatitis and Diabetes: Overlap with Type 1 DM (8:45 AM – 9:10 AM)

Presenter: Melena Bellin, MD


Engineered Biomaterials to Explore the Islet-ECM Axis (9:10 AM – 9:35 AM)

Presenter: Nikki Farnsworth, PhD


Exocrine Studies in the Human Pancreas Slice (9:35 AM – 10:00 AM)

Presenter: Herbert Gaisano, PhD

Co-Chairs: Teresa Mastracci, PhD and Rebecca Hull, PhD

Aqualea Grand Ballroom

Co-Chairs: Maryaline Coffre, PhD and Dirk Homann, PhD


Efferocytosis Pathways in Islet Myeloid Cells Suppress Autoimmunity During Type 1 Diabetes (11:00 AM – 11:10 AM)

Presenter: Kristen Wells, PhD


Public B Cell Clones are Found in the Peripheral Blood and Pancreatic Lymph Nodes of T1D Donors (11:10 AM – 11:20 AM)

Presenter: Jessica Prendergast, PhD


TBA (11:20 AM – 11:30 AM)

Presenter: TBA

Competition Theme: “A Breakthrough for T1D Research”

Co-Chairs: Esther Latres, PhD and Mark Atkinson, PhD

Sharks: Ake Lernmark, MD, PhD, Lori Sussel, PhD, Timothy Tree, PhD, and Melena Bellin, PhD

Presenters: TBD

Aqualea Grand Ballroom

Belleair Room

Co-Chairs: Juan Dominguez-Bendala, PhD and Alberto Pugliese, MD

Aqualea Grand Ballroom


Key Question 4 Introduction (1:45 PM – 1:55 PM)

Presenter: Juan Dominguez-Bendala, PhD and Alberto Pugliese, MD


Molecular Architecture of Pancreatic Islet Cells Across Sex (1:55 PM – 2:20 PM)

Presenter: Fahd Qadir, PhD


Modeling Type 1 Diabetes in a Vascularized 3D Model of the Human Pancreatic Islet (2:20 PM – 2:45 PM)

Presenter: Chris Hughes, PhD


Mice with Human Immune System to Study the Thymic Development of Human Beta ACell Antigen-Reactive T Cells and Immune Infiltration of Stem Cell-Derived Beta Cells (2:45 PM – 3:10 PM)

Presenter: Remi Creusot, PhD


Modeling Lymph Node Function and Multi-Organ Immune Responses in Tissue Slices and Organs-On-Chip (3:10 PM – 3:35 PM)

Presenter: Rebecca Pompano, PhD

Co-Chairs: Juan Dominguez-Bendala, PhD and Alberto Pugliese, MD

Aqualea Grand Ballroom

Co-Chairs: Josh Vieth, PhD and Jamie Felton, MD

Aqualea Grand Ballroom


High-Throughput TCR Screening System for Linking Antigen Specificity and Phenotype of T Cells involved in the Pathogenesis of Type 1 Diabetes (4:30 PM – 4:40 PM)

Presenter: Maki Nakayama, MD


Spatial Interrogation of the Diabetic Hallmarks and Tissue Composition of Human Pancreas in 2D and 3D Using Deep Learning Models (4:40 PM – 4:50 PM)

Presenter: Yu Shen, PhD


Integrated Histopathology of the Human Pancreas Throughout Stages of Type 1 Diabetes Progression (4:50 PM – 5:00 PM)

Presenter: Verena van der Heide, PhD


STEM Cell-Derived Pancreatic β-Cells Overexpressing CD155 Demonstrate Enhanced Protection from Killing by Antigen-Specific T Cells (5:00 PM – 5:10 PM)

Presenter: Matthew Brown, BS


Mapping the Human Pancreas by Imaging Mass Cytometry Reveals Early Dysregulation in the Endocrine and Immune Compartment in Type 1 Diabetes Progression (5:10 PM – 5:20 PM)

Presenter: Nathan Steenbuck, PhD


TBA (5:20 PM – 5:30 PM)

Presenter: TBA

Includes annual meeting photo at sunset (Est. 6:30 PM)

Organized by: Alberto Pugliese, MD

Sky Terrace

Belleair Room

Co-Chairs: Roberto Mallone, MD, PhD, and Qizhi Tang, PhD

Aqualea Grand Ballroom


Key Question 5 Introduction (8:30 AM – 8:40 AM)

Presenter: Roberto Mallone, MD, PhD, and Qizhi Tang, PhD


Islet-Derived CD8+ T Cells from Donors with Type 1 Diabetes: Function and Reactivity (8:40 AM – 9:05 AM)

Presenter: Sally Kent, PhD


Targeted Modulation of Beta Cell Biology by Bifunctional RNA Therapeutics (9:05 AM – 9:30 AM)

Presenter: Paolo Serafini, PhD


Identification of T Cell Epitopes in T1D Using Synthetic Immunology (9:30 AM – 9:55 AM)

Presenter: Alok Joglekar, PhD


Beta-Cell Senescence in T1D: Friend or Foe? (9:55 AM – 10:20 AM)

Presenter: Feyza Engin, PhD

Co-Chairs: Roberto Mallone, MD, PhD, and Qizhi Tang, PhD

Aqualea Grand Ballroom

Co-Chairs: Sylvane You, PhD and Klaus Kaestner, PhD

Aqualea Grand Ballroom

Belleair Room

Led by: Al Powers, MD

Aqualea Grand Ballroom

Co-Chairs: Maria Redondo, MD, PhD, and Richard Oram, MD, PhD

Aqualea Grand Ballroom


Key Question 6 Introduction (2:30 PM – 2:40 PM)

Presenter: Maria Redondo, MD, PhD, and Richard Oram, MD, PhD


Sex Differences in Response to Beta-Cell Inflammation in T1D (2:40 PM – 3:05 PM)

Presenter: Raghu Mirmira, MD, PhD


T1D in Africa: Different in So Many Ways (3:05 PM – 3:30 PM)

Presenter: JC Katte, MD


What Does Diversity in nPOD Look Like? (3:30 PM – 3:55 PM)

Presenter: Irina Kusmartseva, PhD and John Kaddis, PhD

Co-Chairs: Maria Redondo, MD, PhD, and Richard Oram, MD, PhD

Aqualea Grand Ballroom

Heavy hors d’oeuvres provided

Siesta Key Room

Hotel checkout is 11 AM.

If checking out today, please bring luggage to the back of the meeting room for the remainder of the meeting.

Co-Chairs: TBA


TBA (9:00 AM – 9:10 AM)

Presenter: TBA


TBA (9:10 AM – 9:20 AM)

Presenter: TBA


TBA (9:20 AM – 9:30 AM)

Presenter: TBA


TBA (9:30 AM – 9:40 AM)

Presenter: TBA

Co-Chairs: TBA

Alberto Pugliese, MD, Mark Atkinson PhD, and Carmella Evans-Molina MD PhD
nPOD Executive Directors