Pathogens and mammalian cell organization and function are however traditionally studied by poorly interacting scientific communities, the microbiologist on one side and the cell biologists on the other. Bringing these two fields together allows an acceleration of our understanding of infectious diseases at the cellular level. The great benefit that cell biologist retrieve from the interaction with cellular microbiologists is that pathogens are the ultimate cell biologists. Through long-term evolution they have reached an exquisite understanding of their host. The study of pathogenic organisms thus allows the revealing of poorly characterized or unknown cellular processes. To this interface of cell biology and cellular microbiology, must now be added systems biology and mathematical modeling.

Poster sessions are considered a critical and integral part of the meeting and short talks will be selected from the abstracts to complement the list of invited speakers.

Awards will be given for the best posters presented by a student and by a postdoctoral associate.