Program

SUNDAY 14 SEPTEMBER 2025
17.00-18.00	Registration
OPENING EU2CURE HIV SYMPOSIUM Chaired by: Linos Vandekerckhove and Sarah Gerlo
18.00-18.30	Opening ceremony Sarah Gerlo and Linos Vandekerckhove, Ghent University, Ghent, Belgium
18.30-19.00	Plenary I: Future directions for HIV cure research Steven Deeks, University of California, San Francisco, CA, USA
19.00-19.40	Plenary II: Virological and immunological insights from the 2000HIV cohort Linos Vandekerckhove, Ghent University, Ghent, Belgium and André Van der Ven, Radboudumc, Nijmegen, the Netherlands
19.40-21.00	Opening reception

MONDAY 15 SEPTEMBER 2025
SESSION 1 - NUCLEAR IMPORT, HIV INTEGRATION AND TRANSCRIPTION Chaired by: tbd
08.30-09.00	Plenary III: The importance of HIV integration for HIV pathogenesis Frederic Bushman, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
09.00-09.25	Passage of the HIV capsid cracks the nuclear pore Hans-Georg Kräusslich, Heidelberg University, Heidelberg, Germany
09.25-09.50	Nuclear retention of unspliced HIV-1 RNA as a reversible post-transcriptional block in latency Anna Kula-Păcurar, Jagiellonian University, Krakow, Poland
09.50-10.10	2x 10’ Poster presentations tbd
10.10-10.40	Break
SESSION 2 - TISSUE AND CELLULAR LOCALIZATION OF THE VIRAL RESERVOIR Chaired by: tbc
10.45-11.10	BACH2-driven tissue resident memory programs promote HIV-1 persistence Ya-Chi Ho, Yale School of Medicine, New Haven, CT, USA
11.10-11.35	Characterization of active HIV reservoirs in tissues Nicolas Chomont, Université de Montréal, Montreal, Canada
11.35-12.00	A granular view on HIV DNA+ cells in lymph nodes Michael Betts, University of Pennsylvania, Pennsylvania, PA, USA
12.00-12.20	2x 10’ Poster presentations tbd
12.20-12.40	Round table tbd
12.40-13.55	Lunch and Postersession
SESSION 3 - VIRAL AND CELLULAR DRIVERS OF RESERVOIR SIZE AND REBOUND Chaired by: tbd
14.00-14.25	Identification of the origin of viral rebound using bar coded SIV Brandon Keele, Frederick National Laboratory for Cancer Research, Frederick, MD, USA
14.25-14.50	PET CT guided tracking of viral reservoirs and viral rebound Francois Villinger, University of Louisiana at Lafayette, Lafayette, LA, USA
14.50-15.15	Taking a deep dive in the link of integration sites to viral rebound Linos Vandekerckhove, Ghent University, Ghent, Belgium
15.15-15.35	2x 10’ Poster presentations tbd
15.35-16.05	Break
SESSION 4 - SATELLITE + IMPLEMENTATION OF CURE RESEARCH IN AFRICA Chaired by: Zeger Debyser
16.10-16.55	Satellite session 1
16.55-17.20	Emerging data on the HIV reservoir in lymph node in plwh in South-Africa Zaza Ndhlovu, Africa Health Research Institute, Durban, South-Africa
17.20-17.45	Evaluation of 2 bNAbs plus vesatolimod in early-treated South African women with HIV-1 during ATI Thumbi Ndung’u, Universiteit van KwaZoeloe-Natal, Durban, South-Africa
17.45-18.10	Is block and lock the future? Zeger Debyser, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium

TUESDAY 16 SEPTEMBER 2025
SESSION 5 - INTEGRATED ORGAN IMMUNITY Chaired by: tbd
08.30-09.00	Plenary IV: Using systems immunology to unravel viral pathogenesis tbd
09.00-09.25	A chromatin-regulated biphasic circuit coordinates inflammation Musa Mhlanga, Radboud University, Nijmegen, the Netherlands
09.25-09.50	Augmenting innate immune responses to restrict the reservoir Rafick-Pierre Sékaly, Emory University, Atlanta, GA, USA
09.50-10.10	2x 10’ Poster presentations tbd
10.10-10.40	Break
SESSION 6 - IMMUNE RESPONSE LINKED TO VIRAL CONTROL Chaired by: tbd
10.45-11.10	Enhanced detection of antigen-specific T cells as correlates of control Daniel Kaufmann, University of Lausanne, Lausanne, Switzerland
11.10-11.35	Using systems serology to evaluate HIV responses and signatures of control Galit Alter, Harvard University and Ragon Institute, Cambridge, MA, USA
11.35-12.00	Persistent changes in immune status in early-treated PLWH Sarah Gerlo, Ghent University, Ghent, Belgium
12.00-12.20	2x 10’ Poster presentations tbd
12.20-13.35	Lunch
SESSION 7 - EPIGNETIC CONTROL OF ADAPTIVE IMMUNITY AND EXHAUSTION Chaired by: tbd
13.40-14.10	Plenary V: Epigenetic control of adaptive immunity and exhaustion Benjamin Youngblood, St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, Memphis, TN, USA
14.10-14.35	Multi-Omic Atlas reveals cytotoxic phenotype and ROS-linked metabolic quiescence as key features of CTL-resistant HIV-infected CD4 + T-cells Brad Jones, Weill Cornell Medicine, New York, NY, USA
14.35-15.00	TBD Ashish Sharma, Emory University, Atlanta, GA, USA
15.00-15.25	Molecular mechanisms involved in the CD8+ T cell-mediated non-cytolytic silencing of HIV-1 transcription Carine Van Lint, University of Brussels, Brussels, Belgium
15.25-15.45	2x 10’ Poster presentations tbd
15.45-16.15	Break
SESSION 8 – Satellite + Improving antibody approaches for an HIV Cure? Chaired by: tbd
16.20-16.50	Satellite II
16.50-17.15	Probabilities of developing HIV-1 bNAb sequence features in uninfected and chronically infected individuals Florian Klein, University of Cologne, Cologne, Germany
17.15-17.40	ART-DEX: A novel strategy to monitor broadly neutralizing antibody activity during antiretroviral therapy of HIV-1 Alexandra Trkola, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
17.40-18.00	Round table discussion on host immunity and reservoir control
19.00 - 22.00	Speakers dinner

WEDNESDAY 17 SEPTEMBER 2025
SESSION 9 - CURE TRIALS IN HUMANS Chaired by: tbd
08.30-08.55	Recent results of the RIO study Sarah Fidler, Imperial College London, London, UK
08.55-09.20	HIV GAG x CD3 soluble TCR bispecific reduces the active HIV reservoir in a Phase 1/2 trial Lucy Dorrell, Immunocore and University of Oxford, Oxford, UK or Bea Mothe
09.20-09.55	Involving CAB in clinical trial design Charlotte Vanden Bulcke, Ghent University Hospital, Ghent, Belgium and Karine Dube, University of California, San Diego (UCSD), San Diego, CA, USA
09.55-10.15	2x 10’ Poster presentations tbd
10.15-10.35	Break
SESSION 10 - CLINICAL FACTORS CRITICAL FOR ATI Chaired by: tbd
10.40-11.05	Safety aspects in eClear and Titan Ole Søgaard, Aarhus University Hospital and Aarhus University, Aarhus, Denmark
11.05-11.30	Minimal clinical aspects important for ATI studies Marie-Angélique De Scheerder, Ghent University Hospital, Ghent, Belgium
11.30-11.55	Patient related factors to consider during ATI's tbd
11.55-12.15	Roundtable on trial design and acceptability tbd
12.15-12.25	Prize for best poster presentations & closing remarks Linos Vandekerckhove, Ghent University, Ghent, Belgium