The Sleeping Beast: Tackling Diseases in their Dormant Stages
Swiss TPH Symposium
4 June 2026
Persistent or dormant stages present an obstacle in the therapy and elimination of diseases such as malaria, Chagas disease, leishmaniasis, tuberculosis, other bacterial infections, and cancer. Join a diverse mix of specialists and students for a mutual learning event on overcoming the challenges of dormant, 'persister' stages of pathogens. The event will cover:
- signaling mechanisms and host-pathogen interaction
- treatment options (molecules that kill dormant stages or wake them up)
- disease control and elimination programs
Preliminary Programme
08:30 On-site Registration
(08:55 virtual check-in)
| Moderator: Sebastien Gagneaux, Swiss TPH | |
| 09:00 | Welcome and Setting the Stage, Pascal Mäser, Swiss TPH |
| 09:20 | Persister-Like Cells in Parasitic Protozoa: How and Why?, Michael Barrett, University of Glasgow |
| 09:50 | Persister Phenomena in Pathogenic Bacteria, Dirk Bumann, Biozentrum, University of Basel |
| 10:20 | Cancer Therapy and Persister Cells, Ana Luísa Correia, Foundation Champalimaud Lisbon (virtual) |
| 10:50 | Coffee Break (30 minutes) |
| Moderator: Pascal Mäser, Swiss TPH | |
| 11:20 | Observing Persistence in Mycobacteria by Single-Cell Testing, Lucas Boeck, University of Basel |
| 11:35 | Persistence in Leishmania and Trypanosomes, Lara Lopez Escobar, Institute of Tropical Medicine Antwerp |
| 11:50 | Exploring the Biology of Malaria Hypnozoites, Anne-Marie Zeeman, Biomedical Primate Research Centre, the Netherlands |
| 12:05 | The Sleeper Takes It All: Transient and Slowed Down Forms of Trypanosoma cruzi, Francisco Olmo, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine and University of Granada |
| 12:20 | Single-Cell, Spatio-Temporal Signaling Dynamics That Regulate Cell Morphogenesis and Cell Fate Decisions, tba |
| 12:35 | Lunch (60 minutes) |
| Moderator: Francisco Olmo, LSHTM and University of Granada | |
| 13:30 | P. falciparum Stage V Gametocytes as Persisters, Leonie Seefeldt, Swiss TPH |
| 13:35 | Studying Leishmania Persisters in Macrophages, Malenka Kunz, Swiss TPH |
| 13:40 | Investigating the Link Between Phenotypic Drug Tolerance and Drug Resistance Amplification in Mycobacterium Tuberculosis, Kakha Mchedlishvili, Swiss TPH |
| 13:45 | Mycobacterium Tuberculosis in Hostile Host Environments: Persistence Through Dormancy?, Sarah Schmidiger, Swiss TPH |
| 13:50 | Single-Cell, Spatio-Temporal Signaling Dynamics, tba |
| 13:55 | Quick Break (5 minutes) |
| Moderator: Patricia Bravo, Swiss TPH | |
| 14:15 | Mycobacteria Persisters in Disease Control, Dorothy Yeboah–Manu, Noguchi Memorial Institute for Medical Research, University of Ghana |
| 14:45 | The Health Authorities Perspective, Marcus Lacerda, World Health Organization (virtual) |
| 15:00 | The Probability of Plasmodium vivax Acute Illness Following Primary Infection and Relapse in Papua New Guinea, Amanda Ross, Swiss TPH |
| 15:15 | P. vivax Hypnozoites Therapy and Management - Is There Hope for Elimination?, Moses Laman, Papua New Guinea Institute of Medical Research |
| 15:30 | Coffee Break (30 minutes) |
| Moderator: Lisabeth Reus, Swiss TPH | |
| 16:00 | Panel Discussion |
| |
| 16:50 | Closing Words, Jürg Utzinger, Director, Swiss TPH |
| 17:00 | End of Day |
When and where
| Date | 4 June 2026 |
| Time | 09:00- 17:00 CEST |
| Venue | Swiss TPH Kreuzstrasse 2 4123 Allschwil Switzerland |
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