Countdown to Pathobiology 2026

Mark your calendars for this highly anticipated meeting in Fort Myers, FL, May 16-19, 2026

Welcome from the Program Chair

On behalf of the American Society for Investigative Pathobiology (ASIP), I am very excited to invite you to the ASIP Annual Meeting – Pathobiology 2026 – May 16-19, 2026, in Fort Myers, Florida. Similar to the past two Annual Meetings, Pathobiology 2026 will be a stand-alone meeting that will leverage our society’s unique strengths in the understanding of cellular and molecular mechanisms of disease.

For Pathobiology 2026, we have preserved a successfully tested meeting schedule with the objective of maximizing the meeting experience for all attendees and increasing the focus on trainees and early-career investigators. Most of the major symposiums will include abstract-driven short talks by young investigators to compliment the presentations delivered by invited speakers. During Pathobiology 2026 there will only be two concurrent sessions at any given time, which will increase the audience for all sessions. There will be several minisymposia on various research topics that will be composed of abstract-driven short talks, with priority given to trainees and young investigators. All other abstracts will be scheduled into poster sessions that will be held in late afternoon with no competing platform sessions to ensure that all attendees can participate in the poster discussions. Further, each poster session will be preceded by a series of poster blitz talks – short rapid-fire talks that will preview selected posters.

Given the ASIP’s focus on trainees and young investigators, the Society provides Scholar Award programs for both trainees (ASIP Trainee Scholar Awards - American Society for Investigative Pathology) and junior faculty (Junior Faculty Scholar Awards - American Society for Investigative Pathology (asip.org)), which recognize excellence in research and helps offset the financial burden of travel expenses to attend the Annual Meeting. ASIP trainee members (including undergraduate students) and young investigators (early career faculty) who submit abstracts to ASIP Topic Categories are eligible to be considered for these awards. 

The scientific program for Pathobiology 2026 has been finalized and represents a dynamic and exciting lineup of basic, clinical, and translational research presented by both well-known senior and up-and-coming junior scientists. The program has been created by members of the ASIP Program Committee in collaboration with leaders of Scientific Interest Groups (SIGs). Pathobiology 2026 will also welcome the following guest societies: American Physician Scientists Association (APSA), Società Italiana di Patologia e Medicina Traslazionale/Italian Society of Pathology and Translational Medicine (SIPMeT), American Society for Matrix Biology (ASMB), The Histochemical Society (HCS), The Society for Cardiovascular Pathology (SCVP), and the Society of Toxicologic Pathology (STP).

The annual meeting includes symposia, workshops, and award lectures communicating cutting edge scientific sessions, commingled with educational and professional development sessions appealing to trainees and junior faculty. Reflecting the ASIP membership, there will be a strong emphasis on:

• Liver Pathobiology
• Mucosal Pathobiology
• Neuropathology
• Gene Expression
• Inflammation and Immunopathology
• Infectious Diseases
• Cardiovascular Biology
• Endothelial and Epithelial Barriers
• Cancer Pathobiology
• Spatial Tools to Study Organ Pathology

Here are a few highlights:

• Pathobiology 2025 will feature five meritorious award lectures. Dr. Mark Tykocinski (Thomas Jefferson University) will deliver the Gold-Headed Cane Award Lecture, entitled Cells and Networks in Flux: Rethinking Oncogenesis and Pathogenesis. Dr. Anna Mae Diehl (Duke University School of Medicine) will deliver the Rous-Whipple Award Lecture, entitled Pros and Cons of Livering Longer. Dr. John Hanna (Harvard Medical School) will deliver the Outstanding Investigator Award Lecture, entitled Chaperone-Mediated Assembly of Proteasome. Dr. Dennis Jones (Boston University) will deliver the Cotran Early Career Investigator Award Lecture, entitled The Lymphatic System in Disease Progression. Dr. Vik Meadows will deliver the Young Scientist Leadership Award Lecture, entitled Gut Feelings: How Bile Duct Integrity Regulates the Gut-Liver Axis.

• The President’s Symposium, organized by Dr. Pilar Alcaide, focuses on the fundamental mechanisms of cardiac remodeling and their contribution to cardiac dysfunctions and heart failure. This session features speakers that will present advances in the understanding cardiomyocyte biology and signaling and cellular cross-talks during cardiac injury and failure.
   
• Two major sessions will focus on liver pathobiology. The first of these will focus on the pathogenesis of alcohol-associated liver disease (ALD). This session will showcase recent findings on ALD’s pathogenic mechanisms, focusing on molecular, cellular and immunological pathways and their interactions with genetic and environmental factors. The second symposium will focus on spatial tools to study liver pathobiology. This session will explore how cutting edge spatial ‘omics’ technologies including spatial transcriptomics and spatial proteomics, are informing our understanding of liver diseases. Both of these sessions will also include abstract-driven short talks from trainees or young investigators.
   
• Several sessions will focus on inflammation and immunopathology. The Ocular Pathobiology SIG will present a session on ocular cell regeneration and replacement that will focus on retinal and corneal regeneration and transplantation. A second session will describe recent advances in understanding homeostatic functions of secretory cells and how their dysfunctions contribute to gastrointestinal and pulmonary diseases. The third session will feature talks on the role of specialized pro-resolving mediators in the resolution of inflammation and tissue repair in various disease states. Two sessions will provide insights into various aspects of innate and adoptive immunity in inflammation, including functional cross-talks between epithelial and immune cells and approaches to study such cross-talk using primary cells and organoid systems. These sessions will feature world leading experts discussing common and unique mechanisms of fibrogenesis in different organs.
   
• The Infectious Disease SIG will present a session on pathogen strategies to invade, persist and damage the gut. This session will highlight cutting-edge research on how enteric bacterial pathogens, including Escherichia coli, Salmonella enterica, and Clostridioides difficile interact with the intestinal epithelium and immune system to drive infection and disease.
   
• Several multidisciplinary sessions will focus on cancer. The Neoplasia, Tumor Microenvironment, and Metastasis Scientific Interest Group will present a session on Emerging Technologies and Artificial Intelligence in Unraveling Cancer Heterogeneity. This session will highlight how emerging technologies, particularly artificial intelligence (AI) and spatial transcriptomics, are advancing our ability to decode the complexity and heterogeneity of different cancers. Another cancer focusing session is entitled: The Polyploidy Paradox: Whole Genome Duplication in Homeostasis, Regeneration, and Cancer. This session will explore a dual nature of polyploidy as both beneficial and deleterious. The Breast Cancer SIG will organize a session entitled: Mapping the Future of Cancer Prevention: Pre-Cancers, Atlas Insights, and Interception Strategies. This session will discuss novel approaches for cancer interception that include development of the pre-breast cancer atlas and breast cancer vaccine.

As members of the investigative pathology community, your participation in Pathobiology 2026 is a critical part of the Society's success. We invite you to join us in staying abreast of leading scientific research in deciphering the pathways of health and pathology that will lead to disease prevention, diagnosis, and treatment.

ASIP members (irrespective of category or seniority) that are interested in the many ASIP-related educational, career development, research, and leadership opportunities should feel free to contact me (ivanova2@ccf.org),  Bill Coleman (wbcoleman@asip.org), or Lisa McFadden (lmcfadden@asip.org) at the ASIP office for more information on how to become involved.

We look forward to seeing you at Pathobiology 2026 in Fort Myers!

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