Promote Interdisciplinarity and Learn from Each Other
As this interdisciplinary meeting format was great success in 2019 and 2021 we aim to exchange experience in immune-mediated diseases again in March 2023.
The conference is organized by the Divisions Rheumatology, Dermatology as well as Gastroenterology and Hepatology of Lausanne University Hospital. In the upcoming edition we will also invite speakers from the Division of Pneumology to contribute to an exciting program.
The aim of the Common Ground Meeting is to advance the care of patients with diseases such as psoriasis, psoriatic arthritis, rheumatoid arthritis, Crohn’s disease, ulcerative colitis, spondylarthritis, chronic hepatitis, nephritis, interstitial lung disease etc..
Since these patients are usually cared by several disciplines, a scientific exchange is extremely important to identify common clinical challenges and upcoming treatments.
Again, we are putting together an exciting program with lectures from leading experts in Switzerland and Europe. There will be plenary sessions with chairs from each specialty and extra time for discussions and networking.
We would be delighted to welcoming you at the Aqautis Hotel in Lausanne on March 23, 2023.
Prof. Thomas Hügle
Division of Rheumatology
Prof. Michel Gilliet
Division of Dermatology
Prof. Darius Moradpour
Division of Gastroenterology & Hepatology
Program
Wednesday: 22. March 2023
Thursday: 23. March 2023
08:30 – 09:20
Registration and Welcome Coffee
09:20 – 09:30
Introduction by the organizers
Prof. Thomas Hügle, Prof. Michel Gilliet, Prof. Darius Moradpour
Session 1: What’s new in your speciality about immune-mediated diseases?
Chairs: Prof. Michel Gilliet I Prof. Darius Moradpour I Prof Thomas Hügle
09:30 – 10:00
Dermatology
Prof. Antonio Costanzo, Humanitas University, Italy
10:00 – 10:30
Gastroenterology & Hepatology
PD Dr. Montserrat Fraga, PD Dr. Julien Vionnet, Dr. Maxime Robert, Dr. Michel Maillard
10:30 – 11:00
Rheumatology
Prof. Gerd Burmester, Charité Berlin, Germany
Coffee Break
Chairs: Prof. Camillo Ribi I Prof. Fadi Fakhouri I Prof. Christopher von Garnier
11:30 – 12:00
Pneumology Disease Update: Sarcoidosis
Prof. Martin Brutsche, Kantonsspital St. Gallen, Switzerland
Lunch Break
Session 2: Disease Update and Hot Topics
Chairs: Dr. Jérôme Gouttenoire I Dr. Jeroen Geurts I Prof. Emmanuella Guenova
13:00 – 13:30
Disease update: Vasculitis
Dr. Mike Becker, Zürich University Hospital, Switzerland
13:30 – 14:00
HOT TOPIC I: Fat & Inflammation (basic research)
Prof. Mikael Rydén, Karolinska Institutet Stockholm, Sweden
14:00 – 14:30
HOT TOPIC II: Tissue memory & immune responses
Prof. Lars Iversen, Aarhus University Hospital, Denmark
Coffee Break
Session 3: Interdisciplinary case discussions
Chairs: Prof. Conrad Curdin I Dr. Diana Dan I Prof. Darius Moradpour
15:00 – 15:30
case 1: Gastroenterology
Prof. Darius Moradpour
15:30 – 16:00
case 2: Dermatology
tbd
16:00 – 16:30
case 3: Rheumatology
Dr. Fahad Alromaih, Lausanne University Hospital, Switzerland
16:30 – 16:45
Conclusion
16:45 – 17:30
Apéro
Invited Faculty
Meet our speakers & chairs

Prof. Lars Iversen
Aarhus University Hospital, Denmark
Biosketch
Professor Lars Iversen, MD, DMSc, is Professor of Dermatology at Aarhus University Hospital, Denmark. Professor Iversen’s primary research interest is psoriasis but he has also numerous publications on cutaneous T-cell lymphoma. Most of his research activities are translational and spans from studies on signal transduction and immunology to clinical studies. Professor Iversen has been a guest researcher at University of California, USA and invited speaker at international conferences in Asia, Europe and the United States. He is the author or co-author of more than 260 articles and book chapters. Professor Iversen’s writings have appeared in several scientific journals, including Nature Immunology, Nature Communication, Blood, PNAS and the Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology. He became a councillor of the International Psoriasis Council (IPC) in 2009 and IPC board-member from 2017-2022, and he has served as president of the Danish Dermatological Society from 2018-2020. He received his clinical education and obtained a doctoral degree from Aarhus University in Denmark. In 2018 he was founder of the National Center for Autoimmune Diseases at Aarhus University Hospita

Prof. Christophe von Garnier
University Hospital Lausanne, Switzerland
Biosketch
Christophe von Garnier is the head of the Division of Respiratory Medicine and full professor at the Lausanne University Hospital (CHUV). He is a pulmonologist with an interest in severe obstructive pulmonary diseases, lung cancer and interventional bronchoscopy and served as president of the Swiss Society for Pulmonology 2010-2022. As a clinician researcher, he has research interests in mucosal immunology and respiratory microbiota in asthma, COPD, SARS-CoV-2 infection, and lung cancer.
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Prof. Curdin Conrad
University Hospital Lausanne, Switzerland
Biosketch
Dr. Curdin Conrad is Professor of Dermatology and head of policlinic and the center for psoriasis at Lausanne University Hospital in Switzerland. He received his MD training at the University of Zurich, where he also participated at the Postgraduate Course of Experimental Medicine and Biology. After his training in Dermatology, he was research fellow at MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston, Texas.
Dr. Conrad has a strong interest – from basic science to translational research and the clinic – in inflammatory skin diseases, adaptive and innate immunity, and targeted immunotherapies. He has fundamentally contributed to today’s understanding of the pathogenesis of psoriasis and has received several scientific awards for his basic and translational research. Over the years, Dr Conrad has actively been involved in the teaching of evidence-based clinical and scientific dermatology and immunology.
He serves as an external scientific expert for several international societies and foundations. Dr. Conrad is an elected councilor of the International Psoriasis Council (IPC) and, as Secretary-Treasurer, member of the executive committee of the European Society for Dermatological Research (ESDR).

Dr. Jeroen Geurts
University Hospital Lausanne, Switzerland
Biosketch
Jeroen Geurts is a principal investigator for translational research and clinical study coordinator at the Rheumatology Unit of the Lausanne University Hospital. He is also associate editor for basis science at Osteoarthritis & Cartilage.His research focuses on the role of subchondral bone marrow adipose tissue in the regulation of pathological bone remodeling in human osteoarthritis. He is the chair of the ECTS Academy and executive board member of the Swiss Bone and Mineral Society and international Bone Marrow Adiposity Society.

Prof. Emmanuella Guenova
University Hospital Lausanne, Switzerland
Biosketch
Emmanuella Guenova is a professor in dermatology and dermatopathology and clinician-scientist at the University Hospital of Lausanne. Fascinated by the beauty and complexity of skin biology, she explores the innate and adaptive responses against the “non-self” (pathogens and cancer) of the skin. Born in Sofia, she completed her medical studies and a doctorate (MD) at the Eberhard Karl University in Tübingen (Germany) and subsequently a PhD in biochemistry at the Medical University of Sofia (Bulgaria). Her translational research explored the essential function of type 2 cytoines on innate immunity and their role as a promising immunomodulation tool for inflammatory skin diseases. She also seeks to understand the cellular mechanisms behind cutaneous lymphoproliferative diseases, in particular cutaneous T cell lymphomas such as mycosis fungoides and Sézary syndrome. From 2010 to 2012, as a postdoctoral researcher at Harvard Medical School (Boston, USA), Emmanuella Guenova worked on negative immune regulators in immunocompromised patients. Between 2013 and 2019, she directed the clinical program for lymphoproliferative skin diseases and co-directed of the outpatient dermatology clinic of the University Hospital Zurich (USZ). Since August 2019, Emmanuella Guenova is appointed as an associate professor at the University of Lausanne and the Department of Dermatology of the University Hospital of Lausanne.

Prof. Mikael Rydén
Karolinska Institutet Stockholm, Sweden
Biosketch
Mikael Rydén is professor in clinical and experimental adipose tissue research at the Karolinska Institute where he heads the Endocrinology unit and the Center for clinical metabolic research in diabetes. He is also senior consultant in endocrinology at the Karolinska University Hospital, Stockholm, Sweden. His research focuses on the role of human adipose tissue in several different conditions and spans from advanced cell- and molecular biology techniques in different cell culture models to clinical studies in man. He has served as the Honorary Secretary of the EASD 2018-2022 and is a member of the Nobel Assembly at the Karolinska Institute.

Prof. Gerd R. Burmester
Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Germany
Biosketch
Gerd R. Burmester, MD, is Senior Professor of Medicine and Rheumatology in the Department of Rheumatology and Clinical Immunology at the Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Freie Universität und Humboldt-Universität Berlin and consultant rheumatologist, Division of Rheumatology, MVZ endokrinologikum, partner practice of the Charité.
Professor Burmester earned his medical degree from Hannover Medical School and completed a residency at the Medical School of the University of Erlangen-Nürnberg. He was awarded a postdoctoral fellowship at Rockefeller University in New York and was a visiting scholar at the Hospital for Joint Diseases, Mount Sinai School of Medicine, New York, New York.
Professor Burmester is the recipient of numerous awards, including the Jan van Breemen Medal of the Dutch Society of Rheumatology and the Carol-Nachman Price for Rheumatology. He serves on several editorial boards, including the Journal of Rheumatology and Clinical Rheumatology, and he is the Editor-in-Chief of RMD Open, official journal of EULAR (European Alliance of Associations for Rheumatology). The author himself of more than 950 original and review articles, Professor Burmester’s research interests include rheumatoid arthritis and psoriatic arthritis, immunotherapy, Lyme borreliosis, cellular activation mechanisms in inflammatory joint diseases, and tissue engineering.
Professor Burmester served as President of the German Society of Rheumatology from 2001-2002. He was a Member of the Executive Committee of EULAR from 2003-2006 acting as Chairman of the Standing Committee on Investigative Rheumatology and became an honorary member of EULAR in 2006. From 2011 – 2013 he served as Treasurer of EULAR, and he served as President of EULAR from 2015 – 201. Since 2017 he is President of the Board of Trustees, FOREUM Foundation for Research in Rheumatology. In 2019 he became Master of the American College of Rheumatology and in 2022 received the Meritorious Service Award in Rheumatology from EULAR. He became honorary member of the German Society of Rheumatology in 2022.

Prof. Fadi Fakhouri
University Hospital Lausanne, Switzerland
Biosketch
Fadi Fakhouri is an adult nephrologist and a clinical researcher. He has a long-standing interest in autoimmune renal diseases, particularly complement-mediated nephropathies. He has conducted several clinical and experimental studies in the field of thrombotic microangiopathies, C3 glomerulopathy and other membrano-proliferative glomerulonephritis.
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Dr. Mike Becker
University Hospital Zürich, Switzerland
Biosketch
Dr. Mike Becker works as a rheumatology consultant at the Department of Rheumatology at the University Hospital Zurich, Switzerland. He completed his rheumatology training at the Charité University Hospital Berlin, Germany, where he started doing research in the field of systemic sclerosis. This was continued when he joined the senior staff at the University Hospital Zurich in 2016, where he is additionally involved in outpatient clinics for connective tissue diseases and vasculitis and heads a specialized vasculitis outpatient clinic. He is also responsible for the clinical trials at the Department of Rheumatology.

Dr. Jérôme Gouttenoire
Lausanne University Hospital, Switzerland
Biosketch
Jérôme Gouttenoire is a molecular virologist with a long-standing interest in viral hepatitis, more specifically hepatitis C and E. He is research group leader in the Service of Gastroenterology and Hepatology of the CHUV in Lausanne. He is conducting fundamental research studies, including structure-function and virus-host interactions analyses, aiming to understand the underlying molecular mechanisms of hepatitis C virus (HCV) and hepatitis E virus (HEV) replication. He also developed a translational research program together with clinicians to address questions related to the pathogenesis of these viruses.

Prof. Christoph Schramm
University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, Germany
Biosketch
University training
1991 – 1997
Study of Human Medicine, University of Cologne, Cologne, Germany
1989 – 1991
Study of Human Medicine (MD), Heidelberg University, Heidelberg, Germany
Advanced academic qualifications
2006
Habilitation in Internal Medicine (Priv.-Doz.); mentor: Prof. Dr. Lohse, Hamburg, Germany
2006
Specialist in Gastroenterology
2004
Specialist in Internal Medicine (Facharzt für Innere Medizin)
1997
Dissertation in Human Medicine (Dr. med.); supervisor: Prof. Dr. Cohen, Rehovot, Israel and Prof. Dr. Tesch, Cologne, Germany
Postgraduate professional career
Since 2016
Director of Martin Zeitz Centre for Rare Diseases, University Medical Centre Hamburg-Eppendorf, Hamburg, Germany
Since 2015
Helmut and Hannelore Greve Foundation Chair of Rare Diseases (W3)
2011
Professor of Medicine (apl), Vice Director of the I. Dept. of Medicine, University Medical Centre Hamburg-Eppendorf, Hamburg, Germany
2005 – 2011
Senior staff member, I. Dept. of Medicine, University Medical Centre Hamburg-Eppendorf, Hamburg, Germany
1997 – 2005
Junior physician and research assistant, Dept. of Gastroenterology, Hepatology, Nephrology and Infectious Diseases, University of Mainz, Mainz, Germany
1993 – 1994
Research student at the Dept. of Cell Biology, Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot, Israel, Fellowship of the Minerva-Stiftung
Selected awards and honours
2019
Mentorship award of the Claussen-Simon-Stiftung
2015
EASL (European Society for the Study of the Liver) Registry Grant
2014
Dr.-Martini-Preis’ (awards for the best research work published in 2013 at the University Medical Centre Hamburg-Eppendorf; shared with J. Katt)
2004
Research award of the Society for Gastroenterology in Rheinland-Pfalz/Saarland
Five selected publications
- Poch T#, Krause J#, Casar C, …, Sebode M, …, Schwinge D, …, Franke A, …, Altfeld M, Lohse AW, Huber S, Tolosa E#, Gagliani N#, Schramm C#. Single-cell atlas of hepatic T cells reveals expansion of liver-resident naive-like CD4+ T cells in primary sclerosing cholangitis. J Hepatol 2021;S0168-8278(21)00219-1. Epub ahead of print.
- Karlsen TH, Sheron N, Zelber-Sagi S, …, Schramm C, …, Burra P, Manns MP. The EASL-Lancet Liver Commission: protecting the next generation of Europeans against liver disease complications and premature mortality. Lancet 2021 Dec 1:S0140-6736(21)01701-3. doi: 10.1016/S0140-6736(21)01701-3. Online ahead of print.
- Depping MK, Uhlenbusch N, Härter M, Schramm C, Löwe B. Efficacy of a Brief, Peer-Delivered Self-management Intervention for Patients With Rare Chronic Diseases: A Randomized Clinical Trial. JAMA Psychiatry 2021 Feb 24. doi: 10.1001/jamapsychiatry.2020.4783. Online ahead of print.
- Liwinski T#, Zenouzi R#, John C, …, Lohse AW, Heeren J, Franke A, Schramm C. Alterations of the bile microbiome in primary sclerosing cholangitis. Gut 2020;69:665-72.
- Schramm C. Bile Acids, the Microbiome, Immunity, and Liver Tumors. N Engl J Med 2018;379:888-90.
#equally contributing authors

Prof. Camillo Ribi
University Hospital Lausanne, Switzerland
Biosketch
I have the expertise, leadership, training, expertise and motivation necessary to successfully carry out the proposed research project. I have a broad background in gastroenterology, with specific training and
expertise. My research covers many areas of internal medicine. In addition, I successfully administered the projects (e.g. staffing, research protections, budget), collaborated with other researchers, and produced
several peer-reviewed publications from the projects. As a result of these previous experiences, I am aware of the importance of frequent communication among project members and of constructing a realistic research plan, timeline, and budget.
Professional Career
Positions and Employment
1990-1992 Assistant physician, I. Department of Medicine, Johannes Gutenberg University Medical Center
Mainz
1992-1995 Postdoc, NIH/NIAID/MIS, Bethesda, MD, USA
1995-1998 Assistant physician, I. Department of Medicine, Johannes Gutenberg University Medical Center
Mainz
1998-2000 Senior physician, I. Department of Medicine, Johannes Gutenberg University Medical Center
Mainz
2000-2001 Visiting Professor, Havard Medical School, Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Boston, MA, USA
2001-2007 C3/W2 Professor of Medicine, I. Department of Medicine, Johannes Gutenberg University
Medical Center Mainz
2007-2009 W3 Professor/Director of the Institute of Molecular Medicine and Co-Director, I. Department of
Medicine, Johannes Gutenberg University Medical Center Mainz
Since 2009 W3 Professor, Head, Department of Internal Medicine 1, Gastroenterology, Pneumology and
Endocrinology, UKER, FAU

Dr. Diana Dan
University Hospital Lausanne, Switzerland
Biosketch
A Rheumatology and Internal Medicine specialist, Diana Dan focuses on connectivitis and vasculitis, as well as on rheumatic patients during pregnancy. She is also responsible for the transition program from pediatric to adult rheumatology. Dr Dan has done the most of her rheumatology training at the University Hospital in Bern under Professor Villiger. Since 2017, she is a consultant in the Rheumatology Department of the University Hospital in Lausanne.

Prof. Martin Brutsche
Kantonsspital St. Gallen, Switzerland
Biosketch
Martin Brutsche, MD/PHD, is professor of the Medical Faculty of the University of Basel since 2008. He was also one of the founders of the Joint Medical Master program of the Universities of Zürich and St. Gallen. Between 2016 and 2018, he was president of the Swiss Society of Pneumology. Whereas he is clinically involved in a broad spectrum of pulmonary medicine, his main focus is on interstitial lung diseases, specifically sarcoidosis since more than 20 years.

Prof. Antonio Costanzo
Humanitas University of Milan, Italy
Biosketch
Antonio Costanzo is Full Professor of Dermatology, Chairman of Dermatology and the Director of the Skin Pathology Laboratory at Humanitas University of Milan and President of the European Dermatology Forum.
He graduated with his MD degree in Medicine and Surgery from the University of Rome, La Sapienza in 1994. He then went on to complete post-graduate study and received a speciality degree in Internal Medicine in 1999 and a Dermatology speciality degree in 2006. His clinical research is focused on the characterization of the activity of biologics in psoriasis and psoriatic arthritis. This research is strictly linked to basic research activity on the pathogenesis of psoriasis and on the use of pharmacogenetic approach to predict the efficacy and safety of biologics in psoriasis.
In the past, Professor Costanzo has collaborated to the characterization of basic mechanisms of TNF inflammatory signalling in epithelial cells and NFkappaB regulation by different stimuli. More recently his research group has collaborated to the discovery of IL-21 as critical mediator of keratinocyte proliferation in psoriasis. Professor Costanzo has authored or co-authored more than 200 publications in internationally peer-reviewed journals.
Registration
The registration includes two coffee breaks and lunch.
Cancellations are possible until March 13th.
General Information
Venue:
Aquatis Hotel
Route de Berne 148
1010 Lausanne
Vaud – Suisse
Who should attend?
Rheumatologists, dermatologists, gastroenterologists, immunologists, nephrologist, pneumologists, internists as well as colleagues from all other disciplines interested in immune-mediated disorders.
Credits are requested by the following societies:
- Swiss Society of Allergology and Immunology (SSAI) – 6 CME
- Swiss Society of Dermatology and Venerology (SSDV) – 5 CME
- Swiss Society of Gastroenterology (SGG) – 6 CME
- Swiss Society of Rheumatology (SGR)
- Swiss Society of Pneumology (SSP) – 1 CME
- Swiss Society of Nerphrology (SSN) – 2 CME
Prices:
Physicians and scientists: 100 CHF
Allied health professionals/Trainees: 60 CHF
Industy: 450 CHF
Get in Touch with the Organisation
Comeed – Medical Conferences, Meetings & Education
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Impressions
I appreciate the initianive of bringing different disciplines together – that definitly enables knowledge & experience sharing!
Excellent meeting en ce qui concerne les thèmes abordés et discussions sur potentielles collaborations!
A very exciting and unique meeting, where experts from different disciplines exchange their newest insights and discuss common pathways of different diseases. Highly inspiring.