« Congrès Annuel de Recherche Dermatologique (CARD) » : a successful 2022 edition in Namur!

CARD is a major appointment for researchers and dermatologists to share their latest advances in cutaneous biology and skin disease research. This meeting is organized annually under the umbrella of the SRD (www.societe-recherche-dermato.fr), the Francophone association for dermatological research. The event is held each year in a different city, most often in France. For once, the 38th edition of CARD (www.card-namur-2022.be) took place in Belgium and was hosted by the UNamur! The two-day meeting gathered over one hundred participants in the brand-new building of the Faculty of Sciences on June 30 and July 1, 2022.

A RICH AND VARIED SCIENTIFIC PROGRAM

During four distinct sessions, 7 keynote lecturers and 32 abstract-selected speakers offered a rich and inspiring scientific program. The first session was dedicated to “Pigmentation, ageing and dermis”. Dr. Florence Chainiaux (Namur) opened the meeting with a talk about UV-stress induced premature senescence and photo-aging. Prof. Katia Boniface (Bordeaux) discussed the interplay between the immune response and melanocytes in vitiligo, the most common skin depigmenting disorder. The second session focused on “Cell biology, epidermis and barrier function” and featured Prof. Michel Simon (Toulouse) as guest speaker. He shed light on the role of deimination, a post-translational modification, in the epidermal barrier function and hair follicles. The third session covered questions related to “Infection, immunity and inflammation”. To address these topics, two keynote speakers took the floor. Dr. Emilie Faway (Namur) presented her research which aims to better understand the mechanisms involved in skin adhesion and invasion by fungal dermatophytes. Dr. Florence Libon (Liège) discussed treatments for atopic dermatitis. The fourth and last session was about “Genetics and cancer” and welcomed Dr. Adèle de Masson (Paris) as invited speaker. She provided insights into the physiopathology of cutaneous T-cell lymphomas. The congress was closed by a distinguished guest speaker, Prof. Cédric Blanpain (Bruxelles), who gave a fascinating talk on the dynamics of skin stem cells during wound healing. In addition to oral presentations, 15 posters were also on display during the two days.

TWO YOUNG RESEARCHERS AWARDED

Two prizes of 500 EUR were offered by NAOS – Bioderma (France) to reward best presentations at CARD. Lisa Martin, PhD student at LBTI (Lyon) was awarded the Best Oral Communication for her brilliant talk entitled “Rôle du canal TRPV3 dans le défaut de thermorégulation cutanée au cours du vieillissement". The winner of the Best Poster prize was Dr. Julien Coutier, Research Associate at I-Stem (Evry), for his poster "Kératinocytes dérivés de cellules souches pluripotentes induites, un modèle utile pour identifier et explorer les phénotypes pathologiques de l’Epidermolyse Bulleuse Simple”.

GREAT OPPORTUNITY FOR NETWORKING

Besides the rich scientific program, CARD was also a great opportunity for interaction and networking among participants. The social program included a gala dinner at the Château de Namur on June 30 and a Belgian “Cheese & Beer” hour on July 1.

The organizers would like to thank everyone who was involved in making this meeting a success: attendees, speakers, chair(wo)men, poster presenters, as well as the UNamur, the FNRS and sponsors for their financial support!

Organizing Committee 2022
Prof. Yves Poumay, Dr. Florence Chainiaux and Dr. Catherine Lambert de Rouvroit (UNamur)
Prof. Arjen Nikkels and Dr. Florence Libon (ULiège)

Sponsors