IMMEDIATE Kick-off Meeting Successfully Held in Berlin

The IMMEDIATE project, an innovative collaboration exploring the intricate relationship between diet, microbiome, metabolites, and the immune system, successfully held its kick-off meeting on 26-27 June 2023. The meeting took place at the renowned Experimental and Clinical Research Centre in Berlin and brought together 40 participants from 12 project partners.

Prof. Dr. Friedemann Paul, project coordinator and PD Dr. Chotima Böttcher, deputy coordinator from Charite - Universitätsmedizin Berlin, hosted the meeting, which marked an important milestone in the consortium's journey towards understanding the complex interactions of the diet-microbiome-metabolite-immune axis and their impact on individual health.

The consortium comprises a group of clinical scientists, epidemiologists, experts in privacy and data protection, data analysis, nutritional science, the microbiome, omics, and single cell technologies, as well as communication management, innovation and project management. By combining their diverse expertise and experience, the project aims to unravel key factors of chronic inflamation and predict health-to-disease transition.

The kick-off meeting began with a warm welcome from the project coordinators and continued with presentations of the work packages, where partners presented the progress made thus far. The focus was on open questions with engaging discussions about future steps. The day ended with a campus tour and dinner.
The second day began with a Zoom meeting with cluster projects Endotarget and Initialise, where partners expressed their willingness and ideas for future collaboration. Brainstorming sessions followed, with each session led by experts in the respective fields, further enriching the discussions and exploring innovative approaches to project objectives.

Dr. Sofia Forslund from Max Delbrück Center opened a discussion on AI, data management plan and data protection for meticulous planning and utilization of cutting-edge technologies. Prof. Dr. Karolina Skonieczna-Żydecka from the Pomeranian Medical University in Szczecin sparked a thought-provoking debate around conducting a proof-of-concept study to ensure optimal outcomes. Professor Marc-Emmanuel Dumas from the Imperial College of Science, Technology and Medicine guided the brainstorming session on the Multi-Omics Platform for Precision Immunology, laying the groundwork for multiple omics data integration. The final session, led by Dr. Sonja Bergner and Martina Radanović from EURICE, focused on project management, dissemination, exploitation, and communication. Professor Paul wrapped up the meeting, highlighting the key takeaways and action points and emphasized the importance of collaboration, timely communication, and the shared commitment of everyone involved.

The two-day meeting presents an important milestone as the consortium partners left with specific tasks that will move the project progress further.