Basel Cell Therapy Symposium

Welcome to the 3rd Basel Cell Therapy Symposium:

This one and a half-day symposium, organized by the University Center for Cell Therapies and Immunomodulation / Innovation Focus Cell Therapies of the University Hospital Basel, will be held on January 8–9, 2026, in the Pharmacenter (Klingelbergstrasse 50, Basel).

Our program will showcase cutting-edge research on non-engineered lymphocytes, engineered lymphocytes, providing latest advancements in cell therapies and insights into engineered stem cells. This meeting aims to foster interaction and exchange of scientific ideas among clinicians, scientists, and other stakeholders in the field.

We will also give the opportunity to young researchers to present their work through talks selected from abstracts and poster sessions.

We look forward to welcome you to the Basel Cell Therapy Symposium.

The Symposium organizing Team

Program in process.

All contributions will be in English.

Save the date and take the opportunity to attend an exciting program of three Sessions, three Keynote Lectures and posters sessions. 

Short talks will be selected from submitted abstracts. 

Bruno Speck Prizes 2025 for the best publications (published 1.7.2024–30.6.2025) in the field of stem cell research and cellular therapy will also be awarded during the symposium.

Professor Britta Eiz-Vesper is a university professor and head of the research department at the Institute for Transfusion Medicine and Transplant Engineering at Hannover Medical School.

Her work focuses on cellular immunotherapy against infectious and tumour diseases by using natural and genetically modified antigen-specific T cells. She has developed and established extensive procedures for donor identification, generation of cellular products and immuno-monitoring of patients before and after stem cell and organ transplantation. 

Professor Britta Eiz-Vesper is considered a pioneer in allogeneic immunotherapy with third-party donors. Together with Professor Britta Maecker-Kolhoff, she established the world's first register of healthy donors for virus-specific T cells (www.alloCELL.org) and has become the largest manufacturer of antigen-specific T cell preparations in Europe. 

In recent developments, Professor Gattinoni has broken new ground by establishing a clinical-grade manufacturing platform for the production of CAR-modified Tscm cells and by initiating a first-in-human study to test the safety and efficacy of donor-derived CD19-CAR Tscm cells (NCT01087294).

Professor Gattinoni’s current research endeavors are concentrated on reprogramming the fate and function of T cells. These strategic approaches encompass both pharmacologic and genetic interventions, targeting key transcription factors, epigenetic regulators, microRNAs, and metabolic pathways. These strategies collectively aim to promote a stem cell-like behavior in T cells, offering promising avenues for advancing immunotherapies in the fight against cancer.

Professor Köhl focuses on the development and production of Advanced Therapy Medicinal Products (ATMPs) for cancer therapy and regenerative medicine. This relates in particular to chimeric antigen (CAR)-expressing T and NK cells by means of viral and non-viral gene transfer and accompanying studies on tumour immune escape mechanisms. She is also working on a broad range of ATMPs, ranging from gene therapies in stem cells to antigen-specific T cells and iPS cells. A further focus is on immune monitoring in patients using biomarkers, functional analyses and quantification of immune cell subpopulations for the development of multivariate models and personalised control of cell-based therapies.

Professor Magnani’s research seek to develop new cancer treatments, specifically CAR T-cell immunotherapy. The idea is to unleash our immune system against cancer. To this end, blood cells are weaponized through the use of genetic engineering and become living drugs. These therapies are personalized for each patient. Specifically, white blood cells, also referred to as T cells, are collected from the patient's blood. In the lab, T cells are genetically engineered with recombinant DNA and infused back into our patient. Now T cells have a new receptor, called chimeric antigen receptor or CAR, which acts as a radar and allows T cells to precisely recognize a target on the cancer cells and kill them.