The BSI Immunometabolism Affinity Group is excited to present the UK's leading immunometabolism event. Previous meetings have attracted over 150 delegates for programmes of cutting-edge immune metabolism research. For 2026, the committee have planned an exceptional line up of speakers from across the UK, wider Europe and worldwide. There will also be plenty of opportunities for early career researchers to present their work throughout the programme and in dedicated 'Bright Sparks' sessions.
Our conference dinner will give you the perfect chance to catch up with colleagues and continue the conversations from the day in a more relaxed informal setting.
The BSI Immunometabolism Affinity Group looks forward to welcoming you at the the Hilton Newcastle Gateshead Hotel, Bottle Bank, Gateshead, on Thursday 16 and Friday 17 April.
Please follow @bsi_immunomet and @bsicongress on X and @britsocimm.bsky.social on Bluesky to stay updated and check the event hashtag #UKimmunomet26 for updates.
Programme
08:30 | Registration and refreshments
09:05 | Opening address: BSI Immunometabolism Affinity Group Committee
What’s up!
SESSION 1
Chairs: Dr Linda Sinclair (University of Dundee, UK) and Dr Luke Davies (Swansea University, UK)
09:15 | Keynote speaker: Professor Doreen Cantrell (University of Dundee, UK)
Fuelling T cells
10:00 | Invited speaker: Dr Alex Clarke (Kennedy Institute, UK)
Powering the germinal centre reaction
10:30 | Invited speaker: Professor Inés Pineda Torra (University of Barcelona, Spain)
Decoding metabolic & immune changes in menopause
11:00| Refreshment break and meet the exhibitors
SESSION 2
Chairs: Dr Anna Schurich (King’s College London) and Dr Matthew Sinton (University of Manchester, UK)
11:30 | Invited speaker: Professor Dirk Brenner (University of Luxembourg, Luxembourg)
Regulation of immune cell function by metabolism
12:00 | Selected short talk: Dr April Rees (Swansea University, UK)
An immunometabolic profile of endometriosis highlights hyperinflammatory,
yet dysfunctional peripheral CD8 T-cells
12:15 | Selected short talk: Ethan Collins (Trinity College Dublin, Republic of Ireland)
Protein-level pre-configuration of metabolic machinery underpins distinct
fuelling strategies in CD56bright and CD56dim NK cells
12:30 | Invited speaker: Dr Cécile Benezech (University of Edinburgh, UK)
Role of microbiota-driven IgG in insulin resistance during obesity
13:00 | Lunch, meet the exhibitors and networking
SESSION 3 - PhD Bright Sparks session
Chairs: Professor Dirk Brenner (University of Luxembourg, Luxembourg) and Dr Cécile Benezech (University of Edinburgh, UK)
14:00 | Selected short talk: Anna Brock (University of Dundee, UK)
Mechanistic Understanding of plasma cell fuelling
14:15 | Selected short talk: Eimear Ryan (Maynooth University, Republic of Ireland)
Rapid glycolytic metabolism underpins mucosal-associated invariant T cell functional responses to innate cytokines
14:30 | Selected short talk: Sinibaldo Rafael Romero Arocha (University of Oxford, UK)
Time-restricted eating remodels CD4+ T cell glycosphingolipids and
attenuates NF-κB signalling in psoriatic disease
14:45 | Selected short talk: Rebecca Mann (University of Birmingham, UK)
Interrogating metabolic control of macrophage immune function by TNF-α
15:00 | Selected short talk: Atia Batool (University College Dublin, Republic of Ireland)
Defining the role of ATP-citrate lyase (ACLY) in pulmonary fibrosis
15:15 | Selected short talk: Elizabeth Jinks (University of Birmingham, UK)
Asparaginase induces metabolic roadblocks in T cell activation and development
15:30 | Refreshment break and meet the exhibitors
SESSION 4 - PostDocs Bright Sparks session
Chairs: Dr Claus Desler (University of Copenhagen, Denmark) and Professor Inés Pineda Torra (University of Barcelona, Spain)
16:00 | Selected short talk: Dr Laura Bogue Edgerton (Leiden University, Netherlands)
Nutri-Histology – A multiplex method to spatially map nutrient uptake in the
MC38 tumour microenvironment
16:15 | Selected short talk: Dr Alejandro Brenes (University of Edinburgh, UK)
Mini-bulk and single cell proteomic overview of neutrophil metabolism across
maturity and tissue
16:30 | Selected short talk: Dr Diana Elena Matei (University College London, UK)
Arginine metabolism fuels pro-arthritogenic plasma cell differentiation
16:45 | Selected short talk: Dr Jack Collier (University of Cambridge, UK)
MAPL promotes gasdermin-mediated release of mitochondrial DNA from
lysosomes to drive pyroptosis
17:00 | Selected short talk: Dr Ciara Flynn (Maynooth University, Republic of Ireland)
Loss of mTORC1 activity underpins defective Vδ2+ T cell functional responses in
people living with obesity, and is reversed with metabolic surgery
17:15 | Selected short talk: Dr Suzanne Hodge (University of Edinburgh, UK)
TFH cells in a Th2 context have high lipid metabolism which regulates
CXCR5 expression
17:30 | Poster sessions with networking reception
19:00 | Conference dinner, Hilton Newcastle Gateshead Hotel (included in the registration fee)
Day 2
SESSION 5 - Emerging PI session
08:30 | Refreshments
Chairs: Dr Nick Jones (Swansea University, UK) and Dr Laura Pallett (University College London, UK)
09:15 | Emerging PI: Dr Zoe Hall (Imperial College London, UK)
Spatial metabolomics to explore metabolic microenvironments in liver
disease and cancer
09:30 | Emerging PI: Dr Cassie Clarke (CRUK Scotland, UK)
Neutrophil metabolism generates pro-tumour microenvironments by altering
immune landscapes and ECM deposition
09:45 | Emerging PI: Dr Dylan Ryan (Trinity College Dublin, Republic of Ireland)
Mitochondrial DNA mutations as drivers of innate immune priming
10:00 | Emerging PI: Dr Matthew Sinton (University of Manchester, UK)
Fuelling the immune response: Lessons from chronic models of infection
10:15 | Emerging PI: Dr Annika Warnatsch (King’s College London, UK)
Neutrophil redox control shapes the antiviral immune response
10:30 | Emerging PI: Dr Luke Davies (Swansea University, UK)
Complex II redundancy: Rethinking the foundations of immune cell metabolism
10:45 | Selected short talk: Professor David Bending (University of Birmingham, UK)
The leukaemia drug asparaginase induces macrophage hyperactivation
11:00 | Refreshment break and meet the exhibitors
SESSION 6
Chairs: Dr Sarah Dimeloe (University of Birmingham, UK) and Dr Dylan Ryan
(Trinity College Dublin, Republic of Ireland)
11:30 | Invited speaker: Dr Claus Desler (University of Copenhagen, Denmark)
Mitochondrial regulation in the tumor microenvironment
12:00 | Invited speaker: Dr Hayley Sharpe (The Babraham Institute, UK)
Visualising T cell function through a redox lens
12:30 | Selected short talk: Dr Alison Galloway (CRUK Scotland Institute, UK)
RNA cap methyltransferase CMTR1 directs mitochondrial dynamics during T cell
activation through splicing
12:45 | Selected short talk: Dr Nidhi Kedia-Mehta (Maynooth University, Republic of Ireland)
Amino acid transport and metabolic stress shape MAIT cell responses in obesity
13:00 | Presentation of prize winners
13:15 | Close
Registration
Registration is now open, book your place here.
BSI members benefit from reduced registration fees at this meeting and other BSI events, as well as free access to our journals, grants, career development activities and much more. You can sign up to become a member online. For current BSI members, your reduced fee will be applied automatically if you are logged in to your account. All fees include VAT.
Fees
Early bird registration (closes 23:59 on Thursday 2 April 2026):
| BSI member | Non-member | |
| Full | £123 | £180 |
| Early Career/Clinician in training (read the criteria) | £123 | £180 |
| Postgraduate (anyone studying a PhD or Masters) | £92 | £134* |
| Senior (retired) (read the criteria) | £92 | £134 |
| Discounted membership/rate (read the criteria) | £92* | £134* |
| Undergraduate (membership is free) | £61 | - |
Late registration:
| BSI member | Non-member | |
| Full | £146 | £215 |
| Early Career/Clinician in training (read the criteria) | £146 | £215 |
| Postgraduate (anyone studying a PhD or Masters) | £107 | £161* |
| Senior (retired) (read the criteria) | £107 | £161 |
| Discounted membership/rate (read the criteria) | £107* | £161* |
| Undergraduate (membership is free) | £68 | - |
*If this fee applies to you, please contact meetings@immunology.org for a discount code prior to registering
BSI grants to support your attendance at this event
As part of our career development package, we have two grants available to BSI members to support your attendance at this event.
- BSI Regional & Affinity Group Conference Grants: BSI members can apply for up to £100 to contribute towards their travel costs in attending this conference. In this scheme, we have 10 grants available for this conference and they will be allocated on a first come, first served basis to eligible BSI members. Deadline: Thursday 26 March 2026. Find out more and apply.
- BSI Regional & Affinity Group Carers' Grants: BSI members can apply for up to £100 to contribute towards extra care arrangements costs they incur during the conference, for example, childcare costs, or for additional care for the applicant themselves. Deadline: Thursday 26 March 2026. Find out more and apply.
Abstract submission
Abstract submissions are now closed.
Sponsorship
Thank you to our sponsors who are supporting this event.
If you are interested in sponsoring this event, please contact our Events & Corporate Engagement Manager, Becky Dempsey, at b.dempsey@immunology.org