2026 Alcohol and Immunology Research Interest Group (AIRIG) Meeting: "Alcohol and Aging"

About this event

The Alcohol and Immunology Research Interest Group (AIRIG) Meeting hosted by the University of Colorado Anschutz will be a one-day, in‑person scientific meeting dedicated to advancing research at the intersection of alcohol use, immune function, and aging. Travel awards are available for meritorious trainees and junior scientists, supported by the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA) through grant R13AA020768.

Invited Speakers:

• Catherine Jankowski, Ph.D.

• Professor and Adult Health Wellness Division Chair, University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus

• "Alcohol and the Aging Musculoskeletal System"

• Falk Lohoff, M.D.

• Senior Investigator, Clinical Genomics and Experimental Therapeutics, NIAAA

• Title TBD

• Gabor Egervari, M.D., Ph.D.

• Assistant Professor of Genetics and Biochemistry, Washington University

• "The Functional Importance of Alcohol Metabolites for Brain and Behavior"

• Nagalakshmi Balasubramanian, Ph.D., M.S.

• Postdoctoral Associate, University of Florida

• "Acetaldehyde Toxicity: A Missing Link Between Heavy Alcohol Use and Alzheimer's Disease"

• Leon Coleman, M.D., Ph.D.

• Assistant Professor, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

• "Alcohol Enhances Alzheimer’s by Accelerating Neuro-immune and Neuro-metabolic Aging"

• Laura Fonken, Ph.D.

• Associate Professor, University of Texas at Austin

• "Aging and Alcohol Synergize to Induce Neuroimmune Alterations and Delayed Deficits in Learning and Memory in Rats"