Eugene M. Farber Lecturer
Michel Gilliet, MD, University of Lausanne, Swtzerland
Title: TBA
Professor Michel Gilliet is the Professor and Chairman of the Department of Dermatology at the University of Lausanne, CHUV in Lausanne, Switzerland. He received his training in Dermatology at the University of Zurich, Switzerland, and his research training in Immunology at the DNAX Research Institute in Palo Alto, California. In 2004, he was recruited to the MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston, Texas, first as Assistant Professor, then as tenured Associate Professor with a clinical appointment in Dermatology, a translational research appointment in Melanoma Oncology, and a basic science appointment in Immunology. It was in 2010 that he returned to Switzerland and took his current position as Full Professor and Chair of the Department of Dermatology in Lausanne. His research has focused primarily on translational research studying immune responses in psoriasis and other inflammatory skin diseases. In particular, his lab has discovered mechanisms that initiate the inflammatory cascade in psoriatic skin lesions based on the complex formation of DNA with antimicrobial peptides. These studies provided a paradigm shift in the understanding of how inflammation is regulated not only in psoriasis but also in wounded skin and inflammatory diseases such as lupus erythematosus. Professor Gilliet has also been involved in the initial discovery of TSLP and its role in driving allergic inflammation in atopic dermatitis. These studies have resulted in more than 100 peer-reviewed publications with over 19,000 citations. Professor Gilliet has served as Secretary-Treasurer (2016-17) and President (2018) of the European Society of Dermatological Research (ESDR). In 2016, he received the Cloetta Prize, the most prestigious Award for Medical Research in Switzerland. Professor Gilliet has been an IPC Councilor since 2012.
About the Lectureship:
The Eugene M. Farber endowment was established by his family in memory of Dr. Farber’s scientific career and devotion to understanding the pathogenesis of psoriasis. In 2007, the SID Board of Directors voted to create the Eugene M. Farber endowed lecture. It is typically presented at the SID’s Annual Meeting (and Virtual ones) by an investigator whose work is relevant to expanding insights into the pathophysiology and treatment of psoriasis.