Abstract

Persistent infections are a major source of morbidity and mortality around the world. However, it is increasingly clear that the bacterial microbiome, the virome and the mycobiome can have beneficial roles for the host. Chronic infections with pathogens represent a failure of sterilizing immunity, but the mechanisms responsible for persistence and the balance between host health and disease resulting from infection are not completely understood. Recent discoveries reveal that multiple components of both the infecting organism and the host response to infection determine infection outcome, illustrating that a range of disciplines must be brought together to understand the fundamental mechanisms of chronic infection. This meeting is designed to bring together diverse communities of researchers at the cutting edge of their fields to understand whether and how to manipulate persistent infections to prevent disease and enhance health.