The event brought together project partners to review progress across work packages, discuss scientific results, and address key challenges and risks related to the project.

The first day opened with a welcome address by the Coordinator, Prof. Fausto Baldanti (IRCCS OSM), followed by a session on grant implementation led by the Project Officer from the European Health and Digital Executive Agency (HaDEA).[] Presentations from WP1 to WP5 covered topics including project management and coordination, virological, immunological and human genetic risk factors of severe infection, B cell responses and human monoclonal antibody selection, T-cell mediated responses against flaviviruses, and virus–host interactions and drug development.

The second day focused on forward-looking discussion and risk assessment. A roundtable brainstorming session, led by IRCCS OSM, addressed critical aspects and potential risks for the project, held in two parts to allow in-depth debate.

Climate change is playing an increasingly important role in the spread of infectious diseases, especially those transmitted by insects such as mosquitoes and ticks. These vector-borne diseases are expanding across the globe, becoming more frequent and more intense. Europe, once considered at low risk for many of these infections, is now facing the local transmission of diseases such as Dengue, Chikungunya, Zika, West Nile virus, and Leishmaniasis. In Italy, recent observations of the seasonal behaviour of viruses like Dengue, Chikungunya, and West Nile virus already highlight how climate change may shape their future spread.

In light of these considerations, on 29 January the Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale della Lombardia e dell’Emilia-Romagna (IZSLER) organized a training event dedicated to the analysis of the dynamics of arboviral disease spread in relation to climate change. The event brought together key stakeholders, including professionals, researchers, and technical experts, providing a qualified forum for discussion on the most relevant and current issues.

The initiative aimed to:

• examine the potential impacts of climate change on the epidemiology of arboviruses;
  • present the approaches currently adopted to improve understanding of the influence of climatic variables on the spread of arboviruses;
  • analyze the main areas of interaction between arboviruses and processes of land-use change and human-driven environmental transformation.

During the webinar, speakers presented the state of the art in the diagnosis of vector-borne diseases, offering an updated overview of the current and prospective influence of climatic variables on the spread of pathogens and their associated insect vectors. The afternoon session focused on the regional geographical context, with in-depth discussion of territorial epidemiological aspects and the main vector control strategies, which are essential for prevention and public health planning.

This training event is closely aligned with the objectives of the project Inflame “Counter-acting the pandemic potential of flaviviruses: addressing virus-host interactions and defense strategies to design new therapeutics against WNV and DENV”, which aims to address emerging risks linked to Dengue and West Nile virus by advancing scientific knowledge, diagnostic capacity, and integrated surveillance systems. In particular, the course contributed to strengthening the multidisciplinary network between epidemiologists, virologists, immunologists, and climate‑change experts (objective e), fostering the exchange of expertise necessary to understand how environmental and climatic factors shape arbovirus transmission.

By promoting awareness of climate‑driven drivers of disease emergence and bringing together professionals across sectors, the event contributes to the broader project objectives of improving preparedness, enhancing EU-level leadership in the response to flaviviruses, and ultimately enabling more effective prevention and control strategies against pathogens whose transmission dynamics are increasingly shaped by climate change.

The event hosted more than 60 science-themed stands, including two for Fondazione IRCCS Policlinico San Matteo with the SC Microbiologia e Virologia, PIs of the InFlaMe project.

It was an extraordinary event with a great turnout of visitors, aimed at promoting scientific literacy. The Virology team organized engaging activities for both children and adults to raise awareness and share knowledge about flaviviruses.

Alessandro Ferrari, part of the InflaMe project, in this video LINK to video on LinkedIn  talks about Flaviviruses related infections at the European Researchers’ Night in Pavia.

The IRCCS OSM team represented InFlaMe at conferences in September 2025

Researchers from the Fondazione IRCCS Policlinico San Matteo (IRCCS OSM) participated at the 53° Congresso della Società Italiana di Microbiologia (SIM) in Catania held between 19-22 September (https://www.societasim.it/congresso-sim-2025/)

Dr. Irene Cassaniti gave a talk entitled: ” A novel ARPE-19 cell-based assay for assessing type I IFN protection and autoantibody-mediated neutralization in Zika Virus infection” and  Dr. Antonino Maria Guglielmo Pitrolo presented a poster entitled “Three years of surveillance of human dengue virus infections in Lombardy, 2023-2025”

Dr. Alessandro Ferrari from Fondazione IRCCS Policlinico San Matteo (IRCCS OSM) gave a talk entitled “A Novel ARPE-19 Cell-Based Assay for Assessing Type I IFN Protection and Autoantibody-Mediated Neutralization in Zika Virus Infection” at the 27th European Congress for Clinical Virology (ESCV) in Thessaloniki, held between 17-20 September 2025 (https://www.escv2025.org/).

Link to the scientific program: https://www.escv2025.org/articlefiles/ESCV_2025/27ESCV_FinalProg.pdf

The kick-off meeting took place at the Palazzo Bellisomi-Vistarino in Pavia, Italy between 4th and 5th of February 2025, with the participation of representatives from each beneficiary, the Project Officer from European Health and Digital Executive Agency (HaDEA) and members of the Advisory Board. The project will last for 48 months.

English

IRCCS-OSM: https://www.sanmatteo.org/abstract-inflame

CNR-IIA: https://iia.cnr.it/inflame-project-launched-on-january-the-1st/

CICBioGUNE: https://www.cicbiogune.es/news/cic-biogune-joins-european-consortium-inflame-develop-innovative-therapies-against-flaviviruses

INGM: https://ingm.org/en/2025/02/10/the-european-union-funds-research-on-the-pandemic-threats-of-dengue-denv-and-west-nile-virus-wnv/

IMAGINE: https://www.institutimagine.org/en/inflame-project-addressing-virus-host-interactions-and-defense-strategies-design-new-therapeutics

Italian

IRCCS-OSM: https://www.sanmatteo.org/news/parte-progetto-europeo-combattere-minacce-epidemiche-e-pandemiche-flavivirus-0

InFlaMe featured in media: https://panoramadellasanita.it/site/inflame-parte-il-progetto-europeo-per-combattere-le-minacce-epidemiche-e-pandemiche-dei-flavivirus/