Welcome to the site of the Italian Association of Developmental and Comparative Immunobiology I.A.D.C.I.
CONTACT: info.siics@gmail.com
14 November 2025
Durante il congresso “5th Conference of the International Society of Fish and Shellfish Immunology” tenutosi a Taiwan, il nostro socio Giuseppe Scapigliati (già presidente della Società) è stato nominato primo membro onorario dell’associazione internazionale. Nel corso dello stesso evento, la nostra socia Valeria Pianese ha ricevuto il Best Oral Presentation Award.
At the “5th Conference of the International Society of Fish and Shellfish Immunology” held in Taiwan, our member Giuseppe Scapigliati (former President of the Society) was appointed the first Honorary Member of the international association. At the same event, our member Valeria Pianese received the Best Oral Presentation Award.
Mission
The Italian Association of Developmental and Comparative Immunobiology (IADCI) was founded to promote the knowledge and dissemination of the immune recognition processes at the molecular, cellular and organismal level, both in unicellular and in non-human multicellular organisms in order to address questions related to the development, evolution and environmental adaptation of the immune response. Areas of interest include, but are not limited to, immunotoxicology, immune cell development and senescence, infectious diseases, allorecognition, signal transduction and gene regulation in immune responses, innate and adaptive immunity, mucosal immunity, and homeostasis.
IADCI for Science communication
IADCI is also committed to improving public understanding of Comparative and Developmental Immunology by actively engaging lay audiences and promoting education and professional development. Up to now, IADCI has published an undergraduate textbook for Italian students, a scientific international book for specialists and a special issue of the peer-reviewed journal “Biology” with up-to-date reviews in the field of animal immunity.
History
A group of scholars working in the field of animal biology research and sharing a common interest and passion in comparative immunology, met in Palermo in 1996 and took the first steps towards national cooperation to make it more inclusive and networked. The Italian Association of Developmental and Comparative Immunobiology (IADCI) was founded with the aim of promoting and encouraging the exchange of knowledge and skills in the field of invertebrate and vertebrate immunity. The main founders were: Nicolò Parrinello, Matteo Cammarata and Vincenzo Arizza (University of Palermo), Enzo Ottaviani (University of Modena and Reggio Emilia), Loriano Ballarin (University of Padu a), Luigi Abelli and Giuseppe Scapigliati (University of Tuscia). The first official meeting of IADCI took place in Cattolica, in September 1997 during the 58th Congress of the Italian Society of Zoologists with the election of the first Executive Committee and Nicolò Parrinello as the first President. The first independent meeting took place in Palermo in 1998. In the years that followed, many efforts were made to increase memberships, attract young people and research groups that introduced new technologies and specific skills, encompassing biotechnology, b ig d ata, translational immunology and other themes to respond to modern challenges. IADCI organizes the annual meetings in February, in a different location each year, with international and national key note speakers. The meetings are attended by IADCI members who are experienced scientists, postdoctoral fellows , PhD and undergraduate students from various academic and research institutions, to exchange the latest findings on the immune defence system in various organisms, including unicellular ones, to bring innovative ideas and strengthen cooperation.
Membership
Approximately 70 members from national and international public academic and research institutions are currently IADCI associates. IADCI members have collaborations at both international and national levels that have have been the catalyst for sharing projects.
Awards
Each year at the annual meeting, IADCI grants three awards to young investigators who have achieved an excellent level of education and research experience in the field of developmental and comparative immunobiology. Here below the awards:
“Prof. E. Ottaviani” Award To honour the memory of Prof. Enzo Ottaviani, one of its co-founders and former President, IADCI awards the prize to a current member younger than 40 years for outstanding career and research achievements, and for a doctoral thesis in the field of developmental and comparative immunobiology.
“Post-doctoral Fellow” Award The prize is awarded to an IADCI member younger than 34 years of age with a Doctoral thesis in the field of developmental and comparative immunobiology.
“Young Student” Award The prize is awarded to an IADCI graduate student under 29 years of age for an outstanding master thesis in the field of developmental and comparative immunobiology
Association Proceedings
Proceedings of annual IADCI Meetings are published in the ISJ-Invertebrate Survival Journal. It is a diamond open access, peer-reviewed journal devoted to basic and applied studies on the development, evolution and biology of immune-related mechanisms in invertebrates. https://www.isj.unimore.it/index.php/ISJ/index
Enquiries should be addressed to the Editor-in-Chief of ISJ-Invertebrate Survival Journal Prof. Davide Malagoli Department of Life Sciences, Via Campi 213/D, 41125 Modena (Italy)
isj@unimore.it
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Società Italiana di Immunobiologia Comparata e dello Sviluppo (SIICS) - © 2016 University of Trieste