Allergy Center
Hospital CUF-Descobertas
Lisbon, Portugal

Mário Morais-Almeida is the Head of the Immunoallergy Department of CUF-Descobertas Hospital (World Allergy Organization Center of Excellence) and CUF-Infante Santo Hospital, Lisbon, since 2003; apart the supervision of the department activities, he dedicates more than twenty hours per week to clinical activity in the out-patient section of the Allergy Center.

He graduated from the Lisbon School of Medicine in 1986 and became Specialist in Allergy and Immunology in 1994 and senior consultant since 2002, being also specialist in in Health Units Management since 2003. Dr. Morais-Almeida has a Master in Respiratory Diseases and recently submitted a PhD thesis to NOVA Medical School in Lisbon. He is a collaborator of the Center for Health Technology and Services Research, Oporto Faculty of Medicine, since 2012.

He is a past-president of the Portuguese Association of Asthmatic Patients (2016-2019), and served as president of the Portuguese Society of Allergy and Clinical Immunology (2005-2013), the Allergy and Clinical Immunology Board of the Portuguese Medical Association (2003-2006), the Luso-Brazilian Society of Allergy and Clinical Immunology (2009-2010), the South European Allergy Societies (2011), and vice president of the Latin American Allergy, Asthma and Immunology Society (2013-2015) and of the Lung Portuguese Foundation (2010-2012).

He served on government and nongovernmental committees, namely the National Observatory on Respiratory Diseases, GINA and ARIA initiatives and the National Commission of Asthma, being a regular Consultant of several Portuguese Ministry of Health Departments since 1996. He is co-coordinator of the Portuguese guidelines on Asthma management and Anaphylaxis registration, management and referral, being member of the work group responsible for the Portuguese Catalog of Allergies and Adverse Reactions. 

He has authored several articles and book chapters in national and international scientific publications and have special research interest in respiratory and food allergy, epidemiology and environmental risk factor for allergic diseases, from pre-school age to the elderly.

Dr. Morais-Almeida was elected as a Member at Large to the WAO Board of Directors in 2018. He is currently the President-Elect of WAO.

Department of Paediatrics
The Chinese University of Hong Kong
Prince of Wales Hospital
Hong Kong

Gary WK Wong is Professor, Department of Paediatrics and School of Public Health, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, where he has been working for 20 years. He is a member of the World Allergy Organization (WAO) Board of Directors, an assembly member of the Global Initiative for Asthma (GINA), a steering committee member of the International Study of Asthma and Allergies in Childhood (ISAAC) research group, and Past President of the Asia-Pacific Association of Pediatric Allergy, Respirology and Immunology (APAPARI).

Dr. Wong also participates actively in paediatric and medical communities in Hong Kong. He is current Council member of the Hong Kong Society of Respirology (HKSPR) and Chair of the Asthma Focus Group of the HKSPR.

Dr. Wong obtained his undergraduate medical education from the University of Alberta, Canada. He subsequently received fellowship training at University of British Columbia, and Children’s Hospital of British Columbia and visiting Fellowship at the Children’s Hospital at Munich, Germany. He was a research fellow in 2001 at the Children’s Hospital in Munich.

Dr. Wong has strong interest in different aspects of allergic and autoimmune diseases. His main research interests are treatment, prevention, and control of allergic conditions including asthma, childhood wheezing disorders, and food allergies. In particular, he is interested the immunological and environmental determinants of asthma and related allergic disorders.

He has published over 280 original articles, review papers, and book chapters in the field of asthma and related atopic conditions. Among other duties within several editorial boards, Dr. Wong is Associate Editor of New England Journal of Medicine, board member of Pediatric Allergy and Immunology, and Chief Editor of Pediatric Respirology and Critical Care Medicine.

Pediatric Hospital Bambino Gesù
Vatican City

Alessandro Fiocchi MD is the Director of Allergy at the Pediatric Hospital Bambino Gesù, Rome, Vatican City. Formerly director of Pediatrics at the Melloni University Hospital in Milan, Italy, he’s an expert in the field of food allergy. After post-graduate degrees and professional qualification in pediatrics, allergy, pulmonology, and neonatology, he dedicated his research and clinical work to the care of children with asthma and allergic disease. Currently, he leads a research group focusing on food allergy, asthma, and specific immunotherapy. This group is based in the Bambino Gesù Pediatric Hospital (OPBG) a health care and research institution specialized in pediatric and developing ages. The largest Pediatric Hospital in Italy, OPBG guarantees total coverage for all health care needs, including allergy.

Since 2001, he has organized international meetings in Milan, Italy, and other countries. He founded the Italian Research Foundation for Allergy and Asthma in Childhood – Allegria ONLUS, a charity dedicated to clinical and research studies. As chair of the Adverse Reactions to Foods Committee of the American College of Allergy, Asthma, and Immunology, he co-chaired with Sami Bahna and Amal Assa’ad several International Food Allergy Symposiums, the last in Anaheim, November 2012. He also co-chaired with Hugh Sampson the WAO Food Allergy Symposium in Bangkok, 2007, and in Buenos Aires, 2009. Starting in January 2008, Dr. Fiocchi is the chair of the Special Committee on Food Allergy of the World Allergy Organization. Under his chairmanship, WAO published the DRACMA guidelines on cow’s milk allergy in 2010 and the CUPPA position paper on the use of probiotics in pediatric allergy. He’s also the leader of the WAO – supported GLAD-p (GuideLines for Allergy Prevention) project, which published three guidelines so far (Probiotics, 2015; Prebiotics, 2016; Vitamin D, 2017). DRACMA is being be re-edited. His publications cover the fields of food allergy diagnosis, follow-up, epidemiology, specific immunotherapy and childhood asthma.


TEACHING ASSIGNMENTS

• 2017 – 2023: Teaching qualification for Paediatrics. Italian Ministry of Education, Universities and Research (MIUR) - national scientific qualification to function as Associate Professor in Italian Universities. Italian National Scientific Qualification (art.16 of the law 30 December 2010, n.240) – sector 06/G1, Paediatrics.

MEETING ORGANIZATION

• Adverse Reactions to Bovine Proteins – Changing Patterns, Mechanisms and Treatment – in cooperation with the American College of Allergy Asthma and Immunology. Alessandro Fiocchi & Patrizia Restani, co-chairs - 13 – 15 December 2001, Milan Italy
• XI International Food Allergy Symposium – Sami Bahna & Alessandro Fiocchi, co-chairs – held in conjunction with the annual Meeting of the American College of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology, November 7th – 12th 2003.New Orleans, LA, November 6th, 2003
• Allergy and eczema – in cooperation with the American College of Allergy Asthma and Immunology. Alessandro Fiocchi & Patrizia Restani, co-chairs – 23-24 January 2004, Milan Italy
• The management of pediatric allergy: in whose hands? – from bench to bedside. In cooperation with the American College of Allergy Asthma and Immunology and the European Academy of Allergy and Clinical Immunology. Alessandro Fiocchi & Patrizia Restani, co-chairs – 20-21 January 2006, Milan Italy
• The 11th Annual Meeting od the Italian Society for Pediatric Respiratory Diseases – Angelo Barbato & Alessandro Fiocchi, co-chairs - 21st –23rd June, 2007, Milan Italy
• The World Allergy Organization. World Allergy Congress 2007, 2nd-6th December 2007. Food Allergy Symposium. Hugh Sampson & Alessandro Fiocchi co-chairs, December 6th 2007, Bangkok Thailand.
• XIII International Food Allergy Symposium – Sami Bahna & Alessandro Fiocchi, co-chairs – held in conjunction with the annual Meeting of the American College of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology, November 5th – 11th 2009. Miami Beach, FL, November 11th, 2009
• Adverse Reactions to Bovine Proteins – Changing Patterns, Mechanisms and Treatment – II cooperation with the World Allergy Organization. Alessandro Fiocchi & Patrizia Restani, co-chairs 4th – 6th February 2010, Milan Italy
• The 6th Milan Meeting. The management of paediatric allergy: not everybody’s cup of tea. In cooperation with the World Allergy Organisation and the American College of Allergy Asthma and Immunology. Alessandro Fiocchi, Chair – 11th-12th February 2012, Milan Italy
• XIV International Food Allergy Symposium – Amal Assa’ad, Sami Bahna & Alessandro Fiocchi, co-chairs – held in conjunction with the annual Meeting of the American College of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology, November 4th – 13th 2012. Anaheim, CA, November 5th, 2012
• The 1st Rome Meeting. EBM prevention and management of pediatric allergy. In cooperation with the World Allergy Organisation and the American College of Allergy Asthma and Immunology. Alessandro Fiocchi, Chair – 29th-30th January 2015, Rome, Italy
• WAO Symposium: Hot Topics in Allergy: Pediatric and Regulatory Aspects. Ignacio Ansotegui, Sergio Bonini, Walter Canonica, Paolo Rossi, Mario Sanchez Borges, Alberto Martelli Scientific Committee. Alessandro Fiocchi, chair. Rome, 27th – 29th April, 2017
• WAO Symposium: Allergic disease from…. to. From the mechanisms to the organs. From infancy to adulthood. From mild to severe. Motohiro Ebisawa, Mario Sanchez Borges, Ignacio Ansotegui, Francesca Levi-Schaffer, Luis Caraballo, Luciana Kase Tanno, Michael Levin, Bryan Martin, Mario Morais Almeida, Giovanni Passalacqua, Gary Wong, Anahi Yanez Scientific Committee (virtual WISC). Rome, July 16th -18th, 2020

Medicine and Pediatrics
Ohio State University
Columbus, OH, United States

Dr. Bryan Martin is an Emeritus Professor of Medicine and Pediatrics at The Ohio State University in Columbus, Ohio. At Ohio State, Dr. Martin previously served as the Associate Dean for Graduate Medical Education, the Designated Institutional Official, and the Associate Medical Director of University Hospital. Before becoming Associate Dean, Dr. Martin was the Chief of the Allergy and Immunology Section, and the Director of the Allergy and Immunology Fellowship. Prior to his arrival at Ohio State University, Dr. Martin spent 28 years in the United States Army, retiring from the military as a Colonel in 2008. His last military assignment was at Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington, DC, where he served in such capacities as the Chair of the Department of Allergy and Immunology, Director of the National Capital Consortium Allergy Immunology Fellowship, Specialty Consultant to the Army Surgeon General for Allergy, Immunology and Immunizations and Founding Associate Director of the National Vaccine Healthcare Centers Network. In all, Dr. Martin has been a program director in Allergy and Immunology for over 16 years.

Active in Organized Medicine at all levels, Dr. Martin is the past Chair of the International Collaboration in Asthma, Allergy and Immunology (iCAALL), Past President of the American College of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology, and past Chair of the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME) Allergy and Immunology Residency Review Committee. He also served on the Board of Directors of the Joint Council of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology and as a member of the Food and Drug Administration Allergenic Products Advisory Committee. 

A Distinguished Fellow of the American College of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology, Dr. Martin is the author of over 60 peer-reviewed publications and book chapters. He is the recipient of a number of national awards to include: the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education Parker J. Palmer “Courage to Teach” Award for innovative teaching and health care as a program director (2012); the Lewis Aspey Mologne Award, the Army Surgeon General’s Award for Military Academic Excellence, given annually to the Army Medical Corps officer who best exhibits a balance between outstanding leadership in military medicine and leadership in academics at a national level (2006); and the Order of Military Medical Merit, which recognizes distinguished service, the highest standards of integrity and moral character, an outstanding degree of professional competence (2001). Dr. Martin has also been inducted as a member of the Ohio Veteran's Hall of Fame. 

Dr. Martin did his Internal Medicine Residency at William Beaumont Army Medical Center in El Paso, TX, where he was selected to be the Chief Resident, and his Allergy Immunology Fellowship at Fitzsimmons Army Medical Center, in Denver, CO.

Clinical Research Center for Allergy & Rheumatology National Hospital Organization
Sagamihara National Hospital
Sagamihara, Kanagawa, Japan

Motohiro Ebisawa is the Director of Clinical Research Center for Allergy and Rheumatology, Sagamihara National Hospital and the Professor of the Jikei University School of Medicine. He graduated from the Jikei University School of Medicine in Tokyo in 1985 and took short visiting resident course in the department of Pediatrics at St. Thomas Hospital in London, UK.

He completed his postgraduate course at the Jikei University School of Medicine, where he earned his PhD. He did postdoctoral fellowship on the analysis of “eosinophil selective recruitment” in Dr. Robert P. Schleimer’s laboratory at Johns Hopkins University from 1991-1993. He also had a chance to visit Dr. Hugh Sampson’s food allergy unit regularly during his fellowship. After coming back to Japan, he started food allergy practice and research at Sagamihara National Hospital since 1995.

He has published more than 250 papers on international journals in addition to numerous numbers on domestic ones. He is a leading expert in food allergies in Japan and currently serves as the President of Japanese Society of Allergology and Asian Pacific Academy of Pediatric Allergy, Respirology and Immunology. He is the Past-President of WAO. He also serves as associate editor of PAI, JACI G, and COACI.

Head of Department of Allergy and Immunology at Hospital Quironsalud Bizkaia, Bilbao, Spain
Executive Medical Director of the World Allergy Organization (WAO)
Treasurer of Global Association of Asthma (INTERASMA)
Vice-President of the Latin-American Society of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology (SLAAI)

TRAINING

After finishing his medical studies at the University of Basque Country in Bilbao, Ignacio J. Ansotegui moved to the Department of Immunology and Department of Clinical Immunology at the Karolinska Institute and Karolinska Hospital of Stockholm, respectively. He completed his Spanish PhD studies in Sweden, specializing in Immunology. Later, at the University of Rome “La Sapienza”, he got his second specialty in Allergology and Clinical Immunology. He is also specialist in Occupational Medicine

Dr. Ansotegui has chaired the Research Committee of the Latin-American Society of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology (SLAAI). Previously he served as Vice-chair (2009-2010) and Chair (2011-2012) of Iberian Chapter and member of the Board of Directors of SLAAI (2013-2014 and 2020-2023). Dr Ansotegui was Secretary General of INTERASMA from 2003 to 2006 and he also was Member at Large (2001 to 2003), 2nd Vice President (2003 –2005), Historian (2005 to 2007) and Chair of Ethics Committee (2007-2010) of the European Academy of Allergy and Clinical Immunology (EAACI).  Between 2008 and 2017 he has also been secretary of the European CME Accreditation Committee. In 2008, he was the President of the European Congress of Allergy and Clinical Immunology that was held in Barcelona.

In the World Allergy Organization, Dr. Ansotegui served for four years as member at large of the Board of Directors, two years as Secretary General, two years as President Elect of the Organization and has been President of the Organization 2018-2019.

In 2007, he received the Distinguished Clinical Services Award from the Argentinean Association of Allergy and Clinical Immunology and was honored with the International Distinguished Fellow Award from the American College of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology. In 2014, he has been awarded as Honorary Member of the Italian Society of Allergology, Asthma and Clinical Immunology, and one year later, Honorary Member of the Georgian Association of Allergology and Clinical Immunology. Dr Ansotegui has also been awarded as Honorary Member of the Lebanese Society of Allergy and Immunology and Honorary Member of the Argentinean Association of Allergology and Clinical Immunology.

Ignacio J. Ansotegui has published over 200 peer reviewed articles and he has been involved as editorial board member of several journals of the specialty: Allergy, J Investigational Allergy and Clinical Immunology, International Archives of Allergy and Immunology, Annals of Respiratory Medicine, International Trends in Immunity, Asthma Research and Practice, Alergología e Inmunología Clínica and Clinical and Molecular Allergy

Corporate Allergy and Immunology Division, Hamad Medical Corporation, affiliated with Qatar University (QU) College of Medicine and Weill corneal Medical College-Qatar (WCMC-Q).
Doha, Qatar.

Dr. Maryam A. Y. Al-Nesf Al-Mansouri is the Head of the Corporate Division of Allergy and Immunology at Hamad Medical Corporation, Doha, Qatar, and the Program Director for Qatar’s ACGME-I accredited combined pediatric and adult fellowship training program in Allergy and Immunology. The A&I Division, established in 2010, is the primary tertiary referral center for the adult population with Allergy/Immunology disorders in Qatar. The center is designated as a World Allergy Organization Center of Excellence and has received recognition as both a Urticaria Center of Reference and Excellence (UCARE), and an Angioedema Center of Reference and Excellence (ACARE) from the Global Allergy & Asthma European Network (GA²LEN).

Dr. Al-Nesf earned her MD from Sultan Qaboos University, Oman (1991-1999), followed by an Arab Board of Medical Specialization in Internal Medicine (2005), and fellowships in Pulmonary Medicine and Allergy and Clinical Immunology in Qatar (2005–2009). She also completed advanced training in immunology at Addenbrooke’s Hospital, Cambridge, UK (2009–2010). She pursued further education with a master’s degree in molecular medicine from the University of Bristol/ UK (2019-2020), followed by PhD in molecular medicine from University College of London/ UK (2021-2025).

For over 15 years, Dr. Al-Nesf has been dedicated to educating undergraduates, Master’s and PhD candidates at Qatar University as well as Internal Medicine residents and fellows as part of her role as core faculty. She is an Associate Professor of Internal Medicine at Qatar University’s College of Medicine and an Adjunct Associate Professor at Weill Cornell Medical College-Qatar. A prolific researcher, she has authored over 70 medical publications and book chapters and holds patents in therapeutic approaches. Dr. Al-Nesf is an Associate Editor in Qatar Medical Journal.

Her research focuses on precision medicine and personalized diagnostic and treatment strategies, utilizing OMICs technologies. Areas of interest include allergen specific immunotherapy, asthma and allergic rhinitis, chronic cough, COVID-19, inborn error of immunity, urticaria, hereditary angioedema, and atopic dermatitis. She has also led projects related to sports medicine and doping behaviors and other non-communicable diseases. Since 2016, she has spearheaded Qatar’s Pollen and Fungal Calendar and Atlas Projects and has been awarded multiple grants from Qatar Research, Development, and Innovation Council (QRDI), Qatar National Research Fund (QNRF), Qatar’s principal national research funding entity. Additionally, she has secured competitive grants from Hamad Medical Research Centers for studies addressing local environmental factors, lung health, and allergic diseases.

Dr. Al-Nesf is Vice President and Secretary General of the Qatar Allergy and Immunology Society established in 2018, that is a chapter of Qatar Medical Association. The society is a full member of both the World Allergy Organization (WAO) and the International Union of Immunological Societies (IUIS). She is also a fellow of American College of Allergy Asthma and Immunology (ACAAI), and American College of Chest Physicians (ACCP) and a member of American Thoracic Society (ATS), American Academy of Allergy Asthma and Immunology (AAAAI), European Academy of Allergy and Clinical Immunology (EAACI), and European Society for Immunodeficiencies (ESID). Additionally, she is a member of the Pan-Arab Society of Allergy, Asthma, and immunology (PASAAI) which is a member regional organization affiliated with the WAO.

Maryam Al-Nesf has been elected as Member-at-Large to the WAO Board of Directors, for a four-year term, starting in January 2025.

Dr. Al-Nesf is committed to advancing clinical practice, mentorship, and innovative research to drive excellence in the field of Allergy and Immunology.

Division of Immunology/Allergy University of Cincinnati
Bernstein Allergy Group
Bernstein Clinical Research Center
Cincinnati, OH, United States

Jonathan A. Bernstein, MD University of Cincinnati Medical Center (Cincinnati, OH, United States) Jonathan Bernstein is Professor of Clinical Medicine in the Department of Internal Medicine, Division of Rheumatology, Allergy and Immunology at the University of Cincinnati Medical Center and a partner of the Bernstein Allergy Group and Clinical Research Center. He received his MD from the University of Cincinnati College of Medicine (1981-1985), completed his residency in Internal Medicine at the Cleveland Clinic Hospital (1985–1988) and Allergy/Clinical Immunology training at Northwestern University (1988–1990).

He has a spectrum of research interests including allergic skin diseases notably chronic urticaria, angioedema, atopic dermatitis, mast cell disorders, chronic cough, asthma and rhinosinusitis. He is President-Elect of the AAAAI and a member of the AAAAI foundation, the Joint Task Force Guideline committee, the WAO and Interasma board of directors, GINA advocacy council, and HAEA organization medical advisory board. He is also chairperson of Allergists for Israel. Dr. Bernstein is the recipient of Distinguished Clinician Awards from the AAAAI and WAO (2019). He has authored over 400 peer-reviewed articles and over 40 book chapters and is the editor of five books pertaining to asthma, rhinitis and immunodeficiency.

Faculty of Medicine, Department of Medicine, Division of Allergy and Clinical Immunology
Chulalongkorn University
Bangkok, Thailand

Hiroshi Chantaphakul, M.D., is a specialist in Internal Medicine, Allergy/Immunology, and Rheumatology at Chulalongkorn University, Faculty of Medicine, Department of Medicine, Division of Allergy and Clinical Immunology, Bangkok, Thailand. After completing advanced medical training and achieving board certifications in the United States, Dr. Chantaphakul has dedicated his career to advancing allergy and immunology care in Thailand.

His clinical and research interests include asthma management, biologic treatments, immunotherapy, atopic dermatitis, rhinitis, immunodeficiency, and autoimmune diseases. As President of the Allergy Asthma Immunology Association of Thailand (AAIAT), Dr. Chantaphakul oversees Thailand’s Allergy and Immunology fellowship training programs and contributes significantly to national healthcare policy, including the development of guidelines on immunotherapy and biologics. He also collaborates with the Thai FDA on medication approvals.

Dr. Chantaphakul is actively involved in research and clinical work, with a particular focus on improving patient outcomes in asthma, immunotherapy, and biologic treatments in Thailand.

Head of the Department of Immunology
Tbilisi State Medical University (TSMU)
Tblisi, Georgia

Professor Tinatin Chikovani is a Head of the Department of Immunology at Tbilisi State Medical University (TSMU) in Georgia. She received her MD from the Tbilisi State Medical Institute (1974-1980), completed residency in Internal Medicine (1980–1982) and was awarded PhD degree in “Allergology and Immunology”(1989).

With over four decades of experience in medical research, teaching, and leadership, Dr. Chikovani has significantly contributed to the field of immunology and its advancement in Georgia. Her career highlights include serving as the Rector’s Advisor and Dean of the Faculty of Medicine at TSMU, roles in which she has championed strategic advancements in medical education and research.

Prof. Chikovani has a deep background in immunological studies, focusing on immune regulation, aging, and immune-mediated diseases. As a principal investigator and collaborator on multiple national and international research projects, she has established partnerships that drive innovative research and scientific discovery. She is also the author of the only Georgian-language immunology textbook for medical students. In addition, across the years she has supervised and mentored more than 20 PhD students, as well as assisted them in securing positions in leading research centers abroad (in Germany, USA).

Dr. Chikovani is actively involved in professional and community organizations. In 2006 she founded the Department of Immunology at the Tbilisi State Medical University (TSMU), leading medical school in Georgia and since then she runs the department and research group at this unit. She is the co-founder and the former president of the Georgian Association of Allergology and Clinical Immunology (GAACI) and has held a leadership position in the International Union of Immunological Societies (IUIS). Her global perspective, combined with her commitment to education, has earned her recognition, including the Presidential fellowship (first degree) and Shota Rustaveli National Scientific Foundation Award for the Best Group of Scientists (Head of group) of 2017.

University of Iowa Carver College of Medicine
University of Iowa Health Care
Iowa City, IA, United States

Dr. Mary Beth Fasano is Professor Emerita Internal Medicine/Pediatrics at the University of Iowa Carver College of Medicine, University of Iowa Health Care in Iowa City, IA.  Prior to transitioning to emeritus status, Dr. Fasano served as the Program Director for the Allergy/Immunology fellowship in the Division of Immunology at the University of Iowa, as well as a medical consultant for Iowa’s SCID Newborn Screening Program, and Chair of the Allergy/Immunology Clinical Teams Workgroup.

Dr. Fasano has served in numerous leadership and volunteer positions within academic medicine.  She is a current member of the American Board of Pediatrics (ABP) MOCA-Peds Exam Writing Committee, Chair of the American Academy of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology (AAAAI) Infrastructure Task Force, Co-Chair of the AAAAI Foundation Council Subcommittee on Lectureships and Major Gifts, and a member of the AAAAI Office of Medical Education and AAAAI Awards committee.  She has previously served as President of the AAAAI (2020-2021), President of the Iowa Society of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology (2013-2014), Chair of the American Board of Allergy and Immunology (2012) and a member of the ABAI Board of Directors (2008-2013), Member of the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME) Allergy and Immunology Review committee (2014-2020) and Chair of the AAAAI Annual Meeting Program Committee (2016-2018).

A native of Baltimore, Maryland, Dr. Fasano received her MD from Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center in Lubbock, TX before completing both her Pediatric residency and Allergy/Immunology fellowship at Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore.  Prior to joining the University of Iowa in 2004, she served on the faculty at Wake Forest University School of Medicine in Winston-Salem, NC.  She remains passionate about clinical allergy & immunology, in particular inborn errors of immunity and allergic & immunologic skin diseases and maintains a strong interest in medical education and professional and leadership development. 

• Specialty in Internal Medicine by the University Hospital of the UANL
• Fellowship in Pediatric Allergy and Clinical Immunology, U.C.S.D. by the University of California-San Diego
• Allergy and Clinical Immunology Specialization at the Regional Center of Allergy and Clinical Immunology of the University Hospital of the UANL
• Director of International Relations of the University Autonomade Nuevo León
• PhD in Allergy and Clinical Immunology by the University Hospital of the UANL as well as Head and Professor of the WAO Center of Excellence, the Regional Center of Allergy and Clinical Immunology in Monterrey, Nuevo León, México since 2000.
• Level 1 Researcher by CONACT (National Committee of Science and Technology)
• 2018 Outstanding Clinician Award by the World Allergy Organization (WAO)
• Member-at-Large and Current Scientific Chair of the Education & Training Committee of WAO
• Past president of the Latin American Society of Asthma, Allergy and Clinical Immunology (SLAAI)
• Past President of UNASMA (International Asthma Fundation)
• Representative of Mexico at GARD
• Fellow of the American Academy of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology (AAAAI) and the American College of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology (ACAAI)
• Past President of the Mexican College of Clinical Immunology and Allergy (CMICA)
• Mexican College of Clinical Immunology and Allergy representative to EAACI
• Over 200 publications, 25 chapters in books and more than 340 current research protocols

Department of Allergy and Clinical Immunology

National Research Institute for Child Health and Development
Tokyo, Japan

Dr. Hideaki Morita is the chief of the Department of Allergy and Clinical Immunology at the National Research Institute for Child Health and Development. He graduated from the Keio University School of Medicine in 2001 and completed his postgraduate course at the Keio University School of Medicine in 2012. He worked on the roles of group 2 innate lymphoid cells during his postdoctoral research at the Swiss Institute of Allergy and Asthma Research (SIAF), University of Zurich, and has started to work as chief at the Department of Allergy and Clinical Immunology at the National Research Institute for Child Health and Development since 2016. He is a world leading expert in non-IgE-mediated food allergy including food protein-induced enterocolitis syndrome (FPIES), primary atopic disorders, and clinical immunology. He has published more than 140 papers and received international awards, such as the EAACI, PhARF award (2019). He also holds editorial board positions with prestigious journals, including the Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology (JACI), Allergy, and Pediatric Allergy and Immunology (PAI), and serves as Associate Editor for Allergology International.

New York University Grossman Long Island School of Medicine (NYU-LISOM)
NYU Langone Hospital-Long Island
New York, NY, United States

Dr. Luz Fonacier is Professor of Medicine at New York University Grossman Long Island School of Medicine (NYU-LISOM). She is Head of Allergy and Training Program Director in NYU Langone Hospital-Long Island.  She completed residencies in Dermatology and Internal Medicine, a fellowship in Allergy and Immunology in New York Hospital-Cornell Medical Center, and a fellowship in Dermal Immunology at NYU Medical Center. In her institution (formerly Winthrop University Hospital) she was the first female Professor in Medicine and to date continues to participate in women’s leadership and mentorship in the NYU-LISOM.  

Dr Fonacier was president of the American College of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology [ACAAI] (the first Asian American and the 4th female) and chair of the American Board of Allergy and Immunology (the first to hold both positions simultaneously). In both boards she focused on diversity, the theme of her presidency was “Innovate, Diversify and Expand”. She help establish the ACAAI Diversity Committee and developed and participated in educational programs for physicians and patients including “Diagnosing and Treating Atopic Dermatitis in Skin of Color”. This Eczema in Skin of Color campaign led to the ACAAI & AAN award of the Ragan’s CSR & Diversity Awards. It was also during her presidency that COVID brought our world down on our knees.  The College formed a COVID Task Force and online COVID-19 Resource Center

In the WAO, she currently chairs the WAO Skin Allergy-Atopic Dermatitis and Eczema Committee. She is an active member of the American Board of Allergy and Immunology Test Writing Committee

She was Chair of the ACAAI International Committee and established a fund in the ACAAI Allergist Foundation for international projects. In her capacity as an officer of the ACAAI, she served in the Nominating Committee and House of Delegates of the World Allergy Organization (WAO).  She has been an invited speaker in WAO, European Academy of Allergy and Clinical Immunology (EAACI), Asian Pacific Association of Allergy Asthma and Clinical Immunology (APAAACI), and Philippine Society of Allergy Asthma and Immunology (PSAAI); and in meetings in many countries including Africa, Argentina, Ecuador, Italy, Kazakhstan, Mexico, Philippines, Spain, Turkey etc. She delivered the Professor Cas Motala Memorial Lecture for the Allergy Society of South Africa and the Arturo Rotor Memorial Lecture in the Phil Society of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology Convention.

She has been invited to deliver the keynote address in the APAAACI 2022 Congress. She is a member of the committee for the update of the EAACI/GA²LEN/EuroGuiDerm/WAO Urticaria Guideline and the GA²LEN/ACARE/EAACI/APAACI/AAAAI/ACAAI HAEi project to establish a global consensus on the definition, acronyms, nomenclature, and classification of angioedema (DANCE).

She is the recipient of numerous awards and lectureships including the 2024 ACAAI Gold Headed Cane Award, the 2024 ACAAI Distinguish Fellow Award; the 1998 and 2002 Presidential Award of the Asian Pacific Association of Allergy and Clinical Immunology, the Edward J. O'Connell Lectureship, ARTrust™ AAAAI Lectureship, ACAAI John P. McGovern Lectureship, ACAAI Jean A. Chapman Memorial Lectureship, and ACAAI “Women in Allergy Award”.  She is the first honorary Fellow of the Philippine Society of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology. She served as president of the Long Island Allergy Society.

She has published 20 textbook chapters and over 100 journal articles. Because of her training in dermatology, allergy and immunology, her special interest are the dermatologic manifestations of allergic diseases.

Pediatric Allergy, Immunology, and Rheumatology Unit Children's Hopsital, Ain Shams University
Cairo, Egypt

Elham Hossny is professor of pediatrics, and Ex-Head of the Pediatric Allergy, Immunology and Rheumatology Unit, Children’s Hospital of Ain Shams University which is a WAO International Center of Excellence since 2018. The unit is a tertiary referral center established in 1988 as the first training center in Egypt for pediatric Allergy/Immunology.

She served on the WAO Board of Directors before (2012-2017) and is member of many WAO scientific committees and associate editor of the WAO Journal and Web Editorial Board. She is a fellow of the American Academy of Allergy, Asthma, and Immunology (AAAAI), member of the European Academy of Allergy and Clinical Immunology (EAACI) and affiliate member of the American College of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology (ACAAI). Since 2010, she has been under assignment as temporary advisor of the World Health Organization (WHO). She is currently Vice-President of the Pan-Arab Society of Allergy, Asthma, and immunology (PASAAI) which is a member regional organization of the WAO.

Prof. Hossny is Secretary General of the Egyptian Society of Pediatric Allergy and Immunology (ESPAI) established in 2002. She is Co-Editor-in-Chief of the Egyptian Journal of Pediatric Allergy and Immunology. The journal has been indexed in the web of science since 2019.

She received the National Excellence State Award in Medicine (2009), the National Incentive State Award in Medicine (2001), and the Ain Shams University Merit Award (2020), and in 2018, she won, with co-authors, the Elsevier Atlas Award for featured article.

Prof. Hossny has 115 publications in allergy, immunology and rheumatology in international and Egyptian peer-reviewed periodicals and has co-supervised 89 Masters’ and Doctorate theses in pediatrics and pediatric allergy/immunology. She participated as speaker or chairperson in 163 international, regional, and local congresses and webinars in allergy/immunology and pediatrics. She has been member of the standing committee for promotion of pediatric faculty members for three cycles between 2008 and 2022.

View my citations here: Scopus, Google Scholar, Orcid.org, Loop

School of Medicine
Autonomous University of Hidalgo State
Pachuca, Hidalgo, Mexico

Dr. Ortega Martell was born in Mexico City, where he completed his primary studies and career in Medicine in La Salle University, graduating in 1981-1986 generation. He then carried out the specialty of Pediatrics from 1988 to 1991 at the National Institute of Pediatrics in Mexico City and afterwards the sub-specialty of Pediatric Allergy from 1991 to 1993. Dr. Ortega-Martell completed several courses in basic Immunology and Clinical Immunology in the Department of Immunology of the National School of Biological Sciences of the National Polytechnic Institute. In 1998 he received training on the HIV infection and the acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) at the University of Saskatchewan, Canada.

Dr. Ortega Martell worked at the Immunology Department of the National Institute of Pediatrics in Mexico City from 1993 to 2001, and later as head of the Department of Allergy and Immunology at the Children´s Hospital of Pachuca, Hidalgo, Mexico from 2001 to 2006. He has lectured in several courses of Immunology at the National Institute of Pediatrics and, since 2002, as Professor and founder of the Chair of Immunology of the degree course in Medicine at the Institute of Health Sciences of the Autonomous University of the State of Hidalgo (UAEH) in Mexico.

Dr. Ortega Martell has worked on the Board of the National Council of Allergy and Clinical Immunology (CONICA) and was Treasurer from 2016-2017, Secretary from 2018-2019 and President elect from 2022-2023. He also has served as Secretary of the Latin American Society of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology (SLAAI) from 2002-2003 and the Board of Directors of the Mexican College of Pediatricians specialists in Allergy and Clinical Immunology (CoMPEDIA) where he served as President during the 2010-2011 period, and he is currently the Academic Coordinator of this College. He is also an active member of the Mexican College of Allergy and Clinical Immunology (CMICA), the National Confederation of Mexican Pediatricians (CONAPEME), the American Academy of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology (AAAAI) and a Member of the World Allergy Organization (WAO) Board of Directors from 2016 until present (Member-at-Large from 2016-2019, ex-officio from 2020- 2022 and Member-at-large from 2023-2024).

Dr. Ortega Martell has collaborated in the organization of various national and international meetings, including two World Allergy Congresses (ICACI Cancún 1997 and WAC Cancún 2011). He has also participated as speaker on conferences related to pathophysiology, diagnosis and treatment of allergic diseases (asthma, rhinitis, atopic dermatitis, urticaria, food allergy), as well as with the timely detection of primary immunodeficiencies and autoimmune diseases; topics on which has several publications. Dr. Ortega Martell currently lives with his family in the city of Pachuca, Hidalgo, Mexico, combining the private consultation with the academic activities at the Autonomous University of the State of Hidalgo (UAEH).

Clinical Immunology and Allergy Division
University of São Paulo
São Paulo, Brazil

Division of Allergy
Department of Pulmonology Hôpital Arnaud de Villeneuve
University Hospital of Montpellier
Montpellier, France

Dr. Luciana Kase Tanno graduated in Medicine in 2001. After training in Internal Medicine (2002-2004), she specialized in Allergy and Clinical Immunology at the University of São Paulo, where she developed her PhD project (2011-2014). In 2006, she completed the residency years and became a Board Certified Allergist in Brazil as a member of the Brazilian Association of Allergy and Immunology (ASBAI).

All along her training, she was awarded with many national and international prizes due to the work developed in the field of anaphylaxis, drug hypersensitivity and pharmaco-genetics. She had a visiting investigator position at the Department of Pharmacogenetics of the University of Liverpool (2011) and was awarded with the European Academy of Allergy and Clinical Immunology (EAACI) clinical fellowship at the Division of Allergy, Department of Pneumologie and Addictologie, Hôpital Arnaud de Villeneuve – CHU de Montpellier (2012).
Dr. Tanno has worked as a hospital practitioner and medical assistant of the Department of Allergy of public and private hospitals in São Paulo (Hospital Sírio-Libanês, Hospital Nipo-Brasileiro, Servidor Público Estadual de São Paulo Hospital), contributing with the training of residents from 2013 to 2015.

Professor in health science – Allergy and Clinical Immunology at the Postgraduate Program in Health Sciences, Medical Assistance to the São Paulo State Civil Servants since 2014, developed her post-doctoral fellowship at Departement of Pneumologie and Addictologie, Hôpital Arnaud de Villeneuve – CHU de Montpellier and the Sorbonne Universités, Paris, where she is also affiliated.

Dr. Tanno has been actively involved in activities addressed to Junior Members (JMs) worldwide. She served as an EAACI JM since 2007, then as founding co-chair of the ASBAI JMs (2010), and a founding member of the World Allergy Organization (WAO) JMs group (2011). As chair of the WAO JMs (2014-2015), and the SLAAI JMs (2015), she had the opportunity to develop many academic activities to support quality training of JMs in different countries. Dr. Tanno currently serves as the WAO Junior Members Senior Advisor.

Since 2007, Dr. Tanno is a frequent speaker in national and international congresses. Her main interests are: Anaphylaxis, drug allergy, skin allergies, Classification of allergic and hypersensitivity conditions, International Classification of Diseases (ICD) and other WHO international classifications.

She has been substantially contributing with peer-review publications and is currently reviewer of diverse international journals and editor-at-large of the WAO Journal.

Since 2012, together with Professor Demoly, she has been moving efforts for the representation of allergic and hypersensitivities through the World Health Organization (WHO) International Classification of Diseases (ICD) 11th revision. This initiative, called ALLERGY in ICD-11, has been acknowledged by the Joint Allergy Academies* and the WHO ICD governance, with whom bilateral collaboration was established. Since 2014, she has served as co-chair of the Allergy and Immunology working group of the WHO ICD revision project. The process has resulted in the pioneer “Allergic and hypersensitivity conditions” chapter in the ICD-11. In 2017, Dr. Tanno has been nominated by the WHO as one of the 20 board members of the Medical and Scientific Advisory Committee to support the WHO ICD and other international classifications. Due to the quality of work, the Montpellier WHO Collaborating Center (WHO CC) for the Scientific Classification of Allergic and Hypersensitivity Diseases was established in June 2018, under her direction.

* Joint Allergy Academies: American Academy of Allergy Asthma and Immunology (AAAAI), European Academy of Allergy and Clinical Immunology (EAACI), World Allergy Organization (WAO), American College of Allergy Asthma and Immunology (ACAAI), Asia Pacific Association of Allergy, Asthma and Clinical Immunology (APAAACI), Latin American Society of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology (SLAAI)

Professor of Allergy and Pediatric Allergy National Kapodistrian University of Athens
Athens, Greece

Nikolaos (Nikos) Papadopoulos is a world leading expert in allergy and asthma, focusing on the role of infection and its interaction with atopy, as keystone events of allergy pathophysiology as well as targets for treatment. In the course of this career, he has identified some of the key mechanisms leading from common viral exposures to asthma exacerbations and allergy persistence.

He is Professor and Head of the Allergy Department, 2nd Pediatric Clinic, University of Athens; also Honorary Professor at the University of Manchester and at OPRI, Singapore.

He has supervised more than 20 PhDs, organized over 100 educational events and has trained doctors in the clinic and researchers in the lab. He is invited speaker at international events more than 30 times a year. He has participated and led several high-impact EU research projects from FP5 all the way to Horizon Europe (2022). He has actively served many international societies, most notably EAACI (President 2013-2015), the Respiratory Effectiveness Group (REG, President 2018-2020) and currently Board Member of WAO.

He has received several international awards, among other, the EAACI Clemens von Pirquet Award (2019), the PhARF award (2010), the Klosterfrau International Award (2003) and the ERS Annual Award for Pediatric Respiratory Research in Europe (2004). He has published over 500 papers, receiving more than 50000 citations and an h-index of >100 (Google Scholar).

He is Editor-in-Chief of Frontiers in Allergy and Associate Editor of Clinical & Translational Allergy.

Currently he is exploring the role of the respiratory virome in asthma, trialling new interventions in milk and nut allergy, evaluating potential interventions against indoor air pollution at schools, while he is leading PeARL (Pediatric Asthma in Real-Life), a think tank that aims to optimise pediatric asthma management.

Faculty of Health Sciences Catholic University of Salta
Salta, Argentina

Dr René Maximiliano Gómez gained his medical degree in 1991 at the Catholic University of Córdoba, Argentina, and he presented his PhD thesis there in May 2016. He is a board-certified specialist in Allergy and Immunology both at Argentinean Association of Allergy & Clinical Immunology and at the National University of Córdoba, Argentina, and a consultant in Allergy, Asthma & Immunology Unit at Alas Medical Institute in Salta, Argentina. He has worked as Medical Director at this last institution, and in the academic field as an invited professor in Immunology (Veterinary Sciences at the Catholic University of Salta) and Dermatology (Faculty of Medicine at the National University of Salta, Argentina).

From April 2020 was the Director of School of Health Sciences, and from 2023 becomes Dean of the recently nominated Faculty of Health Sciences, at Catholic University of Salta, Argentina. He is the current President of Ethics’ Committee in Human Research at the above-mentioned University.

Dr Gómez is President of the Ayre Foundation (at Alas Medical Institute), leading the education and research on allergy and respiratory diseases. He is also a Consultant in Allergy & Immunology at Alas Medical Institute in Salta, Argentina.

He served as Scientific Secretary at the Latin American Society of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology (SLaai) in 2013 and held the post until 2017. He was General Secretary of SLaai 2017–18 and Scientific Director of Argentinean Association of Allergy & Clinical Immunology (AAAeIC) 2018–2019, becoming the President of AAAeIC in 2022. He is also a committee member on paediatric asthma at the World Allergy Organization, and associate editor of WAO Journal.

Dr Gómez has authored and co-authored over 50 peer-reviewed publications. His research focuses on allergens and indoor pollution in asthma/allergic rhinitis, parasites and atopy, chronic urticaria, chronic rhino sinusitis with nasal polyposis, allergen immunotherapy and registries for allergic diseases.

Professor of Medicine, Cleveland Clinic Lerner College of Medicine Staff, Department of Allergy and Clinical Immunology, Cleveland Clinic
Cleveland, OH, United States

David Lang received his M.D. from University of Michigan, completed Internal Medicine training at Henry Ford Hospital, Allergy/Immunology fellowship at Scripps Clinic, and Medical Education Fellowship at Cleveland Clinic. Dr. Lang has carried out a number of research projects, including studies of aspirin exacerbated respiratory disease, asthma, anaphylaxis, chronic urticaria, and drug allergy. He has published more than 160 peer-reviewed manuscripts in a variety of journals including New England Journal of Medicine, Annals of Internal Medicine, Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology, Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology In Practice, Allergy, Annals of Allergy Asthma and Immunology, & Allergy and Asthma Proceedings. Dr. Lang served as Chair of the Department of Allergy & Clinical Immunology at Cleveland Clinic from 2002-2022, and is a Past President of the American Academy of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology. He has chaired or served on numerous AAAAI committees/task forces, formerly served as Co-Chair of the Joint Task Force on Practice Parameters, and was a member of this Task Force from 2001-2018. He has also served on the Primary Care and Chronic Illness Standing Committee at the National Quality Forum, and previously was Co-Chair of the Pulmonary and Critical Care Standing Committee. Dr. Lang’s medical career has been supported by his wife, Marjory, and children, Madelyn and Jonathan. He appreciates support from family, friends, and colleagues, and is grateful for opportunities to contribute to the field of Allergy and Clinical Immunology.