NEWS

COST Action CA23142 reminds members and collaborators of upcoming opportunities to present Pneumocystis-related research at Balkan Fungus 2026 and the XVII Spanish Congress of Mycology 2026, both potentially eligible for COST financial support.

The Delve-into-Pneumocystis COST Action (CA23142) is pleased to announce a new Training School focused on evidence synthesis, meta-analysis, and emerging AI-supported methodologies for Pneumocystis research. The course will take place in Seville (Spain) on 22–23 June 2026 in a hybrid format, with funding available for eligible participants according to COST rules. Application deadline: 15 June 2026.

The STSM call for the current Grant Period is now open. Early-career researchers are invited to apply for funded research visits within the Action.

Members of our COST Action CA23142 participated in the International ANID–COST-EU Symposium on Pneumocystis hosted by the University of Chile, strengthening collaboration between European and Latin American researchers working on fungal and respiratory diseases.

The Delve-into-Pneumocystis COST Action CA23142 will hold an online Working Groups 3 and 4 meeting on Monday, 11 May 2026, at 16:00 CET. The meeting will include updates on COST grant opportunities, STSMs, Training Schools, collaborative publications, and future networking and research initiatives within the Action.

Members of the COST Action CA23142 – Delve into Pneumocystis network have published a new study in Frontiers in Cellular and Infection Microbiology exploring the presence of Pneumocystis jirovecii in lung cancer patients. Using a multi-site screening approach, the fungus was detected in respiratory samples, normal adjacent tissue, and occasionally in tumour tissue, suggesting a possible interaction between Pneumocystis colonization and the lung tumour microenvironment.

Dr. Salsoso completed a one-month STSM at the Institute of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine under the supervision of Dr. Fernando Cardoso. The stay focused on advanced training in recombinant antigen production and immunoassay development for Pneumocystis jirovecii, contributing to the diagnostic objectives of COST Action CA23142 – Delve-into-Pneumocystis.

Doloresa Mullaliu, Clinical Microbiologist from Durrës, Albania, completed a Short-Term Scientific Mission (STSM) on Pneumocystis diagnostics, focusing on the use of PCR and Nested PCR techniques to improve molecular detection methods.

Members of COST Action CA23142 Delve-into-Pneumocystis participated in the 12th Trends in Medical Mycology (TIMM-12), with a dedicated symposium on Pneumocystis chaired by Action Chair Dr. Enrique Calderón.

At TIMM-12, COST Action 23142 Delve-into-Pneumocystis members Dr. Solène Le Gal, Dr. Rocío Salsoso, and Dr. Elena Charpentier shared their latest findings, highlighting advances in antifungal resistance, host genetics, and maternal-infant immunity in Pneumocystis jirovecii.

Dr. Solène Le Gal & Dr. Gilles Nevez (CHU de Brest) published a study showing P. jirovecii impdh mutations in SOT recipients, suggesting drug-driven selection & transmission.

The 1st Annual Meeting and Training School "Digital PCR for the diagnosis of Pneumocystis" are scheduled for the 27-29th of August 2025 in Wroclaw, Poland and will be in hybrid.

New work by Dr. Hauser´s research group presented at the 17th European Conference on Fungal Genetics (ECFG17) in Dublin, Ireland (2025).

The Kick-off Meeting and Training School are scheduled for the 19–21st of February 2025 in Seville, Spain, and will take place at the Instituto de Biomedicina de Sevilla (IBiS).

The project “Developing knowledge involved in diagnosis and control of human-diseases related to pneumocystis” (“Delve-into-Pneumocystis”) was selected for funding in the latest COST (European Cooperation in Science and Technology) call funded by the European Union and had its first meeting in Brussels on October.