Tuft or brush cells were initially described by electron microscopy in the 1950s as a rare cell type in various mucosal epithelia. However, its function remained unknown for a long time. Only in the last dacade this cell type has attracted much attention worldwide. Since then, these epithelial cells have been recognized as central players in a wide spectrum of functional networks in physiology and disease. Tuft cells serve as a link between the microbiome, the nervous system, and the immune system, and play a pivotal role in infectious diseases, including parasitic infections. They can also give rise to tumors and are even present in the thymus.

The symposium is the first international forum to enable cross-workgroup knowledge exchange between many different research fields.