History
The first specialised centers in immunological research in former
Czechoslovakia were established in 1951. Traditionally, this research was
concentrated at the Charles University and its institutes associated with
medical research such as immunology and microbiology in Praha, Plzeň, and
Hradec Králové and in the Masaryk University in Brno, Komenský University in
Bratislava and Šafařík University in Košice. In the same year, immunology
became one of the major research topics at the Department of Microbiology of
the Biological Institute of the Czechoslovak Academy of Sciences, which in
1952 gave rise to the Institute of Microbiology, Czechoslovak Academy of
Sciences, where the department of immunology was already independent and one
of the biggest departments.
The "Prague immunology school", represented mainly by Profs. Jaroslav Šterzl
and Milan Hašek, was widely recognised in late 50´s and early 60´s thanks to
the breakthrough findings in the area of immunological tolerance (Hašek) and
adaptive phase of the antibody response (Šterzl). The promising development
of Czech immunology closely linked to and validated by fruitful
international research was crudely interrupted by the occupation of
Czechoslovakia by the Warsaw Pact armies, and the subsequent severance from
the international scene that lasted for more than 40 years. Some of the
prominent immunologists emigrated to the USA, Canada and to Western Europe.
Despite these events the contacts persisted to some degree; the first signs
of a more perceptible revival occurred at the beginning of the 80´s.
The establishment of the Czechoslovak (later on Czech and Slovak) Immunological Society
However, already in the 50´s and 60´s Czech immunologists were strongly
aware of the need to meet colleagues on a wider, optimally international,
basis of a specialised society devoted to immunology. This was the reason
why Prof. Šterzl in 1969 established a group for the preparation of
Czechoslovak immunological society as a connecting link with the IUIS, which
was created in the same year. The newborn Czechoslovak Immunological Society
had immediately after its foundation nearly 400 members and Profs. Šterzl
and Říha were invited as its representatives to take part in the IUIS
meeting (Interlaken, Switzerland, September 1970).
In April of that year the first issue of the
Immunological Bulletin was distributed to the members as an official
information vehicle of the, as yet not officially approved, Immunological
Society. It has been published without interruption ever since. It brings
official information on all activities of the Society such as reviews,
original articles, articles devoted to state-of-the-art methodologies, lists
of national and international congresses and seminars, as well as the
minutes of Society committee.
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