In this article, our experts discuss the highlights and review the most important outcomes of ASHI 2025.
The 51st ASHI Annual Meeting 2025 took place this October in Orlando, Florida, gathering scientists, clinicians, and innovators in the field of histocompatibility and immunogenetics. The conference brought together diverse perspectives, from the expanding role of AI in medicine to advances in HLA typing and precision transplantation.
What was the main focus of ASHI 2025?
One of the main focuses was artificial intelligence (AI). As Jovana Marjanovic, one of our attending scientists, explained “This year’s ASHI conference highlighted the growing impact of AI in histocompatibility and transplantation.”
The opening session, “From Code to Care: AI’s Promise & Pitfalls in Medicine,” immediately set the tone, exploring how AI is transforming the way we understand donor-recipient compatibility and clinical decision-making. Throughout the week, sessions touched on topics such as:
- Machine learning models predicting crossmatch compatibility
- AI agents assisting in tumor board decisions
- Multimodal AI systems to predict allograft rejection
In addition: “A notable talk by Alexander Loupy offered a preview of where the field is heading, especially in cell-free DNA (cfDNA) and xeno-transplantation research,” Jovana shared.
Was there any caution about AI in the transplantation field?
Yes, ASHI’s closing keynote reinforced the idea that AI should enhance, not replace, human expertise. As Jovana added:
“While AI has clear utility in the histocompatibility field, it should not replace human decision-making. Final clinical decisions must remain the responsibility of histocompatibility experts, with AI serving only as a supportive tool. The session also stressed the need to improve AI literacy and technical understanding among healthcare professionals. Finally, the AI models are only as good as the data they are trained on, highlighting the need for curated, centralized data pool for training AI models.”
Antibodies and Virtual Crossmatching
“In addition to AI, the conference focused on two big themes: antibodies and virtual crossmatching. In the U.S., the current standard for solid organ transplantation involves full flow cytometry crossmatching. However, many talks explored alternatives, including: direct molecular typing, eplet-based strategies that may eliminate the need for flow crossmatching, in some cases, even bypassing the recipient’s antibody profile altogether. Organ Procurement Organizations (OPOs) are increasingly interested in transitioning to virtual crossmatching, citing benefits such as: faster organ allocation, improved graft survival, reduced lab workload and resource usage.” – Joavana Marjanovic
Celebrating the Diversity of the HLA Community
For Bram Luiken, Project Manager R&D, who also represented GenDx at the event, the week was a vivid reminder of how diverse and vibrant the HLA community truly is.
“We travelled from the start of Dutch autumn to what felt like full summer in Florida to meet up with a great group of people for an intense but very interesting week,” he said.
“The diversity of knowledge and interests within the HLA community was on display for a week within the confines of a single — be it American-sized — hotel.”
What other topics were discussed during ASHI 2025?
Bram also highlighted the great and varied number of topics addressed at this year’s ASHI: “Great talks were on offer on the subjects of KIR, blood groups, sequencing technologies, sex equality in transplant, population genetics, disease associations, going green in the lab, loss of heterozygosity, governmental policies, molecular mimicry and finally getting your excels files into a database, to name a few.”- Bram Luiken
What events did GenDx host at ASHI 2025?
At ASHI 2025, GenDx hosted several key events, including a sold-out Teaching Session, the annual User Group Meeting, and the Tulip Run, which raised over 7 thousand dollars for a local transplant organization.
The GenDx Teaching Session
Before the main conference began, GenDx hosted a Teaching Session, which completely sold out, at the Hyatt Regency Grand Cypress, titled “Evolving HLA Typing with GenDx: NGS-Turbo, NGS-Pronto, and NGSengine.”
Participants from around the world joined for a day of hands-on HLA typing training, featuring practical demonstrations and case studies for both Illumina and Oxford Nanopore Technologies platforms.
The GenDx User Group Meeting
GenDx’s annual User Group Meeting was extra special this year, as we celebrated “20 Years of Advancing Transplantation, One Typing at a Time.”
The event brought together long-time users, partners, and friends to reflect on two decades of GenDx innovation.
Maarten Penning, General Manager of GenDx, shared our latest company developments before introducing two distinguished speakers:
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Dr. Eszter Lázár-Molnár, University of Utah, presenting “High Resolution Deceased Donor Typing: The Path Forward.”
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Dr. James Lan, University of British Columbia, presenting “NGS-Pronto for Precision Medicine.”
Tulip Run – ASHI 2025
Every year, the Tulip Run brings the ASHI community together for a cause close to our heart.
On Wednesday, October 8, runners and walkers met bright and early at the Hyatt Regency for a 6:30 a.m. start of the run. Together, we raised 7,700 dollars for a local Organ Procurement Organization (OPO) in Orlando. Thank you for everyone who participated!
Want to see more photos from the Tulip Run, click here.