This compilation presents minireviews derived from work presented at the Aegean Conference: "First Crossroads between Innate and Adaptive Immunity," which occurred October 914, 2005 at the Hilton Conference Center on the island of Rhodes, Greece. The conference included sessions dedicated to host recognition of and response to pathogens, innate immune networks, antigen presentation, and adaptive immune responses, each headlined by a leading scientist at the forefront of that field. The intimate networking and interaction of dendritic cells, T cells, B cells, NK cells, NK-T cells, and complement during the host response to pathogens and tumors are only now starting to be elucidated. The respective fields that focus on these immune cells and molecules tend to exist in parallel worlds, with minimum exchange of information and ideas. The goal of this conference was to initiate crosstalk between these immunological fields, and to promote and facilitate discussion on the interactions between the innate immune response and the adaptive immune response, and ultimately breed collaboration between these areas of study.