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Mechanobiology in development and disease – Course and Conference Office

EMBO | EMBL Symposium

Mechanobiology in development and disease

Overview

This conference will take place at EMBL Heidelberg, with the option to attend virtually. Proof of COVID-19 vaccination or recovery is required for on-site attendance. Please see EMBL’s COVID-19 safety policy for on-site events. 

Symposium overview

Environmental mechanics impact the behaviour of cells, which in turn modify their surroundings. These bi-directional cell-tissue interactions have important consequences for gene expression, cell fate and function and give rise to transient and permanent tissue modifications. These processes are key for immunity and homeostasis, but also play a role in pathological processes as they are critical for fibrosis, inflammation and cancer metastasis.

This symposium will focus on the interplay of cells with their environment and will bring together clinicians, cell biologists and material scientists interested in mechanobiology at the molecular, cellular and tissue level to approach its role in human physiology and pathology from different perspectives and scales. We will specifically discuss new technological approaches from the field of material sciences that enable the study of mechanobiology in vivo and in vitro, keeping in mind their potential use in a more applied context.

Session topics

  • Subcellular mechanics
  • Cellular dynamics
  • Tissue organisation
  • Multi-tissue interaction
  • Organismal morphogenesis
  • Mechanobiology towards the clinic

Speakers

Keynote speakers

Speakers

Jochen Guck

Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light

Germany

Thomas Lecuit

Collège de France and Institut de Biologie du Développement de Marseille

France

Rong Li

National University of Singapore

Singapore

Pere Roca-Cusachs

Institute for Bioengineering of Catalonia and Universitat de Barcelona

Spain

Pavel Tomancak

Max Planck Institute of Molecular Cell Biology and Genetics

Germany

Sara Wickström

Max Planck Institute for Molecular Biomedicine and University of Helsinki

Finland

Scientific organisers

Prisca Liberali

Friedrich Miescher Institute for Biomedical Research

Switzerland

Conference organiser

Nathalie Sneider

EMBL Heidelberg

Germany

Programme

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  • Recorded talks will be accessible on demand for 2 weeks after the end of the event.
  • All times in the programme below are shown as the time in Europe/Berlin.

Please find the poster listing here.

Day 1 – Sunday 15 May 2022
TimeSpeaker
11:30-13:00Registration and Lunch
13:00-13:15Opening remarks by scientific organisers
13:15-14:15Keynote Lecture 2: Dynamic coupling of signalling, force generation and tissue remodeling during neural tube closure
Ed Munro – University of Chicago, USA
AVAILABLE ON DEMAND AFTER LIVE STREAM
14:15-17:15Session 1
Session chairs: Alba Diz-Muñoz and Carl-Philipp Heisenberg
14:15-14:40Transducing – and shielding – mechanical signals from integrins to the nucleus
Pere Roca-Cusachs – Institute for Bioengineering of Catalonia and Universitat de Barcelona, Spain
AVAILABLE ON DEMAND AFTER LIVE STREAM
14:40-14:55Cytoplasmic forces functionally reorganize nuclear condensates in oocytes
Adel Al Jord – Collège de France, France
AVAILABLE ON DEMAND AFTER LIVE STREAM
14:55-15:40Coffee Break and Meet the speakers
with Ed Munro, Pere Roca-Cusachs and Adel Al Jord, Nimesh Chahare
15:40-16:05Physics of living matter: From molecule to embryo
Sebastian Streichan – University of California, Santa Barbara, USA
AVAILABLE ON DEMAND AFTER LIVE STREAM
16:05-16:20Synthetic epithelial morphogenesis through controlled stretching and buckling
Nimesh Chahare – Institute for Bioengineering of Catalonia, Spain AVAILABLE ON DEMAND AFTER LIVE STREAM
16:20-16:45Mechanical cell cooperation promotes apoptotic cell clearance in the early embryo
Verena Ruprecht – Centre for Genomic Regulation,
Spain
LIVE STREAM ONLY
16:45-17:00Focal adhesion signalling mainly regulates the mechano-responsive dynamics of Yes-associated protein
Windie Hoefs – Francis Crick Institute, UK
AVAILABLE ON DEMAND AFTER LIVE STREAM
17:00-17:15Loss of nuclear volume under confinement
Alice Williart – Institut Curie, France
AVAILABLE ON DEMAND AFTER LIVE STREAM
17:15-18:15Pre-dinner drinks
18:15-19:45Dinner in the Canteen
19:45-21:30After dinner drinks
Day 2 – Monday 16 May 2022
TimeSpeaker
09:15 – 12:00Session 2
Session chairs: Rong Li and Xavier Trepat
09:15-09:40High-throughput mechanical phenotyping for in-vitro diagnostics
Jochen Guck – Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light, Germany
AVAILABLE ON DEMAND AFTER LIVE STREAM
09:40-09:55Programming multicellular interactions and organization using synthetic cell adhesion molecules
Adam Stevens – University of California, San Francisco, USA
AVAILABLE ON DEMAND AFTER LIVE STREAM
09:55-10:10Topological attractors triggered by cell-cell adhesion properties
Bernat Corominas-Murtra – University of Graz, Austria
AVAILABLE ON DEMAND AFTER LIVE STREAM
10:10-10:40Coffee Break and Meet the Speakers
with Verena Ruprecht, Sebastian Streichan and Nimesh Chahare, Bernat Corominas-Murtra, Windie Hoefs, Raphael Reuten, Alice Williart
10:40-11:05Dynamics and mechanics of cell shape during cellular state changes
Ewa Paluch – University of Cambridge, UK
AVAILABLE ON DEMAND AFTER LIVE STREAM
11:05-11:20Membrane-to-Cortex Attachment regulates cortical mechanics
Leanne Strauss – EMBL Heidelberg, Germany
AVAILABLE ON DEMAND AFTER LIVE STREAM
11:20-11:35Mechanochemical rules for membrane-reshaping filaments
Billie Meadowcroft – Institute of Science and Technology Austria, Austria
AVAILABLE ON DEMAND AFTER LIVE STREAM
11:35-12:00Cephalic furrow in Drosophila – what is it good for?
Pavel Tomancak – Max Planck Institute of Molecular Cell Biology and Genetics, Germany
AVAILABLE ON DEMAND AFTER LIVE STREAM
12:00-13:30Lunch
12:30 – 13:30Workshop: Presentation of the ERC Funding Schemes
Moderator: Nadia El Mjiyad – European Research Council, Belgium
Presenters:
Danijela Vignjevic, Institue Curie. France
Edouard Hannezo, Institute of Science and Technology Austria, Austria
LIVE STREAM ONLY
13:30-16:25Session 3
Session chairs: Pere Roca-Cusachs and Anđela Šarić
13:30-13:55Deciphering the role of mechanics in a ‘post-molecular’ conception of vertebrate organogenesis
Amy Shyer – The Rockefeller University, USA
LIVE STREAM ONLY
13:55-14:10Symmetry breaking in intestinal organoid formation
Cornelia Schwayer – Friedrich Miescher Institute for Biomedical Research, Switzerland
LIVE STREAM ONLY
14:10-14:25Mitochondrial fission links ECM mechanotransduction to metabolic redox homeostasis and metastatic chemotherapy resistance
Sirio Dupont – University of Padua, Italy
AVAILABLE ON DEMAND AFTER LIVE STREAM
14:25 – 14:50 Biochemical, mechanical and geometrical information in morphogenesis
Thomas Lecuit – Collège de France and Institut de Biologie du Développement de Marseille, France
AVAILABLE ON DEMAND AFTER LIVE STREAM
14:50-15:35Coffee Break and Meet the Speakers
with Thomas Lecuit, Ewa Paluch, Amy Shyer, Pavel Tomancak and Sirio Dupont, Billie Meadowcroft, Cornelia Schwayer, Leanne Strauss
15:35-15:50A push-pull mechanism of microtubule-spectrin mechanics controls apical cell shape homeostasis during epithelial folding
Yu-Chiun Wang – RIKEN Center for Biosystems Dynamics Research, Japan
AVAILABLE ON DEMAND AFTER LIVE STREAM
15:50-16:05Mechanical control of mammalian ovarian folliculogenesis
Chii Jou Chan – National University of Singapore, Singapore
AVAILABLE ON DEMAND AFTER LIVE STREAM
16:05-16:30Nuclear mechanotransduction: regulation of cell fate and integrity
Sara Wickström -Max Planck Institute for Molecular Biomedicine and University of Helsinki, Finland
LIVE STREAM ONLY
16:30-17:00Flash talks (2 minutes / 1 slide per talk)
57 – Esther Comellas, #63 – John Robert Davis, #65 – Lucas Dent, #69 – Julia Eckert, #75 – María García, #91 – Cécile Jacques, #95 – Deqing Kong, #113 – Saranne J. Mitchell, #119 – Fabrizio Andrea Pennacchio, #127 – Marta Sampietro, #131 – Jana Sipkova, #145 – Mehmet Can Ucar, #147 – Clementine Villeneuve, #151 – Qiutan Yang
17:00-19:00Poster Session 1 (odd) with beer and snacks
Free evening
Day 3 – Tuesday 17 May 2022
TimeSpeaker
09:15-12:00Session 4
Session chairs: Verena Ruprecht and Xavier Trepat
09:15-09:40The impact of chronic osmotic stress on mammalian cell growth and genome stability
Rong Li – National University of Singapore,
Singapore
LIVE STREAM ONLY
09:40-09:55Morphogen gradient orchestrates pattern-preserving morphogenesis via motility-driven (un)jamming
Diana Pinheiro – Institute of Science and Technology Austria, Austria
LIVE STREAM ONLY
09:55-10:10Metastasis predisposition basement membrane mechanics
Raphael Reuten – University of Freiburg, Germany
AVAILABLE ON DEMAND AFTER LIVE STREAM
10:10-10:40Coffee Break
with Sara Wickström, Rong Li and Yu-Chiun Wang, Chii Jou Chan, Diana Pinheiro, Raphael Reuten
10:40-11:05Mechanical and signalling interactions between microtubules and integrin adhesions
Alexander Bershadsky – National University of Singapore, Singapore
AVAILABLE ON DEMAND AFTER LIVE STREAM
11:05-11:20Mechanical coupling of supracellular stress amplification and tissue fluidization
Stig Ove Bøe – Oslo University Hospital, Norway
AVAILABLE ON DEMAND AFTER LIVE STREAM
11:20-11:35Plectin-mediated cytoskeletal crosstalk controls tensional homeostasis and cell cohesion in epithelial sheets
Magdalena Prechova – Institute of Molecular Genetics of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Czech Republic
AVAILABLE ON DEMAND AFTER LIVE STREAM
11:35-12:00Mechanics of blastocyst morphogenesis
Jean-Leon Maitre – Institut Curie, France
AVAILABLE ON DEMAND AFTER LIVE STREAM
12:00-13:30Lunch
13:30-16:25Session 5
Session chairs: Thomas Lecuit and Prisca Liberali
13:30-13:55Cancer-associated fibroblasts form contractile capsules that actively compress cancer cells and modulate mechanotransduction
Danijela Vignjevic – Institut Curie, France
LIVE STREAM ONLY
13:55-14:10Planar-polarized myosin cables enable cell field positioning during Drosophila germband retraction
Sudeepa Nandi – Tata Institute of Fundamental Research, India
LIVE STREAM ONLY
14:10-14:25Pulling or Pushing? Revisiting the mechanics of C. elegans gonad morphogenesis
Priti Agarwal – Tel Aviv University, Israel
LIVE STREAM ONLY
14:25 – 14:50 Mechanobiology of immune responses
Joerg Renkawitz – Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich, Germany
AVAILABLE ON DEMAND AFTER LIVE STREAM
14:50-15:35Coffee Break and Meet the Speakers
with Alexander Bershadsky, Joerg Renkawitz, Danijela Vignjevic and Priti Agarwal, Sudeepa Nandi, Magdalena Prechova, Stig Ove Bøe
15:35-15:50Contact percolation promotes flocking migration and a pro-inflammatory cytosolic DNA response in epithelial tissues
Leonardo Barzaghi – IFOM, the FIRC Institute of Molecular Oncology, Italy
AVAILABLE ON DEMAND AFTER LIVE STREAM
15:50-16:05Piezo1 activates non-canonical EGFR signalling
Carlos Pardo-Pastor – King’s College London, UK
AVAILABLE ON DEMAND AFTER LIVE STREAM
16:05-16:30Theoretical mechanobiology in multicellular systems
Anna Erzberger – EMBL Heidelberg, Germany
AVAILABLE ON DEMAND AFTER LIVE STREAM
16:30-17:00Flash talks (2 minutes / 1 slide per talk)
48 – Shiri Avivi Kela, #54 – David Brückner, #62 – Sarah D’Annunzio, #82 – Hanna-Maria Häkkinen, #92 – Konstantinos Kalyviotis, #102 – Allison Lewis, #116 – Marianne Montemurro, #128 – Andreas Schoenit, #140 – Jakub Sumbal, #142 – Stéphanie Torrino, #150 – Harry Warner
17:00-19:00Poster Session 2 (even) with beer and snacks
19:00 – 22:00BBQ with live music from Lazy Fur
Day 4 – Wednesday 18 May 2022
TimeSpeaker
09:15-12:45Session 6
Session chairs: Alba Diz-Muñoz and Pavel Tomancak
09:15-09:40Multiscale interplay between cytoskeletal mechanics, cellular fate and tissue geometry
Edouard Hannezo – Institute of Science and Technology Austria, Austria
AVAILABLE ON DEMAND AFTER LIVE STREAM
09:40-09:55Morphodynamics of human brain organoid patterning
Akanksha Jain – ETH Zürich, Switzerland
AVAILABLE ON DEMAND AFTER LIVE STREAM
09:55-10:20Coping with Mechanical Stress: Tissue dynamics during development and repair
Yanlan Mao – University College London, UK
AVAILABLE ON DEMAND AFTER LIVE STREAM
10:20-10:50Coffee break and Meet the Speakers
with Anna Erzberger, Edouard Hannezo, Yanlan Mao and Leonardo Barzaghi, Carlos Pardo-Pastor, Akanksha Jain, Yekaterina Miroshinikova
10:50-11:15Intravascular forces shape tumor metastasis
Jacky G. Goetz – Inserm, France
LIVE STREAM ONLY
11:15-11:30Nulear deformation modulates stem cell fate by altering chromatin accessibility and gene expression
Yekaterina Miroshinikova – NIH, USA
LIVE STREAM ONLY
11:30-11:45Spatial coordination between trophoblast migration and embryo growth determines peri-implantation mouse development
Vladyslav Bondarenko – EMBL Heidelberg, Germany and Hubrecht Institute, The Netherlands
AVAILABLE ON DEMAND AFTER LIVE STREAM
11:45-12:45Keynote lecture 2: Predicting onset and arrest of tissue remodeling in epithelial layers
Lisa Manning – Syracuse University, USA
AVAILABLE ON DEMAND AFTER LIVE STREAM
12:45 – 13:00Closing Remarks and Poster Prize
13:00 – 13:15Packed Lunch and Departure

Practical information

Registration Fees and Abstract Submission

On-site Registration Fees include admission, conference materials, COVID-19 safety measures, meals and coffee breaks. Participants are expected to book and pay their own accommodation and travel expenses.

Virtual Registration Fees include access to all of the talks (livestreamed and on demand) and facility to submit questions.

On-site Academia€700
On-site PhD Student€600
On-site Industry€900
Virtual Academia€175
Virtual PhD Student€125
Virtual Industry€225

NO visa support letters will be issued until payment of the registration fee is confirmed.

Accredited journalists may be eligible to register for a reduced press rate or in some cases for complimentary registration. Registrants may be required to provide accreditation or equivalent proof of press membership after registration. Please contact Nathalie Sneider for more information.

Confirmation and payment

Registration will be on a first-come first-served basis. Your place can only be confirmed after payment of the registration fee. If you are added to our waiting list, please consider taking advantage of our offerings to participate virtually.

On-site participants: For enquiries about late registration, please contact Nathalie Sneider. Types of payments accepted are international bank transfers and credit card payments.

Virtual participants: We are only able to accept card payments. In exceptional cases we can accept bank transfers. Please contact events@embl.de for details.

Abstract submission

The abstract submission deadline was on Monday 21 February. For enquiries about submitting a late abstract for a poster presentation, please contact Nathalie Sneider.

Financial Assistance

Limited financial assistance is provided by the EMBL Advanced Training Centre Corporate Partnership Programme and EMBO in the form of both registration fee waivers and travel grants. Availability is limited to participants attending on-site events in Heidelberg and will be indicated during the abstract or motivation letter submission process.

Your place in the meeting is only confirmed by paying the registration fee, which is mandatory even when receiving a fee waiver.

Registration fee waiver

The fee waiver will cover the registration sum that you have paid to attend the course or conference.

Travel grant

The travel grant will cover the cost of travel (airfare, train, bus, taxi, accommodation, visa, and/or registration fees*) and is provided up to specified caps which are normally as follows:

– up to €400 for participants travelling to an EMBL Course, EMBL Conference or EMBO|EMBL Symposium from within Europe.
– up to €1000 for participants travelling to an EMBL Course, EMBL Conference or EMBO|EMBL Symposium from outside Europe.
– up to €500 for any participant travelling to an EMBO Practical Course or EMBO Workshop.
– up to €1000 for any participant working in Chile, India, Singapore or Taiwan travelling to an EMBO Practical Course or EMBO Workshop.

*Registration fees are only covered for EMBO Practical Courses or EMBO Workshops

The organisers may reduce the grant cap to accommodate more participants. Recipients will be notified of their travel cap amount when they are informed of the outcome of their application. Original receipts must be provided with your signature for all costs incurred within two months of completion of travel. Scanned copies cannot be accepted.

Application

You may apply for financial assistance when submitting your motivation letter for courses, and abstract for conferences. In your application you will be asked to answer questions regarding why your lab cannot fund your attendance and how your attendance will make a difference to your career. Application for financial support will not affect the outcome of your registration application.

For the Boehringer Ingelheim Fonds Travel Grant, there is a pre-application question during the motivation letter submission process, and if selected you will be requested to complete a standard form and documentation consisting of your travel expense estimation.

Selection

The scientific organisers will select the recipients of all financial assistance during the motivation letter or abstract selection process. Results will be announced approximately 6-8 weeks before the event start date, however for some events this may be delayed. Selection results do not impact your admission to the meeting. Selection is based on your current work or study location, the reasons for needing financial support and the impact this event will have on your career.

Reimbursement

Costs will be reimbursed after the meeting only once a reimbursement form and original receipts (from travel costs) have been received.

Further details

View our list of external funding opportunities and information on attending a conference as an event reporter.

For further information about financial assistance please refer to the FAQ page.

Accommodation and Shuttles

Accommodation is not included in the conference registration fee.

As further changes in our events are possible due to COVID-19, you should book flights, trains and hotels with flexible options and favourable cancellation conditions.

The hotels below have rooms on hold for participants until 14 April 2022 in some cases at special rates. Please quote the booking code EES22-05 and confirm the exact price of the room with the hotel directly.

Hotel AnlageHotel ibis Heidelberg Staycity Aparthotel Heidelberg
Hotel Bayrischer Hof ISG Hotel  Steffi’s Hostel Heidelberg
B&B HotelLeonardo Hotel Heidelberg City CentreHotel Vier Jahreszeiten Heidelberg
Exzellenz Hotel & Boarding HouseMeininger Heidelberg
Hotel Holländer Hof Premier Inn Heidelberg City

Conference Shuttle Buses

Conference shuttle buses are free of charge for participants, and depart from designated bus stops near the hotels to EMBL and back, mornings and evenings.

Download the bus schedule

The bus stops for this conference are:

  • Kurfürsten-Anlage (Opposite Main Train Station)
  • Premier, Kurfürsten-Anlage 23
  • Leonardo Hotel (Bergheimer Str.)
  • Neckarmuenzplatz
  • Peterskirche
  • ISG Hotel

View Conference shuttle bus stops and hotels in a larger map. Please note that not every bus stop will be used for every event.

Further details

Address: EMBL, Meyerhofstraße 1, 69117 Heidelberg, Germany. For further information on getting to EMBL Heidelberg visit Public Transportation to the Venue. For information about accommodation and local transportation please refer to the FAQ page.

Virtual Participation

What’s included?

  • Access to all the livestreamed talks
  • Video library of the recorded talks during and after the event
  • Facility to submit questions

Please note that only on-site participants are able to submit abstracts and participate in the poster sessions.

Event platform

We are using an event platform for this conference. More information about the platform will be shared ahead of the conference.

Guidelines

  • Do not broadcast the conference to unregistered participants.
  • You are encouraged to tweet and post about the event. Tweet unless the speaker specifically says otherwise, but be mindful of unpublished data. 
  • Please do not capture, transmit or redistribute data presented at the meeting.

Additional information can be found in our Code of Conduct.

Health and well-being

It is important to stay healthy and move around, especially when you are attending an event virtually. We have put together a few coffee break stretches and yoga videos in the conference platform for you to enjoy during the event.

How to ask questions

Please use the Q&A function in the event platform.

If you have any other questions, you can go to the Help Desk in the event platform. Click on ‘more’ on the top menu and click Help Desk. 

Time zone

The programme is planned based on the Europe/Berlin time zone, unless otherwise stated. Please take your time zone into consideration when planning your attendance.

Additional Information

Please find additional information including FAQs, terms and conditions, COVID-19 safety policy and travelling to EMBL on our Information for Participants page.

COVID-19 Related Questions

COVID-19 information for onsite events at EMBL Heidelberg can be found in our COVID-19 FAQs.

Sponsors

Bronze sponsors

 

Media partners

Development, a The Company of Biologists journal

Disease Models & Mechanisms, The Company of Biologists Journal

Journal of Cell Science, a The Company of Biologists journal

EMBO reports, an EMBO Press journal

Open Biology, a Royal Society journal

 

Sponsorship opportunities

We offer a variety of event sponsoring possibilities, with the flexibility to select a set sponsorship package or combine individual sponsorship options to suit your event budget. Discounts are available for companies sponsoring multiple events at EMBL Heidelberg. View other events, or contact sponsorship@embl.de for further information.

If you are interested in becoming a media partner of this event, please visit our media partnerships webpage.

About

EMBO | EMBL Symposia promote scientific communication and collaboration in the European research area. They provide scientists with a platform to discuss and exchange ideas on forward-looking topics and new developments in the life sciences.

Topics emphasise upcoming developments and the interdisciplinary nature of related fields. Jointly funded and organised by EMBO and EMBL – and complementary to their respective courses, workshops, and conference programmes – the symposia promote scientific communication and collaboration.

All symposia are held in the EMBL Advanced Training Centre (ATC) in Heidelberg, Germany, or virtually.

Date: 15 - 18 May 2022

Location: EMBL Heidelberg and Virtual


Deadline(s):

Abstract submission: Closed

Registration (On-site): Closed

Registration (Virtual): Closed


Organisers:

  • Alba Diz-Muñoz
    EMBL Heidelberg, Germany
    • Carl-Philipp Heisenberg
      Institute of Science and Technology, Austria
      • Prisca Liberali
        Friedrich Miescher Institute for Biomedical Research, Switzerland

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