The mechanics of life: from development to disease

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.

What past participants say about the Symposium

“Very well organized conference. High-level talks. When you see an interesting topic for your research field and if it’s organized by EMBL: Don’t hesitate, go and enjoy!” – Xiuyu Wang, Université de Paris, France

“This conference served as great platform for me to showcase my work and gain useful
comments and suggestions from the experts in my field. I benefitted especially from the
conference being mechanobiology-focused but not too narrow in its scope in that it also traversed multiple scales as well development and diseased conditions. This helped in networking with my peers and gaining crucial insight via expert talks. I am already looking forward to the next edition of this meeting.” – Abhishek Mukherjee, National Institutes of Health, USA

“As an early-stage PhD student, I have had a fantastic experience at this conference. It was an incredible opportunity to develop connections and hear about the innovative and creative research being conducted across the mechanobiology community.” – Rachel Mckeown, University of Cambridge, UK

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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.