Synthetic biology in action: engineering synthetic systems

Time (Europe/Berlin)	Speaker	Location
13:00 – 15:30	Welcome, breaking the ice (flash talks by all participants onsite and online), and practicalities Vitor Pinheiro – KU Leuven, Belgium	Online

Time (Europe/Berlin)	Speaker	Location
15:00 – 15:15	Bus from hotel to EMBL ATC Entrance	EMBL ATC Entrance
15:30 – 16:00	Welcome session Vitor Pinheiro – KU Leuven, Belgium	Courtyard Room A & B
16:00 – 16:30	Lab safety introduction and EMBL house rules Scientific Training Team – EMBL Heidelberg, Germany	Courtyard Room A & B
16:30 – 17:00	Overview of the experiments to be run during the course. Vitor Pinheiro – KU Leuven, Belgium	Courtyard Room A & B
17:00 – 17:30	Coffee Break	Outside of Courtyard Room A & B
17:30 – 18:00	Introduction to practicals	Courtyard Room A & B
18:00 – 19:00	Parallel practical sessions begin	Training Lab A & B
19:00 – 20:00	Innaugural lecture Building new-to-nature metabolism in vitro and in vivo. Tobias Erb – MPI Marburg, Germany	Courtyard Room A & B
20:00 – 20:15	Bus departure to ISG hotel	ISG Hotel
20:15 – 22:15	BBQ dinner and networking	ISG Hotel

Time (Europe/Berlin)	Speaker	Location
08:50 – 09:00	Overview of the day	Courtyard Room A & B
09:00 – 09:30	Treasure Hunt introduction	Courtyard Room A & B
09:30 – 10:30	Machine learning models applied to the SynBio engineering cycle Jean Loup Faulon – INRA, France	Courtyard Room A & B
10:30 – 11:00	Coffee Break	Outside of Courtyard Room A & B
11:00 – 12:00	Synthetic Biology tools for scaling up biomanufacturing Marjan de Mey – Ghent University, Belgium	Courtyard Room A & B
12:00 – 13:00	Lunch Break	EMBL Canteen
13:00 – 16:00	All five practicals are carried out in parallel, with at least one tutor for each 3 participants. · MAGE of bacteria · CRISPR editing of mammalian genomes · RNA-wide tools for mammalian gene regulation · Sequence and length diversity in evolution · Data-driven models in SynBio	Training Lab A & B
16:00 – 16:30	Coffee Break	Courtyard Room A & B
16:30 – 18:00	Practical in groups continues	Training Lab A & B
18:00 – 19:00	Presentations from participants 1-12	Courtyard Room A & B
19:00 – 20:00	Dinner	EMBL Canteen
21:00 – 21:30	Update on laboratory work	Courtyard Room A & B
21:30 – 22:00	Bus departure to ISG Hotel	ISG Hotel

Time (Europe/Berlin)	Speaker	Location
08:50 – 09:00	Overview of the day	Courtyard Room A & B
09:00 – 11:00	Practical in groups continues	Training Lab A & B
11:00 – 11:30	Coffee Break	Outside of Courtyard Room A & B
11:30 – 12:30	Synthetising codon-removed genomes Daniel de La Torre – Constructive BI, UK	Courtyard Room A & B
12:30 – 13:30	Lunch Break	EMBL Canteen
14:00 – 16:00	Practical in groups continues	Training Lab A & B
16:00 – 16:30	Coffee Break	Outside of Courtyard Room A & B
16:30 – 17:30	Introducing novel metabolic pathways in yeast Pascale Daran-Lapujade – TU Delft, The Netherlands	Courtyard Room A & B
17:30 – 19:00	Practical in groups continues	Training Lab A & B
19:00 – 20:00	Dinner	EMBL Canteen
20:00 – 21:00	Presentations by participants 13-25	Courtyard Room A & B
21:00 – 21:30	Bus departure to ISG Hotel	ISG Hotel

Time (Europe/Berlin)	Speaker	Location
08:50 – 09:00	Overview of the day	Courtyard Room A & B
09:00 – 11:00	Practical in groups continues	Training Lab A & B
11:00 – 11:30	Coffee Break	Outside of Courtyard Room A & B
11:30 – 12:30	Evolution of topology in regulatory circuits Yolanda Schaerli – University of Lausanne, Switzerland	Courtyard Room A & B
12:30 – 13:30	Lunch Break	EMBL Canteen
13:30 – 15:30	Practical in groups continues	Training Lab A & B
15:30 – 16:00	Coffee Break	Outside of Courtyard Room A & B
16:00 – 16:30	Plant Synthetic Biology June Medford – Colorado State University, USA	Courtyard Room A & B
16:30 – 18:00	Practical in groups continues	Training Lab A & B
18:00 – 19:00	Tapas Dinner	RTL
19:00 – 20:00	Update on laboratory work	Courtyard Room A & B
20:00 – 20:30	Bus departure to ISG Hotel	ISG Hotel

Time (Europe/Berlin)	Speaker	Location
08:50 – 09:00	Overview of the day	Courtyard Room A & B
09:00 – 11:00	Practical in groups continues	Training Lab A & B
11:00 – 11:30	Coffee Break	Outside of Courtyard Room A & B
11:30 – 12:30	Microbiome Engineering Chris Barnes – UCL, UK	Courtyard Room A & B
12:30 – 13:30	Lunch Break	EMBL Canteen
14:00 – 16:00	Practical in groups continues	Training Lab A & B
16:00 – 16:30	Coffee Break	Outside of Courtyard Room A & B
16:30 – 17:30	Optogenetics in synthetic biology Barbara di Ventura – University of Freiburg, Germany	Courtyard Room A & B
17:30 – 19:00	Practical in groups continues	Training Lab A & B
19:00 – 20:00	Pizza Dinner	RTL
20:00 – 21:30	Responsible conduct of research, ethics and societal issues activity. Guided exercise and facilitated discussion Kristien Hens, UAntwerp, BE	Courtyard Room A & B
21:30	Bus departure to ISG Hotel	ISG Hotel

Time (Europe/Berlin)	Speaker	Location
08:50 – 09:00	Overview of the day	Courtyard Room A & B
08:50 – 09:00	Overview of the day	Courtyard Room A & B
09:00 – 11:00	Practical in groups continues	Training Lab A & B
11:00 – 11:30	Coffee Break	Outside of Courtyard Room A & B
11:30 – 13:00	Designing synthetic cells Petra Schwille – MPI Martinsried, Germany	Courtyard Room A & B
13:00 – 14:00	Lunch Break	EMBL Canteen
14:00 – 16:00	Practical in groups continues	Training Lab A & B
16:00 – 16:30	Coffee Break	Outside of Courtyard Room A & B
16:30 – 18:00	Control theory on circuit design Lucia Marucci – University of Bristol, UK	Courtyard Room A & B
18:00 – 19:00	Informal discussion with remote speakers. If no remote speakers are needed, this session will be used to update participants on the experimental work by the individual teams.	Courtyard Room A & B
19:00 – 22:30	Departure to ISG followed by dinner in downtown Heidelberg	ISG Hotel and TBA

Time (Europe/Berlin)	Speaker	Location
08:50 – 09:00	Overview of the day	Courtyard Room A & B
09:00 – 11:00	Preparation of final reports by individual teams	Courtyard Room A & B
11:00 – 11:30	Coffee Break	Outside of Courtyard Room A & B
11:30 – 12:30	Principles of biological design Uri Alon – Weizmann Institute of Science, Israel	Courtyard Room A & B
12:30 – 14:00	Lunch Break	EMBL Canteen
14:00	Bus departure to ISG Hotel and Heidelberg Neckarmünzplatz – guided tour of Heidelberg historical city centre followed by free afternoon	EMBL Bus stop

Time (Europe/Berlin)	Speaker	Location
08:50 – 09:00	Overview of the day	Courtyard Room A & B
09:00 – 11:00	Presentation of results by individual teams	Courtyard Room A & B
11:00 – 11:30	Coffee Break	Outside of Courtyard Room A & B
11:30 – 12:30	Keynote: Parts, circuits and genome engineering for Synthetic Biology Tom Ellis – Imperial College London, UK	Courtyard Room A & B
12:30 – 13:00	Treasure Hunt results	Courtyard Room A & B
13:00 – 13:15	Wrap-up and farewell to onsite and online participants	Courtyard Room A & B

The course is limited to 20 onsite participants & 5 virtual participants. For selection purposes, please note that your application will not be considered without a letter of motivation.

Registration

Onsite Registration fees include admission, course materials, meals and coffee breaks. This EMBO course includes accommodation and transportation to and from the ISG Hotel to the venue.

Academia	€500
PhD Student	€500
Industry	€1000

Virtual Registration fees include course materials, lectures

Academia	€190
PhD Student	€190
Industry	€250

For onsite participants a letter to support your visa application will be issued, on request, once payment of the registration fee is confirmed. We recommend that you book your visa appointment as soon as possible, to avoid any delay with your visa application.

Confirmation and payment

The registration fee should be paid only after acceptance to the course. The results will be announced approximately 2-3 weeks after the application deadline.

Motivation letter submission

After you have logged in and successfully registered, you will receive an email asking you to submit your motivation letter. Click on the link provided and enter your motivation letter in the text box provided. Alternatively you can submit your motivation letter by clicking on the link on the confirmation page directly after registering.

Instructions

1. Include your relevant skills, experience and qualifications showing why you would be suitable for the course.
2. Explain why you would like to attend, including what you can contribute and how you think you will benefit from the course.

Please note:

• The limit of 2000 characters refers to manually typed text and excludes spaces. If an error occurs try using a different web browser (preferably Google Chrome or Mozilla Firefox).
• If you copy-paste the text into the form, hidden formatting might still be included which may cause the text to exceed the 2,000 character limit resulting in an error message. We recommend you clear all formatting before pasting in the text.
• If you have special symbols in your text, make sure you are using Unicode characters, otherwise these will not be recognised.

For detailed instructions, please watch our video on how to submit a course motivation letter.

Further details

For further information about registration and motivation letter submission please refer to the FAQ page.

Financial assistance

Limited financial assistance is provided by the EMBL Advanced Training Centre Corporate Partnership Programme and EMBO in the form of registration fee waivers, travel grants and childcare grants. 

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.

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 within Europe.

– up to €1000 for participants travelling to an EMBL Course from outside Europe.

– up to €500 for any participant travelling to an EMBO Practical Course.

– up to €1000 for any participant working in Chile, India, Singapore or Taiwan travelling to an EMBO Practical Course.

– up to €700 for any participant working in Croatia, Czech Republic, Estonia, Greece, Hungary, Italy, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Poland, Slovenia, and Turkey travelling to an EMBO Practical Course.

*Registration fees are only covered for EMBO Practical Courses

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.

Childcare grant

There is the possibility to apply for a childcare grant to offset child care costs incurred by participants, speakers, trainers and organisers when attending a course. Eligible costs include (but are not limited to) fees for a babysitter or child-care facility and travel costs for a caregiver. Please note that priority will be given to early-stage researchers. There is a limited amount of funding available for the childcare grants and funds will be distributed amongst eligible applicants.

Boehringer Ingelheim Fonds travel grant

Applies to selected courses only. Availability will be indicated during the motivation letter submission process.

This grant covers costs related to your attendance at the course (registration, travel and accommodation costs). The grant is restricted to PhD students and postdocs who conduct basic biomedical research.

Whether you are eligible to apply for a travel grant, depends on when you received your university entrance qualification (e.g. Abitur, A-Levels, High School Diploma, Final State Examination):

– for PhD and MD students, as well as graduates, the university entrance qualification must not have been obtained more than 11 years ago at the time of the envisaged course

– for postdocs, the university entrance qualification must not have been obtained more than 13 years ago at the time of the envisaged course

Application

You may apply for financial assistance when submitting your motivation letter for courses. 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 registration fee waivers and travel grants 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 for registration fee waivers and travel grants is based on scientific merit, your current work or study location, the reasons for needing financial support, and the impact this event will have on your career.

Childcare grants will be allocated in the same timeframe (6-8 weeks before the event start date). Please note that priority will be given to early-stage researchers.

Reimbursement

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

Further details

See our list of external funding opportunities and for further information about financial assistance please refer to the FAQ page.

Travel information

For travel information, please see here.

If you are travelling to the conference within Germany then you are eligible for the Deutsche Bahn ‘Event Ticket’ (called the ‘Veranstaltungsticket’ in German). This will result in a lower ticket price if your travel distance to Heidelberg is more than 100 km. You need to provide proof of your event attendance when purchasing the ticket.

For more information in English see here or in German see here.

You can book your ticket here.

Hotel

Accommodation including breakfast, is included in the registration fee. Accommodation has been booked for you at the Hotel B&B for the default dates of 15 September to 22 September (7 nights). In case you would like to have a single room, please let the hotel know and please note that you will be required to pay an additional cost per night (availability of single rooms may be limited). This should be paid by you directly to the Hotel B&B during your stay. Any additional nights need to be booked and paid for by you. We recommend that all course participants stay at the Hotel B&B which is the dedicated hotel for the course. 

Local transport

Shuttle buses will go from the B&B Hotel to EMBL and back, mornings and evenings. A bus schedule and location of the bus stops will be made available prior to the meeting.

Further details

Address: EMBL Heidelberg, Meyerhofstraße 1, 69117 Heidelberg, Germany

For more information about accommodation and travel, please refer to the FAQ page.

Catering

All meals and coffee breaks are included in the registration fee. Our catering staff will prepare a wide variety of vegetarian meals, meat and fish dishes, soups, pasta, fresh fruit and vegetables, as well as a variety of desserts.

Please wear your badge at all times when serving yourself.

No food or drinks are allowed in the laboratories.

Electricity and charging station

In most places the electricity is 220 volts AC (50 cycles). An adaptor and a plug that fits the German socket may be needed for your appliances/laptop (i.e. American, Japanese, etc.). A USB charging station for electronic devices is available at the registration desk.

EMBL Merchandise

If you are interested in purchasing EMBL merchandise (products presented in the glass display in the registration area), please email the EMBL shop to place an order or get in contact with your Course Organiser.

Kindly note the EMBL shop is only open upon request and all purchases must be made in cash (Euros only).

Health and safety notes

Please read EMBL’s COVID-19 safety policy for on-site events.
Do not smoke in any EMBL building.
Eating and drinking is prohibited in all laboratories.
Do not enter any restricted areas or the laboratories unless instructed to do so.

If first aid is required …

• The first aid room is located next to the ATC Registration Desk (room 10- 205).
• Dial the Emergency number 222 from any EMBL internal phone only.
• Where is the accident? What happened? How many injured?
• Emergency number 06221-387 7821 from mobile phones.
• Please report all accidents to the conference officer at the registration desk.

In case of fire …

• Press the nearest fire alarm button or the Emergency number 222 from any internal phone.
• A loud fire alarm will go off if an evacuation is required. On hearing the alarm leave the building immediately following the escape route and fire wardens and head to one of the meeting points
• Do not use the lifts.

Beyond first aid…

Please remember to bring your own medication, if needed, to the conference. Note that the next pharmacy is a 4-minute drive from the EMBL, but for many medications you will be required to see a doctor to get a prescription.

Ensure in advance that your medical insurance will cover you during your visit in the event that you do need to see a doctor while in Heidelberg. In any case, the EMBL Course and Conference Office will assist you to get to the pharmacy and a doctor of your choice if necessary.

Internet

Wi-Fi is available on campus. Log in using the EMBL-Events network and the event specific password, which will be provided on site. The eduroam network (secure, worldwide roaming access service developed for the international research and education community) is also available.

Lost and found

‘’Lost and Found’’ items are kept at the registration desk until the end of the conference.

Luggage

There are lockers available on-site to store your luggage, which require a 2 EURO coin to operate. There is another luggage room on level E0, which is free to use but remains unlocked during the conference.

Nursing room

There is a nursing room available in the ATC Rooftop Lounge on level A29.

Photography

During the conference, an EMBL Photographer may be taking photos. If you would not like to appear in these, please inform the photographer or a member of the Course and Conference Office.

Printing

We can help to print your boarding pass/train ticket. Please send it to events@embl.de and collect your print-outs at the registration desk.

Room for prayer, yoga, and meditation

There is a room for prayer, meditation, and yoga located on level E0 behind the Auditorium. Please be respectful of others using the room.

Sightseeing

A variety of activities in Heidelberg can be found on the website of Heidelberg Marketing.

Travel to and from the venue

During the event, we provide conference shuttle buses to and from EMBL. In addition, there is the public bus 39A that serves the EMBL campus and taxis can be easily booked at any time. Information on the shuttle buses can be found on the individual event website and more detailed information on travelling to EMBL can be found on our Travel Information page.

• Map to walk from ISG Hotel to EMBL

Additional information

Address: EMBL Heidelberg, Meyerhofstraße 1, 69117 Heidelberg, Germany

• ATC orientation map

Technical requirements

Below you will find the software and technical requirements for this course.

• On-site participants need to bring their own laptops, which will be used to remotely access EMBL virtual machines with pre-installed software.All participants will be requested to install software before the course. Please make sure to bring the laptop with the installed software to the course.
• You will need admin rights to install the software required to access the virtual machines. If you do not have admin rights, please contact your technical support team in advance to make sure the software can be installed.
• If you have a non-standard HDMI port (other than type A), you need to bring an adaptor.
• Keyboard and PC mouse are available for use with a standard USB port. If you have a different port type, such as USB-C, you will need to bring your own.

Event software

The EMBL eCampus learning platform will be used to collaborate, communicate and network with all of the course participants. All participants will receive information on how to join shortly before the course. We recommend using Chrome, Safari or Mozilla Firefox browsers for eCampus. 

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