20 March 2026
From DNA to RNA, from molecules to human interactions: farewell symposium for Christoph Müller
Description OverviewSpeakersProgrammePractical Information Overview This symposium is open to current EMBL staff alumni and invited guests Registration is required in advance via the link in the invitation emails and internal communications sent to staff Conference overview This one day symposium celebrates the career and many achievements of one of our most esteemed colleagues Christoph M ller Christoph joined EMBL Grenoble in 1995 as a Group Leader Five years later in 2000 he became the Deputy Head of the Grenoble site and an EMBL Senior Scientist In 2007 he moved to Heidelberg to lead the Structural and Computational Biology Unit a role he held until 2024 Since 2021 he has also served as Deputy Head of the EMBL Imaging Centre helping guide the effort that led to its opening in 2022 Christoph s scientific journey began at the University of Freiburg where he studied chemistry and biochemistry and obtained his PhD with Georg E Schulz in 1991 His doctoral work on adenylate kinase from E coli using X ray crystallography revealed significant conformational changes in the enzyme upon substrate binding Christoph then joined Stephen C Harrison s group at Harvard University for postdoctoral training where he determined the crystal structure of the transcription factor NF B bound to DNA Throughout his career Christoph has been driven by a fascination for the complexity of transcriptional regulation in eukaryotes His research focuses on how transcription factors assemble on DNA recruit RNA polymerases and how DNA sequence and epigenetic modifications together regulate gene transcription His group studies the structure and function of major molecular machines involved in transcription particularly RNA polymerases I and III and their pre initiation complexes using integrated structural biology Lately his group has also gained insight into the role of Pol I transcription in nucleolus formation and ribosome assembly using methods such as cryo electron tomography and correlative light and electron microscopy Along the way Christoph has been recognised with several honours the Steinhofer Award in 2003 election to EMBO in 2005 an ERC Advanced Grant in 2013 and election to the Academia Europaea in 2018 His leadership and scientific vision have played a major role in shaping structural biology at EMBL over three decades We are thrilled to bring together many of Christoph s key scientific colleagues collaborators and friends for a memorable day of talks and exchange to mark his formal retirement Speakers Claudio Alfieri The Institute of Cancer Research UK Orsolya Barabas University of Geneva Switzerland Martin Beck Max Planck Institute of Biophysics Germany Gino Cingolani University of Alabama at Birmingham USA Patrick Cramer President of the Max Planck Society Germany Kristina Djinovic Carugo EMBL Grenoble France Svetlana Dodonova EMBL Heidelberg Germany Olivier Duss EMBL Heidelberg Germany Sebastian Eustermann EMBL Heidelberg Germany Carlos Fern ndez Tornero Centro de Investigaciones Biol gicas Margarita Salas Spain Mathias Girbig Philipps Universit t Marburg Germany Sebastian Glatt University of Veterinary Medicine Vienna Austria Saulius Klima auskas Vilnius University Lithuania Nicholas M I Taylor University of Copenhagen Denmark Julia Mahamid EMBL Heidelberg Germany Thomas Miller University of Copenhagen Denmark Agata Misiaszek Friedrich Miescher Institute for Biomedical Research Switzerland Carlo Petosa Institute of Structural Biology France Matthias Wilmanns EMBL Hamburg Germany Xiaohan Zhao EMBL Heidelberg Germany Scientific organisers Svetlana Dodonova EMBL Heidelberg Germany Sebastian Eustermann EMBL Heidelberg Germany Sebastian Glatt University of Veterinary Medicine Vienna Austria Julia Mahamid EMBL Heidelberg Germany Carlo Petosa Institute of Structural Biology France Conference organiser Ed Avenell EMBL Heidelberg Germany Jane Reynolds EMBL Heidelberg Germany Aline Schnieder EMBL Heidelberg Germany Programme Are you on social media Post using EMBLFarewell ChristophMueller and don t forget to tag EMBLEvents Please note that the programme is subject to change Please keep checking back as the programme is currently being updated Day 1 Friday 20 March 2026 Time Europe Berlin Session09 00 09 30Registration and light refreshments09 30 09 35Opening remarksNassos Typas EMBL Heidelberg Germany09 35 11 00Session 1 Initiation PhaseChair Svetlana Dodonova EMBL Heidelberg Germany09 35 09 40Matthias Wilmanns EMBL Hamburg Germany09 40 10 00Stephen Cusack EMBL Grenoble France10 00 10 20Winfried Weissenhorn University Grenoble Alpes France10 20 10 40Miquel Coll IRB Barcelona Spain10 40 11 00Saulius Klima auskas Vilnius University Lithuania11 00 11 30Coffee break11 30 12 30Session 2 Productive ElongationChair Anastassis Perrakis Netherlands Cancer Institute The Netherlands11 30 11 50Patrick Cramer President of the Max Planck Society Germany11 50 12 10Gino Cingolani University of Alabama at Birmingham USA12 10 12 30Carlo Petosa Institut de Biologie Structurale France12 30 14 00Lunch14 00 16 10Session 3 Escape from the LatticeChair Kristina Djinovic Carugo EMBL Grenoble France14 00 14 20Felix Rey Institut Pasteur France14 20 14 40Orsolya Barabas University of Geneva Switzerland14 40 15 00Martin Beck Max Planck Institute of Biophysics Germany15 00 15 20Julia Mahamid EMBL Heidelberg Germany15 20 15 40Sebastian Eustermann EMBL Heidelberg Germany15 40 15 50Montserrat Soler Lopez ESRF France15 50 16 00Carlos Fernandez Tornero Centro de Investigaciones Biol gicas Margarita Salas Spain16 00 16 10Sebastian Glatt University of Veterinary Medicine Vienna Austria16 10 16 40Coffee break16 40 17 40Session 4 All Roads Lead to the NucleolusChair Olivier Duss EMBL Heidelberg Germany16 40 16 50Nicholas Taylor University of Copenhagen Denmark16 50 17 00Tom Miller University of Copenhagen Denmark17 00 17 10Claudio Alfieri The Institute of Cancer Research UK17 10 17 20Matthias Girbig Philipps Universit t Marburg Germany17 20 17 30Agata Misiaszek Friedrich Miescher Institute for Biomedical Research Switzerland17 30 17 40Xiaohan Zhao EMBL Heidelberg Germany17 40 18 00Closing remarksChristoph M ller EMBL Heidelberg Germany18 00 19 00Pre dinner drinks19 00 20 30Dinner in EMBL Canteen20 30 23 30After dinner drinks in ATC rooftop lounge Practical Information Registration fees On site registration is open to EMBL staff and alumni and is free of charge to attend Registration for the onsite symposium is on a first come first served basis and capacity is limited There are two types of registration Registration to attend the symposium only includes admission lunch and coffee breaks Registration to attend both the symposium and symposium dinner includes admission lunch coffee breaks and symposium dinner with drinks Virtual registration is not available for this event Abstract submission There will be no abstract submissions or posters for this symposium Accommodation and travel Accommodation is not included in the symposium registration As changes to events are possible you are advised to consider booking flights trains and hotels with flexible options and favourable cancellation conditions 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 Further details Address EMBL Meyerhofstra e 1 69117 Heidelberg Germany For more information about accommodation and travel please refer to the FAQ page On site information Catering Please wear your badge at all times when serving yourself No food or drinks are allowed in the auditorium Charging lockers There are lockers available next to the stairs leading down into the Auditorium You will find some of those equipped with sockets to charge your smartphone tablet etc 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 Health and safety notes Do not smoke in any EMBL building Eating and drinking is prohibited in the Auditorium and 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 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 There is the public bus 28 that serves the EMBL campus and taxis can be easily booked at any time More detailed information on travelling to EMBL can be found on our Travel Information page Useful German expressions HelloHalloGoodbyeAuf Wiedersehen formal Tsch ss informal Good morningGuten MorgenGood afternoonGuten TagGood eveningGuten AbendGood nightGute NachtI m sorryEs tut mir leidExcuse me Entschuldigen SieHow are you Wie gehts I m fine thanks And you Mir geht es gut danke Und Dir Ihnen What is your nameWie hei en Sie formal Wie hei t Du informal My name isIch hei e Do you speak EnglishSprechen Sie englisch I don t understandIch verstehe nichtPlease speak more slowlyK nnen Sie bitte langsamer sprechenThank youDankesch nWhere is the toilet Wo ist die Toilette Please call me a taxiBitte rufen Sie mir ein TaxiHow do I get to Wie komme ich zum zur A beer two beers pleaseEin Bier zwei Bier bitteA glass of red white wine pleaseEin Glas Rot Weisswein bitteThe menu pleaseDie Speisekarte bitteIs there a local speciality Gibt es eine Spezialit t aus dieser Gegend I m vegetarianIch bin VegetarierIt was deliciousEs war hervorragendThe bill pleaseDie Rechnung bitteI have a headacheIch habe KopfschmerzenI have a sore throatIch habe HalsschmerzenMy stomach hurtsIch habe MagenschmerzenI m allergic toIch bin allergisch gegenI need a doctor who speaks EnglishIch brauche einen Arzt der englisch spricht staff registration link display none...
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