EMBL Seminars

EMBL delivers world-class courses, conferences and workshops at the forefront of molecular life science and its applications.

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24 March 2023, 10:00

The spatiotemporal regulation of arthropod segmentation networks

24 March 20232023External Faculty SpeakerEMBL Heidelberg, Virtual

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Speaker(s): Eric Clark, Department of Zoology, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, United Kingdom, United Kingdom
Host: Matt Benton

Place: The Operon

External Faculty Speaker

EMBL Heidelberg, Virtual


24 March 2023, 15:00

To be announced

24 March 20232023Theory@EMBL seminarEMBL Heidelberg

AbstractHow morphogen gradients are formed has been under debate since the term was first coined by Alan Turing Can diffusion alone lead to the robust formation of morphogen gradients Or are cell processes like transcytosis important to move molecules across tissues In this work we develop a theoretical framework to establish how the combination of different processes at the molecular and... AbstractHow morphogen gradients are formed has been under debate since the term was first coined by Alan Turing. Can diffusion alone lead to the robust formation of morphogen gradients? Or are cell processes like transcytosis important to move molecules across tissues? In this work we develop a theoretical framework to establish how the combination of different processes at the molecular and cellular level can in principle lead to morphogen gradient formation and its scaling to tissue size. We use this framework together with a sequence of independent experimental assays to quantify the relative contribution of different processes to the formation of the Dpp gradient in the fly wing. For large discs we find that a combination of hindered diffusion and recycling of endocytosed molecules drive Dpp gradient fromation. By studying wing discs of different sizes, we show that the relative...

Speaker(s): Zena Hadjivasiliou , University College London, United Kingdom
Host: Anna Erzberger EMBL Heidelberg, Germany

Place: Large Operon

Theory@EMBL seminar

EMBL Heidelberg

Additional information

Abstract
How morphogen gradients are formed has been under debate since the term was first coined by Alan Turing. Can diffusion alone lead to the robust formation of morphogen gradients? Or are cell processes like transcytosis important to move molecules across tissues? In this work we develop a theoretical framework to establish how the combination of different processes at the molecular and cellular level can in principle lead to morphogen gradient formation and its scaling to tissue size. We use this framework together with a sequence of independent experimental assays to quantify the relative contribution of different processes to the formation of the Dpp gradient in the fly wing. For large discs we find that a combination of hindered diffusion and recycling of endocytosed molecules drive Dpp gradient fromation. By studying wing discs of different sizes, we show that the relative contribution of endocytosed molecules to Dpp transport becomes progressively more pronounced during growth. Furthermore, the contribution of recycled molecules is diminished when the extracellular factor Pentagone is impaired. Our findings suggest that Pentagone modulates the contribution of recycled molecules to the diffusing pool. I will discuss potential mechanisms through which Pentagone encodes information about tissue size and their evolution.Finally, I will present a framework that takes into account cell and tissue architecture to ask how morphogenesis may impact the transport of morphogen molecules and patterning. 

About the speaker
Zena obtained a BA in Mathematics at Magdalene College, University of Cambridge, in 2004, and an MSc in Statistics at Stanford University in 2007. She went on to do an MRes and PhD in Mathematical Biology at UCL, studying the evolution of sexual differentiation. 
In 2014 she received an EPSRC Doctoral Prize Fellowship to study the role of cell-cell signalling in development and evolution. During this time she worked closely with experimental collaborators to study the role of Notch signalling in spatiotemporal pattern formation in the Drosophila notum and zebrafish spinal cord. 
She then moved at the University of Geneva and the Max Planck Institute for the Physics of Complex Systems in Dresden as an HFSP Long Term Fellow. As a postdoctoral fellow Zena studied morphogen gradient formation, and the machineries that allow morphogen gradients to scale to size during developmental growth. 
She joined the Francis Crick institute as a group leader in 2021, where her group studies growth and patterning in development and evolution through the lens of physics and mathematics. Zena holds a joint appointment at the Department of Physics and Astronomy at the University College London.

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Connection details
Zoom*: [link] (Meeting ID: [XXXXXXXXX], Password: [XXXXXXX])

Please note that the talk will yes/not be recorded.
*For the FAQ section, as a zoom participant, please use either the chat function (the host will read out your question) or the “raise your hand” function and turn on your microphone.


29 March 2023, 11:00

Life in a crowded environment: Regulation of nucleocytoplasmic density

29 March 20232023External Faculty SpeakerEMBL Heidelberg, Virtual

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Speaker(s): Simone Reber, IRI Life Sciences, Humboldt University Berlin, Germany
Host: Gautam Dey, EMBL Heidelberg, Germany

Place: Large Operon

External Faculty Speaker

EMBL Heidelberg, Virtual


30 March 2023, 11:00

Unraveling the molecular mechanism of pre-mRNA splicing via all atom simulations

30 March 20232023External Faculty SpeakerEMBL Grenoble

AbstractThe spliceosome a complex protein RNA macromolecular machinery removes noncoding introns from precursor messenger RNAs pre mRNAs and ligates coding exons giving rise to protein coding mRNAs and functional non coding RNAs In this talk I will illustrate how atomic level simulations have contributed to elucidate i the function of specific protein components of the spliceosome... AbstractThe spliceosome, a complex protein/RNA macromolecular machinery, removes noncoding introns from precursor messenger RNAs (pre-mRNAs) and ligates coding exons, giving rise to protein coding mRNAs and functional non-coding RNAs. In this talk I will illustrate how atomic-level simulations have contributed to elucidate: (i) the function of specific protein components of the spliceosome assembly [1,2]; (ii) the mechanism of pre-mRNA selection by selected splicing factors, and the impact of cancer associated mutation on pre-mRNA recognition [3]; (iii) the chemical details of pre-mRNA splicing [4,5], and (iv) the mechanism of spliceosome helicases [6]. [1] Casalino, L.; Palermo, G.; Spinello, A.; Rothlisberger, U.; Magistrato, A. All-atom simulations disentangle the functional dynamics underlying gene maturation in the intron lariat spliceosome. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U. S. A. 2018,...

Speaker(s): Alessandra Magistrato, National Research Council-Institute of Material Foundry (CNR-IOM) Trieste,, Italy
Host: Wojtek Galej - EMBL Grenoble

Place: EMBL Seminar Room

External Faculty Speaker

EMBL Grenoble

Additional information

Abstract
The spliceosome, a complex protein/RNA macromolecular machinery, removes noncoding introns from precursor messenger RNAs (pre-mRNAs) and ligates coding exons, giving rise to protein coding mRNAs and functional non-coding RNAs. In this talk I will illustrate how atomic-level simulations have contributed to elucidate: (i) the function of specific protein components of the spliceosome assembly [1,2]; (ii) the mechanism of pre-mRNA selection by selected splicing factors, and the impact of cancer associated mutation on pre-mRNA recognition [3]; (iii) the chemical details of pre-mRNA splicing [4,5], and (iv) the mechanism of spliceosome helicases [6]. [1] Casalino, L.; Palermo, G.; Spinello, A.; Rothlisberger, U.; Magistrato, A. All-atom simulations disentangle the functional dynamics underlying gene maturation in the intron lariat spliceosome. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U. S. A. 2018, 115, 6584 [2] Saltalamacchia, A.; Casalino, L.; Borišek, J.; Batista, V. S.; Rivalta, I.; Magistrato, A. Decrypting the Information Exchange Pathways across the Spliceosome Machinery. J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2020, 142, 8403. [3] Borišek, J.; Saltalamacchia, A.; Galli, A.; Palermo, G.; Molteni, E.; Malcovati, L.; Magistrato, A. Disclosing the Impact of Carcinogenic SF3b Mutations on Pre-mRNA Recognition Via All-Atom Simulations. Biomolecules, 2019, 9, 633. [4] Casalino, L.; Palermo, G.; Rothlisberger, U.; Magistrato A. Who activates the nucleophile in ribozyme catalysis? An answer from the splicing mechanism of group II introns J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2016, 138 (33), 10374 [5] Borišek, J.; Magistrato, A. All-Atom Simulations Decrypt the Molecular Terms of RNA Catalysis in the Exon-Ligation Step of the Spliceosome. ACS Catal. 2020, 10, 5328 [6] Movilla, S.; Roca, M.; Moliner, V.; Magistrato, A Molecular Basis of RNA-Driven ATP Hydrolysis in DExH-Box Helicases. J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2023, https://doi.org/10.1021/jacs.2c11980

About the speaker
Alessandra Magistrato is research director at of Italian National Research Council (CNR-IOM) c/o International School for Advanced studies, Trieste Italy, where she leads the group computational biology and drug discovery. She obtained her PhD at ETH Zentrum, Zuerich, Switerland, and she was postdoctoral fellow at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA. Her research activity is devoted to the development and application of multi-scale molecular simulations to study protein/RNA machineries, metal ions transporters and cytolytic toxins and in the discovery of drugs targeting them.

Meet the speaker
To meet with the speaker informally after the talks,sign up here https://docs.google.com/document/d/123Yzn9_z7GKHYU1nIazlKk-l8KD2xv4tYVIctFKrO9k/edit?usp=sharing
 

Connection details
Zoom*: https://embl-org.zoom.us/j/96986610968?pwd=d0lEb2NKakx1UVdycFd2TVZIdFgydz09

Meeting ID: 969 8661 0968
Passcode: 480991

Please note that the talk willnot be recorded.
*For the FAQ section, as a zoom participant, please use either the chat function (the host will read out your question) or the “raise your hand” function and turn on your microphone.


18 April 2023, 17:00

2023 EMBL Careers webinar: How to choose the right postdoc lab

18 April 20232023Career EventEMBL Heidelberg

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Speaker(s): Anna Boskovic, Group Leader at the European Molecular Biology Laboratory, Italy | Allison McClure, Assistant Professor at the University of Colorado School of Medicine, USA | Duncan Odom, Group Leader at the University of Heidelberg and DKFZ/German Cancer Research Center, Germany
Host: EMBL Fellows's Career Service

Place: Virtual seminar (Join the VC)

Career Event

EMBL Heidelberg


19 April 2023, 16:00

The 10x Genomics Xenium System - high performance in situ made fast and easy

19 April 20232023Company RepresentativeEMBL Heidelberg, Virtual

Connection detailsZoom https embl org zoom us j 3528126808 pwd WEZuRXlZTG83MzgvV2FId1R3STVBUT09 Meeting ID 352 812 6808 Password 2LCN7s For the FAQ section as a zoom participant please use either the chat function the host will read out your question or the raise your hand function and turn on your microphone... Connection detailsZoom*: [https://embl-org.zoom.us/j/3528126808?pwd=WEZuRXlZTG83MzgvV2FId1R3STVBUT09] (Meeting ID: [352 812 6808], Password: [2LCN7s])*For the FAQ section, as a zoom participant, please use either the chat function (the host will read out your question) or the “raise your hand” function and turn on your microphone.

Speaker(s): Wieland Keilholz, 10X Genomics, Netherlands
Host: Vladimir Benes

Place: Small Operon

Company Representative

EMBL Heidelberg, Virtual

Additional information

Connection details
Zoom*: [https://embl-org.zoom.us/j/3528126808?pwd=WEZuRXlZTG83MzgvV2FId1R3STVBUT09] (Meeting ID: [352 812 6808], Password: [2LCN7s])


*For the FAQ section, as a zoom participant, please use either the chat function (the host will read out your question) or the “raise your hand” function and turn on your microphone.


28 April 2023, 10:00

The remote control of gene expression: enhancer function from a distance

28 April 20232023EMBL Distinguished Visitor LectureEMBL Rome

Mammals are complex organisms not because of the genes encoded in their genomes but because of the exquisite way those genes are regulated during development and in response to physiological and extrinsic signals The 100s of thousands of enhancers that drive gene expression are encoded in the non coding genome often a large genomic distance from their target genes I will explore the role of... Mammals are complex organisms not because of the genes encoded in their genomes, but because of the exquisite way those genes are regulated – during development, and in response to physiological and extrinsic signals. The 100s of thousands of enhancers that drive gene expression are encoded in the non-coding genome, often a large genomic distance from their target genes. I will explore the role of 3D genome organization in enabling enhancers to communicate with their target genes over large genomic distances, and the methods used to explore this question. I will also discuss how the precise activity of enhancers, questions about enhancer redundancy, and the importance of regulatory landscape architecture can be assayed in vivo.

Speaker(s): Wendy Bickmore, MRC Human Genetics Unit, Institute of Genetics and Cancer, University of Edinburgh, UK, United Kingdom
Host: Ana Boskovic

Place: Conf Room/Building 14

EMBL Distinguished Visitor Lecture

EMBL Rome

Additional information Mammals are complex organisms not because of the genes encoded in their genomes, but because of the exquisite way those genes are regulated – during development, and in response to physiological and extrinsic signals. The 100s of thousands of enhancers that drive gene expression are encoded in the non-coding genome, often a large genomic distance from their target genes. I will explore the role of 3D genome organization in enabling enhancers to communicate with their target genes over large genomic distances, and the methods used to explore this question. I will also discuss how the precise activity of enhancers, questions about enhancer redundancy, and the importance of regulatory landscape architecture can be assayed in vivo.

11 May 2023, 11:00

To be announced

11 May 20232023External Faculty SpeakerEMBL Heidelberg, Virtual

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Speaker(s): Iris Salecker, Institut de Biologie de l'ENS, Paris, France

Place: Large Operon

External Faculty Speaker

EMBL Heidelberg, Virtual


12 May 2023, 10:00

Role of the Epitranscriptome in gene regulation and cancer

12 May 20232023EMBL - Sapienza LectureEMBL Rome

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Speaker(s): Richard Gregory, Harvard Stem Cell Institute, Cambridge, MA, USA
Host: Irene Bozzoni & Ana Boskovic

Place: Sapienza Università di Roma - Aula Odeion - Museo dell'Arte Classica - P.le Aldo Moro, 5 - Roma

EMBL - Sapienza Lecture

EMBL Rome


26 May 2023, 10:00

Inference, neural replay and cognitive maps

26 May 20232023EMBL - Sapienza LectureEMBL Rome

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Speaker(s): Ray Dolan, Max Planck UCL Centre for Computational Psychiatry and Ageing Research, London, United Kingdom
Host: Arianna Rinaldi & Cornelius Gross

Place: Sapienza Università di Roma - Aula Odeion - Museo dell'Arte Classica - P.le Aldo Moro, 5 - Roma

EMBL - Sapienza Lecture

EMBL Rome


9 June 2023, 11:00

To be announced

9 June 20232023External Faculty SpeakerEMBL Rome

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Speaker(s): Piero Carninci, RIKEN Yokoama Campus, Japan
Host: Cornelius Gross

Place: Conf Room/Building 14

External Faculty Speaker

EMBL Rome


9 June 2023, 13:00

To be announced

9 June 20232023Hamburg SpeakerEMBL Hamburg

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Speaker(s): Giuliana Tromba, ELLETRA Sincrotrone Trieste, Italy
Host: Elizabeth Duke

Place: Seminar Room 48e

Hamburg Speaker

EMBL Hamburg


15 June 2023, 11:00

To be announced

15 June 20232023External Faculty SpeakerEMBL Heidelberg, Virtual

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Speaker(s): Adam Martin, MIT, Department of Biology, USA, USA

Place: Large Operon

External Faculty Speaker

EMBL Heidelberg, Virtual


16 June 2023, 10:00

Probing principles of genome organisation and function

16 June 20232023EMBL Distinguished Visitor LectureEMBL Rome

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Speaker(s): Bas Van Steensel, Netherlands Cancer Institute, Amsterdam, Netherlands
Host: Jamie Hackett

Place: Conf Room/Building 14

EMBL Distinguished Visitor Lecture

EMBL Rome


16 June 2023, 13:00

To be announced

16 June 20232023Hamburg SpeakerEMBL Hamburg

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Speaker(s): Daniel Otzen, Aarhus University, Denmark
Host: Joint Seminar CSSB/EMBL

Place: CSSB Auditorium DESY, Notkestraße 85, Building 15

Hamburg Speaker

EMBL Hamburg


23 June 2023, 13:00

To be announced

23 June 20232023Hamburg SpeakerEMBL Hamburg

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Speaker(s): Pascale Cossart, Pasteur Institute, Paris, France
Host: Hamburg Life Science Series ( EMBL/CSSB)

Place: CSSB Auditorium DESY, Notkestraße 85, Building 15

Hamburg Speaker

EMBL Hamburg


30 June 2023, 11:00

2023 EMBL Careers webinar: Product Management

30 June 20232023Career EventEMBL Heidelberg

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Speaker(s): Julia Roberti, Product Manager in Advanced Confocal Imaging at Leica, Germany | Nicola Dynes, Manager – Platform Product Management at Sophia Genetics, Switzerland
Host: EMBL Fellows' Career Service

Place: Virtual seminar (Join the VC)

Career Event

EMBL Heidelberg


14 July 2023, 10:00

The Information Theory of Aging

14 July 20232023EMBL Distinguished Visitor LectureEMBL Rome

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Speaker(s): David Sinclair, Harvard Medical School, Blavatnik Institute, Boston MA, USA
Host: Santiago Rompani

Place: Conf Room/Building 14

EMBL Distinguished Visitor Lecture

EMBL Rome


1 August 2023, 11:00

To be announced

1 August 20232023External Faculty SpeakerEMBL Heidelberg, Virtual

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Speaker(s): Antonia Monteiro, National University of Singapore, Singapore

Place: Large Operon

External Faculty Speaker

EMBL Heidelberg, Virtual


15 September 2023, 11:00

2023 EMBL Careers webinar: Making the transition to a group leader role

15 September 20232023Career EventEMBL Heidelberg

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Speaker(s): Sarela García Santamarina, Group Leader, Human Microbiota – Xenobiotics Interaction at the Instituto de Tecnologia Química e Biológica António Xavier (ITQB NOVA), Portugal | Velia Siciliano, Principal Investigator, Synthetic and System Biology for Biomedicine at Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia (IIT) | Alejo Rodriguez-Fraticelli, Group Leader, Quantitative Stem Cell Dynamics at Institute for Research in Biomedicine (IRB)
Host: EMBL Fellows' Career Service

Place: Virtual seminar (Join the VC)

Career Event

EMBL Heidelberg


21 September 2023, 11:00

To be announced

21 September 20232023Seminar given by an external postdoc EMBL Heidelberg, Virtual

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Speaker(s): Berta Verd, Oxford University, United Kingdom

Place: Large Operon

Seminar given by an external postdoc

EMBL Heidelberg, Virtual


6 October 2023, 10:00

Mechanisms for Balancing Sleep Need and Sleep

6 October 20232023EMBL Distinguished Visitor LectureEMBL Rome

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Speaker(s): Gero Miesenböck, University of Oxford, United Kingdom
Host: Hiroki Asari

Place: Conf Room/Building 14

EMBL Distinguished Visitor Lecture

EMBL Rome


13 October 2023, 10:00

Genetic conflicts during meiosis drive the rapid evolution of chromatin proteins

13 October 20232023EMBL - Sapienza LectureEMBL Rome

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Speaker(s): Harmit Singh Malik, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle, USA
Host: Irene Bozzoni & Ana Boskovic

Place: Sapienza Università di Roma - Aula Odeion - Museo dell'Arte Classica - P.le Aldo Moro, 5 - Roma

EMBL - Sapienza Lecture

EMBL Rome


19 October 2023, 11:00

To be announced

19 October 20232023External Faculty SpeakerEMBL Heidelberg, Virtual

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Speaker(s): Buzz Baum, MRC-LMB Cambridge, United Kingdom

Place: Large Operon

External Faculty Speaker

EMBL Heidelberg, Virtual


20 October 2023, 10:00

Somatic epigenetic mechanisms of stress allostasis and germ cell delivery of extracellular vesicles

20 October 20232023EMBL - Sapienza LectureEMBL Rome

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Speaker(s): Tracy Bale, University of Colorado, USA
Host: Irene Bozzoni & Ana Boskovic

Place: Sapienza Università di Roma - Aula Odeion - Museo dell'Arte Classica - P.le Aldo Moro, 5 - Roma

EMBL - Sapienza Lecture

EMBL Rome


16 November 2023, 11:00

To be announced

16 November 20232023External Faculty SpeakerEMBL Heidelberg, Virtual

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Speaker(s): Eva Kanso, USC Viterbi, USA

Place: Large Operon

External Faculty Speaker

EMBL Heidelberg, Virtual


17 November 2023, 13:00

To be announced

17 November 20232023Hamburg SpeakerEMBL Hamburg

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Speaker(s): Sonja Lorenz, Max-Planck-Institute, Goettingen, Germany
Host: Christian Loew

Place: Seminar Room 48e

Hamburg Speaker

EMBL Hamburg