International Workshop on Systems and Synthetic Biology

International Workshop on Systems and Synthetic Biology

Hotel Bon Sol, Mallorca, Spain

October 16-20, 2012

Course Organisers:

John McCarthy (University of Warwick, UK)

Victor de Lorenzo (Centro Nacional de Biotecnologia, Madrid, Spain)

Richard Kitney (Imperial College, London, UK)

Workshop Objectives

Recent advances have opened up many new possibilities for modifying or creating novel biological systems through the application of a variety of tools and expertise derived from the physical sciences, engineering, biology, computer science and mathematics. The burgeoning area of synthetic biology tends to focus on the application of the engineering design cycle of design, modelling, construction and testing with a certain emphasis on engineering concepts including standardisation, modularisation and abstraction. However, the properties of living systems are the consequence of highly complex interactions and this complexity may challenge the feasibility of treating them analogously to organised assemblies of parts (or components). Indeed, many investigators are adopting their own strategies to create or manipulate biological pathways and processes using a variety of methods whilst perhaps taking a broader view of the definition of synthetic biology. Systems biology, on the other hand, endeavours to understand naturally evolved biological systems in a holistic context that takes into account the “emergent properties” of layered levels of complexity, and clearly there is both synergy and complementarity between these two hybrid disciplines. The intention of this meeting is to consider systems biology and synthetic biology as complementary fields of research, bringing together researchers with diverse views and strategies relevant to the understanding and engineering of biological systems.

List of Invited Speakers

Judith Armitage (Oxford University, UK)

Jim Beynon (Warwick University, UK)

Jim Collins (Harvard and Boston Universities, USA)

Drew Endy (Stanford University, USA)

Paul Freemont (Imperial College, London, UK)

Charlie Hodgman (Nottingham University, UK)

Phillip Holliger (LMB, Cambridge, UK)

Tom Kirkwood (Newcastle University, UK)

Pedro Mendes (Manchester University, UK)

Sven Panke (ETH, Zürich, Switzerland)

David Rand (Warwick University, UK)

Petra Schwille (Dresden TU, Germany)

Pam Silver (Harvard University, USA)

Michael Sternberg (Imperial College, UK)

David Tollervey (Edinburgh University, UK)

Jan Roelof van der Meer (Lausanne University, France)

Chris Voigt (MIT, Cambridge MA, USA)