Interpreting Genomes and Genome Functions: SBI-EMBL Scientific Meeting 2017
Systems Biology Ireland was delighted to welcome colleagues from the European Molecular Biology Laboratory (EMBL), Europe's flagship laboratory for the life sciences, to a joint scientific meeting on ‘Interpreting Genomes and Genome Functions’, 11-12 September 2017. The event followed on from the success of a 2014 meeting exploring opportunities for future collaborations and the subsequent signing of a Memorandum of Understanding between the two organisations.
An international audience of over 150 people converged on the Conway Institute in UCD for the two-day meeting, with seminars and activities celebrating SBI and EMBL’s combined expertise in the field of molecular life science and precision medicine.
Opening proceedings, Professor Des Higgins, UCD/SBI and EMBL Alumnus, said: “We are delighted to once again welcome EMBL colleagues and alumni to UCD and Dublin, to strengthen ties and explore further opportunities to collaborate.”
Prof Walter Kolch, Director of SBI, noted: “Advances in precision medicine are now giving us the opportunity to develop targeted treatments for cancer that will enable us to approach each patient’s cancer individually. Further collaboration with EMBL will bring together the brightest minds to help us achieve the SBI goal of precision cancer medicine.”
“It’s always a pleasure fostering these exchanges between EMBL scientists and colleagues at leading institutes like SBI,” said Iain Mattaj, Director General of EMBL. “The discussions at these events inspire people to push boundaries, take new approaches, and work across disciplines. They strengthen existing collaborations, and very often spark new ones. Nurturing these connections is part of our commitment to Ireland as an EMBL member state.”
