International Course on Systems Biology of Metabolism

May 24 – June 11, 2010
Chalmers University of Technology, Sweden

Invitation

It is our pleasure to invite interested PhD students and post-doctoral scientists to join the 1th International Course on Systems Biology of Metabolism. ICYSB will be an intense hands-on Systems Biology experience.

Introduction

Systems Biology involves an integrated analysis of biological systems, often involving large data sets, with the objective to unravel new biological features. The use of mathematical models, in many different forms, plays a central role in Systems Biology, and through the combined use of mathematical models and experimental data it is possible to obtain predictive models that can be used for simulations, e.g. for identification of drug targets or metabolic engineering strategies, but models may also allow for identification of non-linear correlations in experimental data and hereby enable identification of new biomarkers. Systems Biology is therefore believed to play a central role in the development of both the Health Sector and the Biotechnological Industry.
The course will be build on analyzing data from very well studied model biological system: yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae and the regulation of its metabolism. Mathematical models for the central carbon metabolism will be a returning theme of the course, and evaluation of different signal transduction pathways such as the Snf1 (AMPK) and the Tor1 pathways will be an integrated part of the course. Besides the many fundamental examples given on yeast, the course will also, through lectures and computer exercises, focus on other biological systems, both of relevance for biotechnology and human health.
Training will consist of initial tutorials on biology and mathematical modeling. The course will then employ existing mathematical models as a framework to discuss how biological knowledge is converted into predictive mathematical descriptions. The students will analyze data on their own and use these to draw biological conclusions. Complementary invited lectures will introduce additional technologies and strategies for experimentation and modeling.

Critical Dates

January 15, 2010: The ICYSB online application will open.

April 1, 2010: Deadline for course and grant application.

Organizing Committee

Jens Nielsen (Chalmers University of Technology, Sweden)
Stefan Hohmann (University of Gothenburg, Sweden)
Jan Boren (University of Gothenburg, Sweden)
Dina Petranovic (Chalmers University of Technology, Sweden)
Goutham Vemuri (Chalmers University of Technology, Sweden)
Sven Nelander (University of Gothenburg, Sweden)