A joint program of the International Course on Epigenetics and the Qlife Winter School series in Quantitative Biology.
Course objectives and description
The chromosomal organization of genomes reflects the needs for both compaction, due to space constraints, and accessibility to allow proper processing of genetic information when required. Active and inactive states of genomic regions are achieved thanks to a combination of physical (e.g. the mechanical properties of DNA) and epigenetic (e.g. as in X-chromosome inactivation in humans) determinants. Therefore, both physical and biological approaches are required to fully understand this organization. The biological approaches include for instance the High-C approaches to determine the relation between DNA sequence, local chromosome folding and epigenetic states resulting from DNA methylation, histone modification, and chromatin compaction, which affect gene expression. The physical approaches include experimental tools which allow one to probe the mechanical states of the chromosome, for instance by directly pulling on chromosomes (inside the nucleus or extracted from the nucleus) or by observing their flexibility and crowding, and draw on theoretical concepts that emerge from the field of polymer physics. Combined, these approaches promise to help us crack the chromosome code which relates the 3D organization of the genome in the nucleus to its function throughout all stages of the cell cycle.
Students can apply to this course according to two different modalities: the theoretical course + digital workshops or the theoretical course + specific platform visits.
Registration
Application deadline is December 11th, 2022.
For the theoretical course + platform visits, registration is free. Lodging will not be covered, but lunches and some of the dinners will be provided.
For the theoretical course + digital workshops, the registration fees are 150 €. Fees cover lodging from Wednesday 22 in the morning to Friday 31 in the afternoon, lunches and some dinners. Some travel grants will be available.
More information can be found on the poster (download below) and the School's website.