Roderick Lim is Argovia Professor for Nanobiology at the Biozentrum and the Swiss Nanoscience Institute, University of Basel. He was a recipient of the Pierre-Gilles de Gennes Prize and his research focuses on nuclear pore transport (Science, 2007(318):540), its impact on cellular function, and how this fascinating phenomenon can be leveraged towards bio-inspired applications. His key contributions include: resolving the spatiotemporal dynamics of the nuclear pore (NP) transport at single molecule resolution by high-speed atomic force microscopy (Nat Nanotech, 2016(11):719), discovering the role of NP receptors in regulating NP function (PNAS, 2012(109):16911), and exploiting multivalent interactions for controlling biomolecular transport in artificial systems (Nat Nanotech, 2014(9):525).
Erik Reimhult is Professor in Nanobiotechnology at the University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences (BOKU), Vienna. He was a recipient of an ERC Consolidator Grant, and is an elected member of the Austrian Academy of Sciences Young Academy, and Advisory Board Members of several journals including ACS Applied Materials and Interfaces and ACS Biomaterials Science & Engineering. Prof. Reimhult’s current research (e.g. Nano Lett. 2017(18):381, Angew. Chem. 2017(129):4702, ACS Nano 2016(10):9974) is focused on developing new approaches to synthesize and study the assembly of biomimetic nanoscale materials with application in medicine and biotechnology, as well as on the study of colloidal interactions of biological interfaces, with special interest in early bacteria adhesion.
Patrick Theato is Professor of Preparative Macromolecular Chemistry at Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT). His professional commitments include: executive board member of the GDCh (German Chemical Society) Division of Macromolecular Chemistry; secretary of the IUPAC Subcommittee on Polymer Education; Editor-in-Chief of Journal of Macromolecular Science Part A: Pure and Applied Chemistry. His research focuses on polymer synthesis, including functional polymers with a very well defined architecture and multi stimuli-responsive polymers and materials, as well as versatile methods for controlled functionalization of various surfaces (e.g. Macromol. Rapid Commun. 2018(39):1700313, Chem. Rev. 2016(116):1434, Nat. Chem. 2013(5):518).
Nico Bruns is a Professor of Macromolecular Chemistry at the University of Strathclyde. Before moving to Scotland, he was Associate Professor at the Adolphe Merkle Institute of the University of Fribourg. He is a founding member and principal investigator of the Swiss National Center of Competence in Research (NCCR) Bio-Inspired Materials, and coordinator of the EU-funded ITN Plant-Inspired Materials and Surfaces (PlaMatSu). His research interests include polymersome- and protein-based nanoreactors, biocatalytic atom transfer radical polymerizations, and force-responsive protein-polymer hybrid materials. Nico Bruns is known for his discovery of enzymatic atom transfer radical polymerizations (e.g., Biomacromolecules 2013, 14, 2703) and for his work on nanoreactors (e.g. Angew. Chem. 2014(53):1443, JACS, 2018(140):8027).
My Hedhammar is Associate Professor of Biochemistry at KTH Royal Institute of Technology in Stockholm. Her research spans the fields of protein technology and tissue regeneration, focusing on artificial spider silk for building “smart climbing frames” (i.e. structured chemical scaffolds). These climbing frames can then be used as matrix for culturing cells to make the spare organs of the future. The ultimate aim is to be able to repair damaged tissue of all kinds, e.g. insulin-producing cell islets, skin, corneas and cardiac muscle tissue. Her work is highlighted by her Wallenberg Academy Fellowship and high impact publications (e.g. Advanced Materials 30 (3), 1704325, Biomaterials 74, 256-266, PLoS One 10 (6), e0130169, Nature 465 (7295), 236).
Dr. Simona Serban is Life Sciences Application Manager at Purolite Ltd. Her PhD in Electrochemical Biosensors was received with the highest distinction from the University of Nantes, France in 2004. In 2005 she joined the Gwent Group in Wales (now part of SunChemical) as Project leader where she was strongly involved in the stabilisation of enzymes and development of enzymatic biosensors for health, food and environmental applications. Simona joined Purolite Ltd. in 2012 and contributed greatly to the development of Purolite enzyme carrier resins and immobilized enzymes especially the CalB immo Plus product. Between 2015 and 2017 she has been managing the biocatalysis group and led the development of new immobilised enzyme products and closely collaborated with universities and companies interested in this area. From 2018 Simona is coordinating the Life Sciences Application group which is adding applications in the chromatographic field of separations to the already existent biocatalysis applications.
Dr. Johana Kuncová-Kallio, CEO at BioNavis Ltd., has studied at Czech-Swiss Institute, at Czech Technical University in Prague (B.Sc. 1999), at University of Strathclyde (ERASMUS) and at Tampere University of Technology in Finland (M.Sc. 2002, Dr.Tech. 2007). She has been working as a researcher in the fields of instrumentation, point-of-care diagnostics, cell-based assays and established several courses in Micro- and Nanotechnology fields. She worked at Biosensing Competence Center and since 2011 she works in BioNavis Ltd, a company dedicated to expanding the capabilities of surface plasmon resonance in the fields of pharmaceutics, biosensing and material research.
Additional Invited Speakers
- Ricardo da Silva (King's College London)
- Matthew Dalby (University of Glasgow)
- Nikolaj Gaardegard (University of Glasgow)
- Oliver Henrich (University of Strathclyde)
- Paul Mulheran (University of Strathclyde)
- Fabio Nudelman (University of Edinburgh)
- Lalit Pandey (Indian Institute of Technology Guwahati)
- Adam Perriman (University of Bristol)
- Philipp Seib (University of Strathclyde)
- Manlio Tassieri (University of Glasgow)
- Mischa Zelzer (University of Nottingham)
Refereed Oral Speakers
- Kevin N Bauman (University of Cambridge)
- Rob Cunliffe (University of Strathclyde)
- Graham J. Day (University of Bristol)
- Sam Donnelly (University of Glasgow)
- Rosalia C. Delint (University of Bristol)
- Annchalee Eade (University of Manchester)
- Andreas Koeppel (University of Sheffield)
- Thomas Richardson (University of Bristol)
- Barbara Simoes (University of Birmingham)
- Suhair Sunoqrot (Al-Zaytoonah University of Jordon)
- Yazmin Tagger (University of Birmingham)
- Colette Whitfield (Newcastle University)