From Genome to Gene: Causality, Synthesis, and Evolution

November 30, 2015 - December 2, 2015
Jacques Loeb Centre for the History and Philosophy of the Life Sciences, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev

Building 38
Ben-Gurion University of the Negev
Beer Sheva 84105
Israel

Topic areas

Talks at this conference

Add a talk

Details

From Genome to Gene: Causality, Synthesis, and Evolution

New sequencing techniques and rapid growing computational biology have led to a strong increase in genomic research. The genome, meanwhile, is recognized to be a complex system with structure and functions that are the result of a complex evolutionary history. The hypothesis that the genome and genes are the major causes of heredity and development - a topic of our previous workshops – is experimentally well-supported; genomic regulatory sequences and their logic processing shown to be crucial for development. Assessments concerning the functional meaning of large parts of eukaryotic genomes differ widely. Former assumptions about the importance of genomic structure such as gene order, gene complexes, and genome size have been largely abandoned. But new structural elements are perceived as meaningful, such as chromatin looping with the help of intergenic DNA. Research on the synthesis of artificial genomes and their comparison to natural genomes, apart from its practical importance, helps in the understanding of structure and function of prokaryotic genomes and their differences from eukaryotic ones.

 With participants coming from a variety of specialties such as history of biology, philosophy, molecular biology, developmental genetics, immunology, and evolutionary biology, the workshop aims at generating an intellectual discussion about the history and achievements of modern genomic studies and at contributing to a systems theory of the genome as a primary cause of heredity and development.

This theory will include genes (however defined) as crucial elements as well as the role of chromatin.

Program

Monday, November 30 

10:45 a.m. – 1:00 p.m.

I. Genomic causality in development

"Hox Genes: A Molecular Homunculus?’'

Denis Duboule, University of Geneva, Switzerland

"Quantitative Biology of Developmental Abnormalities"

Stas Shvartsman, Princeton University, U.S.A.

"Mapping the Gene Regulatory Elements of Epilepsy-Associated Genes” 

Ramon Birnbaum, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Israel

2:00 – 3:00 p.m.

II. Cells and genomes - Synthesis and function (I)

“Building a Minimal Bacterial Cell by Global Design and Synthesis”

John Glass, Craig Venter Institute, U.S.A.

3:30 –  5:45 p.m.

Cells and genomes - Synthesis and function (II)

“Intrinsic and Collective Cellular Function: Lessons from Single Cell Transcriptional Analysis and Epigenomics”

Amos Tanay, Weizmann Institute, Israel

“3D Genome Regulation in Cell Differentiation and Response to Hormones”

Ofir Hakim, Bar Ilan University, Israel

“The Complexity of Mitochondrial DNA Regulation: Modulating the Once and Future Endosymbiont”

Dan Mishmar, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Israel

***

Tuesday, December 1

9:15 – 11:00 a.m.

III. Memorial session for Eric Davidson

Ellen Rothenberg

Douglas Erwin

Michel Morange

Ute Deichmann

Smadar Ben-Tabou de Leon

11:30 a.m. – 1:00 p.m.

IV. The regulatory genome and evolution (I)

"The Construction of Evolutionary Opportunity through Gene Regulation"

Douglas Erwin, Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History, U.S.A.

“Paleo-epigenetics: Reconstructing Gene Regulation in Archaic Humans”

Liran Carmel, Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Israel

2:00 –  3:30 p.m.

The regulatory genome and evolution (II)

"Divergent Genomes, Conserved Phenotypes: How is this Possible? The Ascidian Paradigm"

Patrick Lemaire, Centre de Recherche de Biochimie Macromoléculaire, France

“On the Origin of Evolutionary Innovations in Genome-Scale Biological Systems”

Andreas Wagner, University of Zurich, Switzerland

4:00 – 5:30 p.m.

V. Ethics and genomics 

"Ethical and Political Findings of Whole-Genome Sequencing"

Anna Zielinska, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Israel

"Human Germ Line Editing: A Historical Perspective”

Michel Morange, École Normale Supérieure, France

Wednesday, December 2

9:15 –11:15 a.m.

VI. Genome annotation

“The Role of Genome Annotation”

Howard Cedar, Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Israel

“Marking Developmental History on the Genome in Immune Cells”

Ellen Rothenberg, California Institute of Technology, U.S.A.

 11:45 a.m. – 12:30 p.m.

“Immunogenetics and Immune History to Previous Infections"

Tomer Hertz, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Israel

12:30 – 1:00 p.m.

VII. Roundtable discussion

Chair - Michel Morange

contact: [email protected] 

Supporting material

Add supporting material (slides, programs, etc.)

Reminders

Registration

No

Who is attending?

No one has said they will attend yet.

Will you attend this event?


Let us know so we can notify you of any change of plan.

Custom tags:

#