About the EMBO-FEBS Lecture Course
Biological systems comprise multiple levels of organization, from molecules, organelles, and cells, to the multi-cellular structures that form whole tissues, organisms, and ultimately societies and ecosystems. During organismal development, these levels emerge from the dynamic interactions of system components and give rise to complex structures and functions across scales. Similarly, over the course of evolution, the emergence of phenotypes involves more than the transmission of genetic material, as selection works at all levels to generate novel phenotypes. However, we are only at the beginning of understanding how such levels of organization can emerge de novo in evolution or how levels self-organize and feed back on one another during growth and development. This is no simple task, as studying these fundamental questions in evolution and development requires quantification and modeling approaches that cross biological scales, alongside conceptual frameworks for understanding dynamical systems and emergent phenomena.
To tackle the issue, we need novel, empirically grounded, systems-biology theories that integrate philosophical, mathematical, and experimental approaches across biological scales. During our lecture course, we will look at the emergence and evolution of multi-level regulatory systems from an interdisciplinary theoretical vantage point to assess the requirements, mechanisms, and consequences of multi-level phenomena.
Specifically, we will focus on the following four questions:
- How do new levels of organization (molecular, organelle, cellular, tissue, organismal, and beyond) originate and integrate in development and evolution?
- What is the nature of causal-mechanistic interactions between levels of organization?
- How do we measure and manipulate biological systems across multiple scales?
- How can we model feedback interactions across different levels of organization in regulatory systems?
Over recent years, it has become increasingly evident that dynamical processes, mechanical and physical forces, signaling feedback, and metabolic constraints play critical roles in patterning and coordinating emergent phenotypes. In addition, systems biology and metabolomics approaches, along with single-cell quantification of live or fixed samples, have revolutionized how we can empirically study emergent phenomena. Computational modeling and dynamical systems approaches have shed light on how network components and interactions can lead to spatial and temporal patterning, division of labor, and increased complexity and integration above the level of cells. A synthesis of these interdisciplinary approaches can now allow us to refine and develop new conceptual frameworks for understanding the mechanisms, and consequences, of multi-level processes in evolution and development.
About EMBO Courses and Workshops
EMBO Courses and Workshops are selected for their excellent scientific quality and timelines, provision of good networking activities for all participants and speaker gender diversity (at least 40% of speakers must be from the underrepresented gender).
Organisers are encouraged to implement measures to make the meeting environmentally more sustainable.
