Brno, the city where Gregor Mendel laid the foundations of genetics, became the European centre of synthetic biology last week. From the 6th to the 8th of November, Brno’s planetarium hosted the prestigious Applied Synthetic Biology in Europe VII conference, focusing on the practical applications of synthetic biology. The conference brought together 150 experts from over 30 countries to discuss how synthetic biology approaches could help address some of today’s most pressing challenges - climate change, cancer, and environmental sustainability.
Synthetic biology is a new direction in biotechnology and bioengineering that uses the latest advances in biology to create novel properties in biological systems for practical applications in medicine, agriculture, chemical production, and environmental protection. Emphasising rational design and practical usability, synthetic biology draws inspiration from traditional engineering fields. The conference featured presentations by leading global experts who shared their visions for more effective greenhouse gas removal using enhanced microorganisms or plants, employing lactic acid bacteria as mini-robots to deliver drugs directly to gut tumours for targeted elimination, and converting waste materials into useful chemicals with modified or newly created enzymes.
The conference was organised by the European Federation of Biotechnology in collaboration with the Faculty of Science at Masaryk University, under the patronage of the Dean of the Faculty of Science, Professor Tomáš Kašparovský, and the Mayor of Brno, JUDr. Markéta Vaňková. “This is the first time this conference has been held in Central or Eastern Europe, which reflects the growing importance of our region in the field of modern biotechnology. We are very grateful to all the supporters who made it possible for us to host such a significant event in Brno,” added Associate Professor Pavel Dvořák from the Section of Microbiology at the Faculty of Science, Masaryk University, one of the main organisers and the conference chair.
Participants at the conference appreciated the high quality of the expert contributions. Two out of the four awards for best student presentations went to Masaryk University: Mgr. Matúš Pešta from the Microbial Bioengineering Laboratory at the Section of Microbiology and Mgr. Michal Vašina, Ph.D., from the Loschmidt Laboratories were recognised for their valuable research and visual presentations. “It is very encouraging and motivating to see that our daily work in the laboratory has meaning and is positively evaluated by leading European experts,” emphasised one of the awardees, Matúš Pešta. In addition to academic discussions, participants also enjoyed a social programme in the beautiful setting of the planetarium—during a 3D screening, they travelled with the Voyager probe through the entire solar system, and some planets could even be observed live through telescopes.
The conference concluded with a discussion forum at the Mendel Museum, covering topics such as genome editing regulation, community-building, synthetic biology start-ups, and collaboration between academia and industry. “I see great symbolism in presenting the future applications of biological discoveries in the place where the cornerstone of genetics, and thus modern biology, was laid,” said Pavel Dvořák.
The conference was also the first opportunity for the emerging synthetic biology community in the Czech Republic to come together under the newly initiated Czech SynBio Node platform (https://czechsynbionode.cz/), spearheaded by Masaryk University. “In Western countries, similar communities have successfully promoted synthetic biology, creating spaces for collaboration between experts in academia and industry. I believe that the Czech SynBio Node will contribute to the growing prominence of the Czech Republic as a centre for synthetic biology in Central Europe,” commented Dr. Karel Říha from the Central European Institute of Technology (CEITEC) by the Masaryk University, one of the founders of this new initiative.
On September 24, a group of graduates from the teacher training program in mathematics and physics visited us. They completed their studies in 1970, so we gave them a tour to show how the faculty has changed since then.
Ten graduates from the MU Faculty of Science, along with their supervisors and consultants, have received Masaryk University Vice-Rector’s Awards for excellent results in their doctoral studies. Congratulations.
