Institute for Bioengineering of Catalonia

PhD thesis defense: Jaideep Katuri
2018-09-20 11:30 - 13:30 (Europe/Madrid) | Sala de Graus Eduard Fontseré, Martí i Franquès, 1-11, Barcelona, 08028
Guiding active particles through surface interactions
Jaideep Katuri, Smart nano-bio-devices group
Jaideep will be defending his PhD thesis on Thursday 20th September at 11:30 in the Sala de Graus Eduard Fontseré of the UB’s Faculty of Physics.
Everybody is welcome to attend.
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If you’re an IBEC PhD student and would like to advertise your PhD defense on the IBEC calendar, please contact vleigh@ibecbarcelona.eu

ADVANCE(cat) seminar: Tissue Engineering: Hopes and Challenges
2018-09-19 15:00 - 17:30 | IBEC, floor 11, Tower I, Baldiri Reixac 4-8, 08028 Barcelona, Spain
15h00: Welcome
Dr. Jordi Barquinero, Vall d’Hebron Institut de Recerca
Dr. Manel Juan, Hospital Clínic de Barcelona
Dr. Josep Samitier, IBEC
Speakers:
15h10: Dr. Josep Samitier, IBEC
15h40: Dr. Marius Aguirre, Vall d’Hebron Institut de Recerca
16h00: Dr. José Manuel Baena, Regemat
16h30: Dr. Elena Martínez, IBEC
17h00: Discussion
Limited seating. Please register on https://en.xing-events.com/tissueengineering

Barcelona Cognition, Brain and Technology Summer School (BCBT2018)
2018-09-03 08:00 - 2018-09-14 17:00 | IBEC, Baldiri Reixac 10-12, Barcelona, 08028, Spain
Institute of Bioengineering of Catalonia, Barcelona, Spain
3-14 September 2018
specs.ibecbarcelona.eu/bcbt2018
Join us for the annual “Barcelona Cognition, Brain and Technology summer school – BCBT2018 ” to be held 3-14 September 2018 in Barcelona, Spain.
The summer school has been part of a series of events organized by the European coordination action Convergent Science Network of Biomimetics and Neurotechnology (http://csnetwork.eu/). For the 2018 edition of the BCBT summer school, we are counting on the support of the Human Brain Project (HBP, www.humanbrainproject.eu/en), IBEC and the UPC Campus Besòs (www.eebe.upc.edu/ca/lescola).
This is the 11th edition of BCBT, which has run with great success in previous years thanks to an excellent line-up of outstanding speakers including Nobel Laureate winner Edvard Moser and luminaries in the fields of neurosciences, psychology, biology, robotics and AI, such as M. Arbib, S. Grilner, G. Rizzolatti, among many. (see bcbt.upf.edu for previous editions).
The BCBT lectures are available online at the ConvergentScienceNetwork_lectures youtube channel with the BCBT podcast interviews with many of the BCBT speakers. (http://csnetwork.eu/talks/podcast)
BCBT caters to students and researchers involved in projects that are in the ambit of “BIO-ICT convergence”, “Brain Inspired ICT”, “Cognitive systems-robotics”, “Cognitive and neural systems”, “Foundations of social cognition”. The BCBT school promotes a shared systems-level understanding of the functional architecture of the brain and its possible emulation in artificial systems.
BCBT will offer up to 30 student slots for the practical workshops, while as many researchers can register to attend the presentations and discussion sessions as they are interested. The atmosphere of the BCBT summer school is informal with the goal to stimulate in-depth discussion. There are 2 or 3 presentations in the morning, with the afternoons reserved for tutorials and projects for student participants and senior scientists with road-mapping workshops and further discussion. Students will have the opportunity to experiment with the research infrastructure developed in the HBP.
For the 2018 edition, we plan a 1st week of the school addressing System level understanding of the brain and its emulation in advanced technology. The 2nd week will include presentations aimed at the investigation of Learning and Memory, Brain Function and Behavior. Friday 14th September is reserved for the presentation of the student projects to which everybody is invited.
Application deadline: 20th July 2018
BCBT programme by:
– Tony Prescott, Sheffield University, UK
– Paul Verschure. ICREA and IBEC Barcelona, ES
– Anna Mura, IBEC Barcelona, ES
In collaboration with:
– Viktoria Tipotsch, HBP Education Programme, AT

New Spin-off Creation: best practices and lessons learned
2018-07-25 11:00 - 13:00 | IBEC, floor 11, Tower I, Baldiri Reixac 4-8, 08028 Barcelona, Spain
During this course we will explore the main principles and best practices for the creation of a new Spin-off company coming from a Hospital, University or Research Center. We will explore the main topics such as Business plan preparation, Fundraising strategy, Tech transfer process and Legal framework..
Dates:
25th July, from 11 to 13H. In person class sessions: 2 hours
Target group:
All IBEC members. Maximum 20 participants.
Trainer:
Dr. Josep Lluís Falcó

New Spin-off Creation: best practices and lessons learned
2018-07-25 11:00 - 13:00 | IBEC, floor 11, Tower I, Baldiri Reixac 4-8, 08028 Barcelona, Spain
the workshop on New Spin-off Creation: best practices and lessons learned will take place next July 25th from 11h to 13h.
During this course we will explore the main principles and best practices for the creation of a new Spin-off company coming from a Hospital, University or Research Center. We will explore the main topics such as Business plan preparation, Fundraising strategy, Tech transfer process and Legal framework.
Target group:
All IBEC members (maximum 20 participants).
Trainer:
Josep Lluís Falcó

Image J and video processing
2018-07-24 10:00 - 13:00 | IBEC, floor 11, Tower I, Baldiri Reixac 4-8, 08028 Barcelona, Spain
The aim of the workshop is to achieve basic skills in the analysis and quantification of microscopy images using ImageJ and Video Processing. The course is interactive and participants will have opportunities to carry out practical exercises.
Dates:
26th June, from 10 to 1 pm. In person class session: 3 Hours
Target group:
PhD students, Master students and post-docs.
Trainer:
Dr. Pere Roca-Cusachs, Group Leader at IBEC

IBEC Seminar: Dr. Kevin Chalut, Cambridge Stem Cell Institute
2018-07-23 11:00 - 12:00 | IBEC, floor 11, Tower I, Baldiri Reixac 4-8, 08028 Barcelona, Spain
Mechanical signaling and cell fate
Dr. Kevin Chalut, Cambridge Stem Cell Institute
The role of mechanical signaling in cell fate choice has been largely overlooked; however, it plays a significant role in tuning cellular response to signals. My lab is investigating the interplay between biochemical signaling and mechanical signaling in cell fate decisions. I will show first in the mouse embryo that biochemical signaling modulates cytoskeletal contractility to influence spatial positioning and solidify cell fate choice. I will then show that mechanics tunes the response of the cell to biochemical signaling to steer fate choice. This hypothetical feedback loop between mechanics and biochemical signaling likely has significant impact on cellular plasticity both in development and stem cells. I will also present an example demonstrating the functional impact of mechanics on stem cell function. In this example, we have shown that we can reverse the loss of plasticity associated with ageing by controlling the mechanical microenvironment. Ultimately, I will advance the hypothesis that mechanical sensing acts as a switch to modulate growth factor signaling to modulate cell fate choice.

IBEC Seminar: Hiroshi Ishida, Tokyo University of Agriculture and Technology
2018-07-20 10:00 - 11:00 | IBEC, floor 11, Tower I, Baldiri Reixac 4-8, 08028 Barcelona, Spain
Active Flow Generation for Mobile Robot Olfaction and Olfactory Assisting Devices
Prof. Hiroshi Ishida, Graduate School of Bio-Applications and Systems Engineering, Tokyo University of Agriculture and Technology
Mobile robots can be used as moving platforms for various gas sensing tasks in the field, e.g., gas source localization and gas distribution mapping. In the presentation, it will be shown that actively generated airflow can be used to facilitate such robotic gas sensing tasks. Reception of chemical substances at the chemical sensors on a robot can be significantly enhanced by generating a carefully designed airflow field around the sensors. Olfactory assist systems that allow the user to sense smells with amplified sensitivities are also reported.

Living Machines 2018
2018-07-17 08:00 - 2018-07-20 17:00 | Museum National D’Histoire Naturelle, Grand amphitéâtre du Museum, Paris, Grand amphitéâtre du Museum, Paris, France
The development of future real-world technologies will depend strongly on our understanding and harnessing of the principles underlying living systems and the flow of communication signals between living and artificial systems.
Biomimetics is the development of novel technologies through the distillation of principles from the study of biological systems. The investigation of biomimetic systems can serve two complementary goals. First, a suitably designed and configured biomimetic artefact can be used to test theories about the natural system of interest. Second, biomimetic technologies can provide useful, elegant and efficient solutions to unsolved challenges in science and engineering.
Biohybrid systems are formed by combining at least one biological component—an existing living system—and at least one artificial, newly-engineered component. By passing information in one or both directions, such a system forms a new hybrid bio-artificial entity. The theme of the conference also encompasses biomimetic methods for manufacture, repair and recycling inspired by natural processes such as reproduction, digestion, morphogenesis and metamorphosis.
The following are some examples of “Living Machines” as featured at past conferences:

Biomimetic robots and their component technologies (sensors, actuators, processors) that can intelligently interact with their environments.
Active biomimetic materials and structures that self-organize and self-repair.
Nature-inspired designs and manufacturing processes.
Biomimetic computers—neuromimetic emulations of the physiological basis for intelligent behaviour.
Biohybrid brain-machine interfaces and neural implants.
Artificial organs and body-parts including sensory organ-chip hybrids and intelligent prostheses.
Organism-level biohybrids such as robot-animal or robot-human systems.

http://www.livingmachinesconference.eu/2018/

IBEC Seminar: Ina Meiser, Cryobiotechnology group manager, IBMT
2018-07-16 12:00 - 13:00 | IBEC, floor 11, Tower I, Baldiri Reixac 4-8, 08028 Barcelona, Spain
Application oriented cryopreservation and banking of stem cells and stem cell derivates
Dr. Ina Meiser, Cryobiotechnology group manager, Fraunhofer Institute for Biomedical Engineering (IBMT)
Cryopreservation is still the only possibility to store viable cells for long periods. In general, conventional slow freezing methods are efficient enough to preserve single cells in suspension for subsequent expansion (e.g. human induced pluripotent stem cells, hiPSCs). Here, several aspects have to be taken into account for safe long-term storage regarding infrastructure and handling according to planned purpose. However, in case of preservation of adherent cells or multicellular systems that are increasingly relevant for biomedical research and application (e.g. hiPSC-derived neuronal cells), slow freezing shows major limitations. (1) Usually the adherent cells have to be enzymatically or mechanically dissociated to single cells or small aggregates prior to freezing, (2) crystallization-induced damaging mechanisms additionally disrupt cadherin- and integrin-mediated cellular contacts, and especially for hiPSC, (3) the recovered viable cell numbers is dramatically reduced compared to the control. Besides application of sophisticated scaffolds in slow freezing approaches, the method of ice-free cryopreservation (vitrification) provides the possibility to overcome these limitations, but requires skilled handling especially regarding sterile procedures, implies small sample sizes and therefore is considered as unsuitable for routine handling or bulk storage. To launch vitrification for large cell numbers and thus enabling ready-to-use cryopreserved adherent cell systems, a sophisticated multi-usage cell culture disposable covering comprehensive cell-based workflows from cultivation/differentiation to sterile vitrification will be introduced.
