Dear aspiring structural biolog ists,
We are thrilled to invite you to the FEBS Adv anced Course, Lost in Integration Vol. 2 - probing biomo lecules with AI and experiments which will take place fr om May 10 – 16, 2026 on the idyllic island of Spetses in Greece. The course is aimed at PhD candidates and postdoctoral researchers interes ted in integrative structural biology.
Integrative structural biology is an interdisciplinary field that has seen explosive growth due to technological revolution in biological structure analysis. This field inco rporates a wide range of techniques and advanced computational and machine learning approaches. When integrated, these techniques provide insights bey ond static molecular structures, revealing dynamic interactions and behavio urs that are crucial for understanding biology and biomedical research. Sim ply put, traditional structural biology has provided high-resolution images of biomolecules but is limited to static representations; integrative stru ctural biology allows researchers to observe molecular movement and interac tions in real-time within their biological environments. It also brings int o light entire new classes of biomolecules—in particular, those that are dynamic and difficult to study as well as complexes of ever-increasing sizes. Thus, integrative structural biology not only expands the range of m ethods used to study molecular structure and function, but also substantial ly expands the scope of problems that can be addressed.
At thi s course, students will learn to understand, use, and interpret data from a multitude of different techniques including cryo-electron microscopy, nucl ear magnetic resonance spectroscopy, X-ray crystallography, cryo-electron t omography, small-angle X-ray scattering, mass spectrometry, and single-mole cule methods such as optical tweezers and Förster resonance energy tra nsfer. Further, students will learn how to integrate data using advanced co mputational and machine learning techniques.
The course will i nclude plenary lectures by esteemed scientists, poster sessions, panel disc ussions, journal club, group discussions, and a mentoring session led by Pr ofessor Emeritus Jane Clarke (University of Cambridge). These ses sions will allow participants to receive practical feedback on their resear ch projects, both from their peers and the participating senior scientists. In addition to the scientific activities, social dinners and an excursion around the island will also be organized.
The small, idyllic i sland of Spetses is a part of Saronic Islands archipelago and easy to reach from Athens by ferry. Spetses has numerous restaurant and excursion possib ilities within walking distance at a very affordable price
Pla ces are limited to 44 students and the cost of the course will be 500 EUR. To help facilitate participation, there are 8 FEBS Youth Travel Fund Grants available to help cover registration fees and travel expenses.
We look forward to welcoming you in 2026.
Bi
rthe B. Kragelund, Gregers Rom Andersen, Kresten Lindorff-Larsen and Rasmus
Kock Flygaard
Course Organizers
This course is organised in c ollaboration with the Integrative Structural Biology cluster at the Univers ity of Copenhagen (ISBUC) and the Aarh us University Structural Biology and Biophysics Initiative (AUSBI).
CONTACT:probingbiomolecules2026.febsevents.org DTSTAMP:20260418T044810Z DTSTART;TZID=Europe/Vienna:20260510T100000 DTEND;TZID=Europe/Vienna:20260516T170000 SEQUENCE:1 TRANSP:OPAQUE END:VEVENT END:VCALENDAR