Winter Semester 2020/2021

In a nutshell, Biophysics is the interface between Biology and Physics. This interdisciplinary topic aims to tackle unanswered biological questions from the perspective of a physicist, often using laws and tools well established in physics-based research labs. Biophysical research techniques have been around for a while (e.g. the discovery of DNA in 1953 with X-ray crystallography), but new ones are emerging all the time. More recently, the pioneers of cryo-electron microscopy won the Nobel prize in Chemistry. This lecture series will introduce a range of experimental biophysics techniques (both old and new) and present examples of their applications. Methods covered will include: advanced light microscopy, miniaturised technology (microfluidics), spectroscopy (fluorescence, absorbance), cryo-EM, x-ray crystallography, micropipettes, optical tweezers, AFM, and synthetic biology (biomimetic lipid vesicles).

Please contact Dr Robinson to register for the course. The course will be online.

Please contact Prof Ralph Graef to register for the course.

The course will be delivered in form of a podcast, that can be found under:

https://www.uni-potsdam.de/db/zeik-portal/intern/moodle/anmeldung01.php?sprache=en

Prof Ralph Graef will additionally offer a zoom connection for Q&A.

Mechanobiology is a new interdisciplinary field of science, which focuses on how mechanics influences biological processes in living organisms. The mechanisms at stake involve different length scales: from the molecular, to the cellular, to the tissue level, and give rise to adaptive behavior like tissue softening or reinforcement depending on their mechanical loading. In this course, we will i) go through the key ingredients and concepts of mechanobiology in mammalian cells, ii) link them to tissue properties and their implication in different fields (e.g. tissue engineering, medicine, development) and iii) get an overview of the major techniques that generated the current knowledge in this field. 

The course will consist of two lectures per week:

Monday 10:30-12:00
Friday 10:30-12:00

starting Nov. 30, 2020 until the beginning of February.

Adjustments can be done in agreement with the participants. The course will be online, information to join will be given upon registration.

Please contact Dr Bidan at cecile.bidan@mpikg.mpg.de for registration.