The second year of the PhasAGE project
The year 2022 was fantastic for the PhasAGE consortium.
We finally got back together after a difficult first year with all limitations imposed by the pandemic situation!
All of the in-person scientific training events in 2022 were a success, reaching a larger audience beyond the consortium and the scientific community.
As the second year of the PhasAGE project comes to a close, we would like to look back and highlight our major achievements and successful outputs that have resulted from the collaborative and hard work of all partners.
The PhasAGE consortium organized 7 scientific events in 2022, including 4 PhasAGE Expert Seminars with senior members of the project core team.
The coordinating institution organized the II Training School on “Biomolecular condensates in cell biology, ageing and disease” in Porto. This event was attended by 24 selected participants and the theoretical and practical sessions were delivered by experts and trainers from the PhasAGE consortium and beyond. Two biotech companies – FIDAbio and Lumicks – were present showcasing a close synergy between academia and industry in this field.
In September, Salvador Ventura and his team organized the Barcelona Protein Aggregation Training School at the Autonomous University of Barcelona. This event was attended by 28 participants from within and beyond the PhasAGE consortium. A representative from Grifols delivered an industry talk on cutting-edge treatments for neurodegenerative diseases.
Peter Tompa from VIB and VUB organized the II PhasAGE International Conference “Biomolecular condensates in biology and disease” in December, with the collaboration of the H2020 MSCA-RISE project IDPfun. The conference was attended by 80 participants from 18 countries, including USA and Australia, featuring novel research and the most recent high-impact achievements in the field. The conference was also attended by members from Dewpoint Therapeutics, a biotech company specialising in biomolecular condensates research, and the corporate venture capital fund M Ventures.
We finish the second year with 17 open-access publications and 8 educational resources including protocols and open lectures from the Training Schools.
This year also featured the implementation of the research and innovation mentorship program and the short-term visits of 5 IBMC/i3S staff members to the partner institutions UniPD and VIB.
The PhasAGE ambassadors continued to deliver our successful scientific workshop for high-school students, passing on the knowledge generated by PhasAGE research to future generations. In addition, PhasAGE was also actively involved in 2 university curricular units from MSc and PhD programs at the University of Porto and the University of Coimbra.
We are grateful to everyone who attended and contributed to our scientific events, making them friendly and inspiring events full of fascinating presentations and workshops, social interaction, and a collaborative spirit. The PhasAGE accomplishments in 2022 reflect not only the positive involvement of all partners but also the scientific community’s interest in the emerging field of phase separation and protein aggregation in aging and human diseases.
Thank you all and we look forward to 2023!