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Biological Making of Materials 2023

DIGS-BB Summer School
Sept 11–15, 2023
TU Dresden (Germany)

© Zlotnikov Group

Refined over millions of years of evolution, biological materials such as bone, wood and shells are of spectacular beauty and teach us the principles of material design and synthesis. Biological materials are inherently multifunctional and display diverse material properties that we cannot yet reproduce by synthetic routes. They are often composed of a remarkably small number of simple building blocks which are hierarchically structured. The function and properties of biogenic materials depend on the controlled organization of those building blocks at multiple scales which is brought about by the action of the organism’s processing machinery. Understanding the design and production of biological materials (learning from nature) is pivotal to develop new fabrication strategies for the manufacturing of advanced materials with structure and properties mimicking biogenic materials with high precision.

This DIGS-BB Summer School, primarily aimed at Master’s and advanced Bachelor’s students, brings together local experts from the PoL, CRTD, BIOTEC, B CUBE, Faculty of Biology, as well as MPI-CBG, IPF, and IFW with renowned external scientists in the field of biomaterial research and interested students. The school will consist of scientific talks, methods lectures and hands-on sessions in participating labs. The 5-day program includes ample time for stimulating discussion and social activities, and is tailored to foster interdisciplinary collaboration which is a hallmark of the Dresden Science and Innovation campus.

In this summer school, which will focus on how organisms control and tune their properties, you will learn about the fundamental principles underlying the formation of diverse biological materials and you will be introduced to many advanced tools used to investigate them. Moreover, the school will provide insight into how the architecture and hierarchical organization of biological materials can inspire the design of novel and sustainable materials.

The logo of the DIGS-BB with a hand-drawn sun around the last letter and the words Summer School

Speakers – Symposium

Open to the campus!

If you’re working on campus, you’re welcome to come and listen to the talks of the following speakers on Monday and Tuesday – no registration needed!

Portrait Knut Drescher

Knut Drescher

Biozentrum, University of Basel, Switzerland

Emergent Functions of Bacterial Biofilm (Expert Lecture: Biofilms)

biosketch

Portrait Pupa Gilbert

Pupa Gilbert

University of Wisconsin-Madison, USA

Coral Reef Formation from Nanometers to Kilometers (Expert Lecture: Biomaterials)

Portrait Franziska Jehle

Franziska Jehle

Max Planck Institute of Colloids and Interfaces

Expert Lecture: Protein Based Materials

biosketch

Portrait Mathias Kolle

Mathias Kolle

MIT, Cambridge, MA, USA

On Butterflies and Bio-Inspired Dynamic Optics: How Structures Form and Deform to Manipulate Light and Color (Expert Lecture: Polysaccharides Based Materials)

biosketch

Staffan Persson

University of Copenhagen, Denmark

Cellulose Synthesis in Land Plants (Expert Lecture: Polysaccharides Based Material)

Portrait Boaz Pokroy

Boaz Pokroy

Israel Institute of Technology, Israel

Materials Design Strategies in Biomineralization and Their Implementation in Synthetic Systems (Expert Lecture: Biominerals)

biosketch

Portrait Yael Politi

Yael Politi

B CUBE, TU Dresden

Welcome Introduction

Anna Rising close-up with blurred greenery in the background

Anna Rising

Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden

Spider Silk Biomimicry (Expert Lecture: Protein Based Materials)

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Portrait Cecília Roque

Cecília Roque

Universidade NOVA de Lisboa, Portugal

Bioinspired Systems in Separation and Sensing (Expert Lecture: Protein Based Materials)

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Portrait James Weaver

James Weaver

Wyss Institute for Biologically Inspired Engineering at Harvard University

Keynote: High Resolution Multi-Material Additive Manufacturing: 3D Fabrication of Biologically Inspired Structures

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Speakers and Practical Tutors – School

These speakers will give talks and practicals for registered participants of the summer school

Portrait Simon Alberti

Simon Alberti

BIOTEC, TU Dresden

Methodological Lecture: Biomolecular Condensates

Portrait Henrik Bringmann

Henrik Bringmann

BIOTEC, TU Dresden

Methodological Lecture: Site Specific Recombination in Model Organisms

Portrait Christian Dahmann

Christian Dahmann

Faculty of Biology, TU Dresden

Methodological Lecture: Applications of the CRISPR/Cas Technology

Portrait Elisabeth Fischer-Friedrich

Elisabeth Fischer-Friedrich

PoL, TU Dresden

Methodological Lecture: Nanomechanics; Hand-On Session: High resolution imaging with atomic force microscopy on the surface of Drosophila egg chambers

Portrait Benjamin Friedrich

Benjamin Friedrich

PoL and cfaed, TU Dresden

Methodological Lecture: Modelling of Pattern Formation

Marc Gentzel

CMCB Technology Platform, TU Dresden

Methodological Lecture: Mass Spectrometry

Portrait Hella Hartmann

Hella Hartmann

CMCB Technology Platform, TU Dresden

Methodological Lecture: Overview of Light Microscopy Techniques

Portrait Gargi Joshi

Gargi Joshi

B CUBE, TU Dresden

Hands-On Session: Chitin Self-Assembly into Hierarchically Structured Materials

Portrait Franziska Knopf

Franziska Knopf

CRTD and Center for Healthy Aging, Faculty of Medicine, TU Dresden

Hands-On Session: Collagen Deposition in Zebrafish

Portrait Nils Kröger

Nils Kröger

B CUBE, TU Dresden

Methodological Lecture: Genetic Engineering of Diatoms; Hands-On Session: Molecular Mechanisms of Material Formation by Microalgae

Thomas Kurth

CMCB Technology Platform, TU Dresden

Methodological Lecture: Overview of Electron Microscopy Techniques

Alejandra Cristina López Delgado

CRTD, TU Dresden

Hands-On Session: Collagen Deposition in Zebrafish

Portrait Rita Mateus

Rita Mateus

PoL, TU Dresden and MPI-CBG

Methodological Lecture: Form Leading to Function at the Subcellular Scale

Mariana Medina-Sánchez

IFW and B CUBE, TU Dresden

Methodological Lecture: Microscaffolds to study early bone formation

Portrait Aurimas Narkevicius

Aurimas Narkevicius

B CUBE, TU Dresden

Hands-On Session: Chitin Self-Assembly into Hierarchically Structured Materials

Portrait Nicole Poulsen

Nicole Poulsen

B CUBE, TU Dresden

Hands-On Session: Molecular Mechanisms of Material Formation by Microalgae

Portrait André Scheffel

André Scheffel

Faculty of Biology, TU Dresden

Hands-On Session: Molecular Mechanisms of Material Formation by Microalgae

Portrait Michael Schlierf

Michael Schlierf

B CUBE, TU Dresden

Hands-On Session: Molecular Mechanisms of Material Formation by Microalgae

Portrait Oliver Späker

Oliver Späker

B CUBE, TU Dresden

Methodological Lecture: X-Ray Scattering and Imaging

Portrait Axel Spickenheuer

Axel Spickenheuer

IPF

Methodological Lecture: Use and limitations of biological structural principles for lightweight composite design

Portrait André Eccel Vellwock

André Eccel Vellwock

B CUBE, TU Dresden

Hands-On Session: Chitin Self-Assembly into Hierarchically Structured Materials

Portrait Carsten Werner

Carsten Werner

IPF

Methodological Lectures

Portrait Igor Zlotnikov

Igor Zlotnikov

B CUBE, TU Dresden

Methodological Lecture: Nanomechanics; Hands-On Session: Structural, Crystallographic and Mechanical Analysis of Biomineralized Materials

Program Overview

  • Two-day symposium – open to the campus
    Keynote speaker: James Weaver (at Hygiene-Museum Dresden)
  • Scientific talks
  • Method lectures
  • Practical sessions (select one of the group projects and work on the project for three days)
  • Meet the expert session
  • Presentation of the project results
  • City tour

Detailed Schedule

Organizers

Dr. Arantxa Sánchez Fernández

Arantxa Sánchez Fernández

DIGS-BB – Chief Coordinator of PhD Program

Please contact Arantxa in case of questions:

Portrait Luca Bertinetti

Luca Bertinetti

B CUBE, TU Dresden

Portrait Elisabeth Fischer-Friedrich

Elisabeth Fischer-Friedrich

PoL, TU Dresden

Portrait Franziska Knopf

Franziska Knopf

CRTD and Center for Healthy Aging, Faculty of Medicine, TU Dresden

Portrait Igor Zlotnikov

Igor Zlotnikov

B CUBE, TU Dresden