Course on the systems-biology of individualized medicine
Human individuals are all a wee bit different, yet very much the same. We may all succumb to heart disease, arthritis or cancer, but there is no certainty for any one of us; just probabilities. The probability that a medicine applied to a diseased individual works, is 30%. Einstein contended that probabilities only exist by virtue of ignorance. Systems Biology has the potential to reduce this ignorance. A recent example is provided by the genome–wide human metabolic network, which has been reconstructed by systems biology on the basis of a thorough bioinformatics-aided integration of experimental data. By inserting an individual’s genome sequence plus lifestyle data and by calibrating with functional genomics and physiological data, differences between individuals become understood. ‘Next generation systems biologists’ may soon create an individualized medicine with a 50 % hit rate for each therapy and with actual cures for some of our multifactorial diseases.
Date: January 28-30, 2015
Target audience: This course is for PhD students, postdocs and staff from Academia and industry, aspiring to becoming these next generation systems biologists. It reviews recent progress and future potential in this endeavor, with some in silico hands-on practicing.
Program: http://icsb-nl.nl/
Course website: http://isbe-nl.nl
