Winter Class ‘Modeling Growth and Metabolism of Microorganisms’

This Winterclass is organised by the PhD Track Computational Life Sciences of the Graduate School of Life Sciences and the Utrecht University Complex System Studies.

Background:
In a string of recent, highly influential papers, mathematical models went hand in hand with experiments to greatly increase our understanding of the growth and metabolism of microorganisms. Coarse-grained mathematical models were used to describe steady-state growth at the population level under a wide range of external conditions. Interestingly, at the same time models were developed to describe the stochastic nature of cellular growth. Owing to their quantitative success and their predictive power, mathematical models have become of great importance in cellular biology. In this Winter Class we will therefore discuss a number of influential mathematical modeling techniques and their applications to growth and metabolism. Subjects and techniques covered will include: coarse-grained modeling, Flux Balance Analysis, stochastic calculations.

Lecturers:
Dr. Frank Bruggeman (VU, Amsterdam)
Dr. Vahid Shahrezaei (Imperial College, London)

Speakers:
Pieter Rein ten Wolde (AMOLF, Amsterdam)
Ralf Steuer (Humboldt-Universität, Berlin)
Bob Planqué (VU, Amsterdam)
Andrea Weiße
More T.B.A.

Setting:
In an informal setting modeling experts will talk about their recent work in the field of mathematical modeling. On both days there will be a hands-on session where we will get acquainted with the techniques used in a recent paper, after an introductory talk by the author. These papers will need to be read in advance.

Audience:
We think this Winter Class will be interesting for PhD students with a background in Theoretical or Computational Biology, whose main focus is on theory. However, experimentalists that want to dive deeper into the subject of modeling, are welcome as well.

Costs:
Attending this two day Winter Class is free of charge. The Winter Class includes: two days of talks and lectures, lunch on both Thursday and Friday and dinner on Thursday (pizza!). Accommodation is not included.

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