European collaborations taking shape - BioSynSys/MaxSynBio Symposium 2019
From 20-22 of November 2019, one of this year’s last large synthetic biology conferences in Europe took place in Bordeaux, France. It was hosted by BioSynSys, the French symposium on synthetic and systems biology, and co-organized with MaxSynBio, the German Max Planck research network in synthetic biology, and SynBio France, the newly founded French synthetic biology association.
The BioSynSys conferences have grown over the past few years and have steadily increased their outreach and partners. Last year, BioSynSys and EuSynBioS teamed up for a joint 2018 symposium in Toulouse. This time, the collaboration with MaxSynBio, one of the world’s top engines for bottom-up synthetic biology, added further weight to the quality and outreach of the conference. Researchers from across Europe and beyond came together in the historical center of Bordeaux for three days of talks, poster sessions and panel discussions. The four conference sessions, designated as “DESIGN, BUILD, TEST, LEARN”, covered a variety of complementary synthetic biology topics, ranging from proto-cell compartments and cell-free systems over metabolic engineering to biosensors and industrial biotechnology.
Encouraging, the conference offered selected young researchers presenting a poster the possibility to pitch their results in three minutes in front of the audience, a good way of preparing and learning for future talks. Young researchers were also in the focus of the panel discussion of the invited synthetic biology associations. “Training of synbio researchers” was chosen over “standardization” and “sharing is caring” by the audience from a short list of topics. Thus, along with the audience, the German GASB, the French SynBio France, the British SynBio UK, the Canadian SynBio Canada and EUSynBioS engaged in a vivid and essential discussion on whether there should be a specific training of researchers in synthetic biology, and if yes, what it should include and look like. Although no direct consensus was reached, the discussion emphasized the challenges that synthetic biology is facing at the moment. On the one hand synthetic biology is growing so fast that it is almost impossible to define it precisely, since it encompasses aspects from disciplines as diverse as physics, computer science, biology and engineering, if not even more. On the other hand, collaboration is needed more then ever to bridge those disciplines and to respond to the growing demand of synthetic biology researchers with an interdisciplinary training.
In a keynote talk showing the rewards of broad collaboration, Prof. Kai Sundmacher, chief coordinator of MaxSynBio, presented the results of the MaxSynBio project, an initiative including nine Max Planck Institutes across Germany and further international partners, such as the group of Prof. Jean-Christophe Baret in Bordeaux. Moreover, Prof. Gilles Truan from the National Institute of Applied Sciences in Toulouse (INSA Toulouse) announced the creation of the International Network in Synthetic Biology, a European synthetic biology network that could further help establish cross-border scientific collaboration.
Last but not least the synthetic biology associations had the opportunity to meet in person and express their visions and goals for synthetic biology on the national and European level. Now that many associations have been established, it is of great importance to find a common framework to work more efficiently and avoid redundancy or competition. Setting a clear relationship and working together will be crucial for the future of synthetic biology in Europe, from engaging prospective students, communicating with the public, networking with industry and dealing with national and international regulations and policies. In the end, every association will be essential in this process, and we look forward to working together with everyone to shape future synthetic biology in Europe.
